I’m sure that the weight plays a big role in whether a 400 will live or not . I am 4 x 4 though . Brett is 2 wheel drive and probably 1000#s or more lighter than my truck . Not sure a person can get 3.00 or 3.25 matching gear sets for 11.5/9.25 diffs . I’m not looking to go 2 wheel drive . I love
hooking up solid on the street same as the track .
weight wont be an issue. a 900hp trophy truck runs the same trans and that is WAY harder than any 1500-2k hp drag truck will be on a trans. The aftermarket availability of a 400 is well beyond what the 4l80 has. you can make them 1 speed, 2 speed or 3 speed with just about any option for gear ratios to put inside that you can think of from 1:1 and under.
But this thread isnt about keeping 4wd and the stock 11.5/9.25. Its ricks car where this is much better suited.
the more power you make and the faster you want to go, the less gears you will want/need. thats what the torque is for UNLESS you are governed by a racing sanction as to what you can run for a trans. this is why funny cars/top fuel run a direct drive slipper clutch, the outlaw guys running sub 4 sec 1/8 mile run power glides or 2 speed th400, and so on. if you get a good converter to match the torque/power curve and have the power to make less gears work, it will be in your favor. the converter in those cars is like a hydraulic slipper clutch till hp starts to surpass torque.