Anyone broke a BTS 5r?

Morgan@Midwest Diesel & Auto · Apr 17, 2013

And once you have custom tunes you will not want to go back to generic tunes.

fordman2121 · Apr 17, 2013

I just had hd clutchs put in my 6.4 with an rcd converter and beat the crap out of mine. Now my brother has a bts 4r in his fummins and has broke it 4 or 5 times. He is only 100-150hp higher then me. And I'm on a basicly stock 5r. Side note brian has taken care of my brother everytime not complaining just trying to give u an idea on how tough the 5r really is.

Rubenk · Apr 18, 2013

its sounding like I underestimate the 5r a good bit.

Mike@MPD · Apr 18, 2013

Craig's truck should be a testament to how much a 4r can go through.

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lincolnlocker · Apr 18, 2013

Mike@MPD said:
Craig's truck should be a testament to how much a 4r can go through.

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how many passes are on that 4r and what all has been broke in it at what power level?

Mike@MPD · Apr 18, 2013

I'd say we had about 75-80 10- low 11 sec passes. Went through a converter and one planetary. Truck is a ccsb full interior. A lot of the passes were on spray. Broke a few shafts. Got Brian's strongest shaft and haven't broken it yet

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lincolnlocker · Apr 18, 2013

cool.. thank you sir.

live life full throttle

Chris · Apr 18, 2013

the truck will be faster with the 4r. it will also be more reliable. Some people have great luck with a built 5r, some dont. Weve been installing brians built 5r's since 06. He has experience with them. The problem is the clutch synchronization. It HAS to be perfect or youll tear up direct clutches over time. A 4r is much simpler in its function. If brian is recommending a 4r to you, Id take his advice. Hes got the best service in the industry, bar none. This is why we only deal w/ him.

You have to drive a 6.0 or 6.4 w/ a 4r in it to really appreciate what it adds. Everyone thinks that be giving up a gear youd be going backwards, but theres more to it than meets the eye. The trucks spool faster, accelerate quicker, and smoke less.

We have gotten the swap down 90%. We have no check engine lights, no wrench on the dash, no weird starting or stopping issues. All we have left to do is gear the lights to illuminate correctly on the gear shifter and work out the cruise control. For a 500hp pure daily driver, The 5r is the way to go. If you are pushing 600hp or north, the 4r is the best option as far as performance and reliability goes.

3brorce · Apr 18, 2013

Great post there from Chris B.^^^

Spatel23 · Apr 18, 2013

Mike@MPD said:
I'd say we had about 75-80 10- low 11 sec passes. Went through a converter and one planetary. Truck is a ccsb full interior. A lot of the passes were on spray. Broke a few shafts. Got Brian's strongest shaft and haven't broken it yet

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So it does still have the backseats?
I thought they were taken out for some reason.

Mike@MPD · Apr 18, 2013

They were put for one race last year

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BFT · Apr 18, 2013

I've been looking into getting into a 4r because of the PCS and I don't have to worry about flashing my truck to an auto and dealing with the tranny harness and TCM. I have a manual though

Charles · Apr 18, 2013

The thought of an unbreakable 4R is laughable. They're super breakable. I do just fine pulling it out of my truck in pieces and I never leave the street.

I'm sure with it's simplicity it's more reliable than a 5R, but don't ever get it into your head that it's bulletproof. It's made of metal parts designed and crafted by the hands of mortal men. If you make decent power and like to use it often, it will break.... plenty...

UPINSMOKE · Apr 18, 2013

fordman2121 said:
I just had hd clutchs put in my 6.4 with an rcd converter and beat the crap out of mine. Now my brother has a bts 4r in his fummins and has broke it 4 or 5 times. He is only 100-150hp higher then me. And I'm on a basicly stock 5r. Side note brian has taken care of my brother everytime not complaining just trying to give u an idea on how tough the 5r really is.

Not saying it is the reason but whose tuning is he using for the pcs? Dockboy was hammering transmissions for a while until he got the tuning of the pcs down pat. Might be something your brother should look into...

