I was chatting with my buggy group and we all fell onto the topic of the Mende 2D, all the cars in our group where bought around 04-07. At the time of the first SCU car was purchased the owner was told the 2d could hold 500 hp, so he put it in his scu thats pushed around by a 450 horse 3.5/turbo honda.

the second bought a funco big 5 and was told it would be fine to hold 450, so he put in a 400hp outback subie

the third bought a su car with a northstar with 400 hp, during that time he was told a 2d could hold atleast 450 as well.

the fourth purchased a twisted tin at the end of 07 and was told that the 2d could hold NO MORE then a stock ls1 375hp and anymore it would pop...and was told they actually recommended goign to a s4 instead.

now none of the cars have had anything serious happen with ther 2ds, and no ones upset, but the big question is do you think the 2d was lowered in hp ratings to push the sequentials out and into the market.


DISCLAIMER::::this is not to be a attack on Mende, just common talk amongst off roaders, just interesting how the 2d was supposed to be ULTRA BA and then when the sequentials came out, it was said to not hold very many ponies and almost fell to e box status

YES.

This could and I am sure it will get interesting.

I am running an E BOX with a 450hp HONDA Turbo 3.5

It has been great so far. I am hoping to last the full season.

When it goes, I will upgrade to the 2D

just sayin

no doubt...

the previous threads have been quoted as 2d SUCKS this is crap, mende is crap, this is not that thread, just a thread wondering if other people have the same question

why did people shell out 10 g's on a mende 2d upgrade beign sold on it being 500hp tranny and then the sequentials come out and the 2d is the black sheep of the industry...

while i do agree that this is a different take on the std 2d thread . i do think the reason they lowered the hp rating was because of some failures . i too had a 2d with a northstar ( not reccomended after the new hp limits were introduced ) i had what i consider very good fortune with the box . keep in mind mendeola was suffering alot of bad press because of some failures , so the logical thing to do would be to offer and reccomend a stronger box , the s4 has stronger gears and a stronger case . i think what they did was appropriate considering the atmosphere they were in . i was not a fan of the lowering of the hp rating , but they did what they thought was best to keep the consumer informed as to the best application of their product . jmho . tim

interesting thread... my take on it, horsepower doesn't break trannies, torque does...

DISCLAIMER: I have not gone over to the O Soto Gari Camp and asked for Replacement Springs for my Turbo !!

I think more than anything it is that the weight of the cars has gone up from say 04 to present. And of course the driver has some responsability too. Also with the blaster series tires and exteme 35 inch and up I am thinking the trans have more to put up with then they did at first.

ive gone threw two 2ds in my ls1 sand limo. i think blowing a 2d has alot to do with the driver.

dont osoto's springs just blow up the motor . tim

I have been paranoid for 3 season now because I was told my turbo Honda would pop the 2d. (no probs thus far)
I also need to run 35" tires but stayed with 33" because that is a no-no too....
Lotsa restrictions on all trannies it seems, I imagine to avoid any kind of class action..

I run 35" extreme #2 cut, 934 cv's and an ls1 in a heavy car. I have 4 seasons on my 2D without an issue yet.

My first car was a 4 seat Tatum,Northstar motor( 400hp?),2d tranny.Ran it for three seasons without a single problem.My current car is a Funco Hustler 4 with an LS6 (470 hp according to Turnkey) and a 2d built by Arizona Transaxles with all the possible upgrades.After 2 seasons,third gear broke(the weld).The part was under warranty by Mendeola and the rebuild was done by AZ transaxle.Bill said the tranny looked great after 2 seasons.So,I don't know what to think about these lowered hp ratings.I can say that I'm not super confident with the 2d from all the posts I've read.But my experience has been fairly positive so far running the 2d with a V8.I would love to have the S4D though.

i think cars being bigger and heavier along with the taller tires paved the way for the s4. i still think a 2d would be fine in a 500-600hp lightweight duning car.

I think the numbers were lowered because it was obvious they werent holding up to 500hp motors (regardless of application). As time went by they got a better feel for what the tranny would hold up. The S4x came out to fill a void between the 2d and HD.

see this is what I am talking about, just wanted to see if my group and I were along the same lines as others!! I do agree with the tire debate, as soon as the 35's came out it was a bad day for transmissions

Transaxles break, this is not new news. And I believe driving style has more to do with it than anything else. That being said, as soon as someone offers and indestructable transaxle I'm sure the line will be long........... until they see the cost

Poule............The 2d is certainly NOT an upgrade from an E box....Id run an E box over a 2d anyday of the week! As a matter of fact I did for three full hard seasons and I never had one failure of the E ,while all my friends were rebiulding there POS 2d's every three trips.