The kitting of transmission parts has made profitable shop operation possible. When a kit with 100 parts is necessary, a distributor has already assembled all the important components into the kit and it is typically sitting on the shelf ready to be delivered. Kitting saves time and effort for both the shop and the supplying distributor.
Still more efficiency has been added over the years as distributors have consolidated a number of related transmission units into a single kit. For instance, a popular GM/Ford six-speed kit provides components for 6T70, 6T75 and 6T80 as well as the 6F50 and 6F55 units. While there will be a few components left over regardless of the build, the consolidation of these nearly identical units makes sense for the parts distributor that can keep a single kit in inventory as opposed to having five kits on the shelves. The savings for the distributor means savings for the shop as well.
Kit consolidation has been around for a long time. In the company’s earliest days, the original owner of Stellar Automotive specialized in purchasing the brand new parts from such consolidated kits from retail shops. These surplus parts were sorted and then sold back to distributors for inclusion in their kits. Recycling soft parts for the industry joined the recycling of hard parts and cores as part of the business methodology of the transmission aftermarket.
On the following pages, we offer this year’s list of companies supplying kits. Some have virtually everything needed while others specialize in upgraded or shift-modifying kits. Only companies responding to our 2023 survey of kit suppliers are included. Furthermore, we have limited the kits listed to the most popular units. The listed kits account for about 95% of kits sold over the past couple of years.
Companies that supply kits to the powertrain aftermarket are listed in alphabetical order. On the matrix pages, an abbreviated name is used. The abbreviated name shows in the alphabetical listing in [brackets]. Because data changes frequently, only organizations that have updated information with Transmission Digest in the recent past are included. Matrix pages show unit by unit, top-selling kits supplied by each company.
Every precaution has been taken in the preparation of these listings, however, the publisher assumes no liability for errors or omissions.