Charles · Apr 18, 2013

UPINSMOKE said:
Not saying it is the reason but whose tuning is he using for the pcs? Dockboy was hammering transmissions for a while until he got the tuning of the pcs down pat. Might be something your brother should look into...

I would love to know what "bad" tuning and "good" tuning comprises. What exactly was found in error? I may need to call Greg...

UPINSMOKE · Apr 18, 2013

Charles said:
I would love to know what "bad" tuning and "good" tuning comprises. What exactly was found in error? I may need to call Greg...

I couldn't tell you personally. But I know Jason Hoferer was running some of the same pcs tunes on his fummins as Greg, and was having issues until Greg had sent him a more updated file.

fordman2121 · Apr 18, 2013

UPINSMOKE said:
Not saying it is the reason but whose tuning is he using for the pcs? Dockboy was hammering transmissions for a while until he got the tuning of the pcs down pat. Might be something your brother should look into...

He has ran his own tune for awhile then brians son (i think thats who) tuned it. Then he went back to his own tunes and keeps tweaking them. Its dam near perfect now. He has broke it on everyones tunes. I know the first time he ever broke was our fault but that was an ATS shaft. This last time he twisted the hub off the intermediate when he hit the lock up switch on the street just messing around...luckly he coasted right up to the shop door that time.

Crack85 · Apr 18, 2013

Chris said:
the truck will be faster with the 4r. it will also be more reliable. Some people have great luck with a built 5r, some dont. Weve been installing brians built 5r's since 06. He has experience with them. The problem is the clutch synchronization. It HAS to be perfect or youll tear up direct clutches over time. A 4r is much simpler in its function. If brian is recommending a 4r to you, Id take his advice. Hes got the best service in the industry, bar none. This is why we only deal w/ him.

You have to drive a 6.0 or 6.4 w/ a 4r in it to really appreciate what it adds. Everyone thinks that be giving up a gear youd be going backwards, but theres more to it than meets the eye. The trucks spool faster, accelerate quicker, and smoke less.

We have gotten the swap down 90%. We have no check engine lights, no wrench on the dash, no weird starting or stopping issues. All we have left to do is gear the lights to illuminate correctly on the gear shifter and work out the cruise control. For a 500hp pure daily driver, The 5r is the way to go. If you are pushing 600hp or north, the 4r is the best option as far as performance and reliability goes.

I just got off the phone with Brian and this is exactly what he said to me...

Rubenk · Apr 18, 2013

Chris said:
the truck will be faster with the 4r. it will also be more reliable. Some people have great luck with a built 5r, some dont. Weve been installing brians built 5r's since 06. He has experience with them. The problem is the clutch synchronization. It HAS to be perfect or youll tear up direct clutches over time. A 4r is much simpler in its function. If brian is recommending a 4r to you, Id take his advice. Hes got the best service in the industry, bar none. This is why we only deal w/ him.

You have to drive a 6.0 or 6.4 w/ a 4r in it to really appreciate what it adds. Everyone thinks that be giving up a gear youd be going backwards, but theres more to it than meets the eye. The trucks spool faster, accelerate quicker, and smoke less.

We have gotten the swap down 90%. We have no check engine lights, no wrench on the dash, no weird starting or stopping issues. All we have left to do is gear the lights to illuminate correctly on the gear shifter and work out the cruise control. For a 500hp pure daily driver, The 5r is the way to go. If you are pushing 600hp or north, the 4r is the best option as far as performance and reliability goes.

Good post, thanks! I've talked to Brian about it several times and he has discussed the pros/cons of each. I'll talk to him much more once I get the cash to do the build. He is very busy so I try not to bother him unless the truck is down. He has told me to come drive any of his trucks and decide for myself built 4r or 5r, so I'll do that before I decide too.

Charles said:
The thought of an unbreakable 4R is laughable. They're super breakable. I do just fine pulling it out of my truck in pieces and I never leave the street.

I'm sure with it's simplicity it's more reliable than a 5R, but don't ever get it into your head that it's bulletproof. It's made of metal parts designed and crafted by the hands of mortal men. If you make decent power and like to use it often, it will break.... plenty...

You talking about BTS built 4r's?