A500 Swap/upgrade, advice welcome

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indirect_connection

indirect_connection

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Picked up an A500 trans out of a 89 Dakota. Plan on building it and replacing the 904 currently in my 68 Dart. The existing combo includes a 5.9 Magnum from a Dakota, with Edelbrock heads and a mild cam (like 213/219 @.050). Currently connected through the upgraded stock 904, to a Ford 8.8 axle. I picked up a Holley trans tunnel brace to facilitate regaining some of the strength lost when the crossmember is cut.
holley.jpg



I know that the earlier trans aren't as good as the later ones, but it's what I could find and the price was right. Current plans include:

1) Replacing clutches and seals. Plan on using Red Alto clutches and 2nd band. Any real reason to upgrade the reverse band? I figure I won't be romping on it going backwards... Also, I've heard I need to use thinner clutches in the Direct drum. Are the thinner clutches the ones used in the Forward clutch?

2) I think the overdrive unit is know to be week. The 5.9 Magnum came with a toasted 46re. I think I can use the overdrive unit out of it. Let me know if I'm wrong.

3) Shift kit. I've installed a few before, the SHIFT TF-TC, and the basic Trans-go shift improvement kit. Should I go for the TF2 kit for this build?

4) Some sort of mild stall converter. Haven't looked into it much yet. Needs to have a lock-up clutch, so I'm sure there will be less options that for a 904/727.

Anything else I need to upgrade? Any other parts from the 46re work on the a500?

IMG_4392.jpg

Just a little dirty! As bad is it looks on the outside, the fluid was still red and no chunks of metal in the pan.

IMG_4394.jpg


Cleaned up a500 on the right, smoked 46re on the right.
 
In the OD section, The 46RE will not have the oil supply tubes or the governor components that you will find in the RH model
 
I thought about using the 46, but it either required an expensive controller or a conversion to full manual valve body. I was also given the impression it required more floor pan mods. The Holley brace I bought was on clearance. I bought it before I even had a trans. Looks like they just added black paint and jacked the price by 40 bucks…
 
The controller is $$, but mine works great. The floor pan mods are the same, you have to remove the upper crossmember and beat the floor in a few spots for both transmissions.
 
The out-put shaft has a hole drilled through it, on the RH unit, for the governor cross pin, no hole in the RE. Out put shaft would need to be swapped too
1767923681557.png
 
Last edited:
indirect_connection said:
1) Replacing clutches and seals. Plan on using Red Alto clutches and 2nd band. Any real reason to upgrade the reverse band? I figure I won't be romping on it going backwards... Also, I've heard I need to use thinner clutches in the Direct drum. Are the thinner clutches the ones used in the Forward clutch?

4) Some sort of mild stall converter. Haven't looked into it much yet. Needs to have a lock-up clutch, so I'm sure there will be less options that for a 904/727.
Click to expand...

I’m also about to do an A500 swap behind a 5.7L Hemi. For the lockup converter, I’ve seen people recommend Edge Racing Converters. They have two versions.
Mild Street Edge Converter for Chrysler A500(42RHRE)

I’ll be interested to hear more about the thinner clutches and plates. I’ve seen some do that, including Cope, but haven’t seen part numbers.
 
indirect_connection said:
I've heard I need to use thinner clutches in the Direct drum.
Click to expand...
wish4hemi said:
I’ll be interested to hear more about the thinner clutches and plates. I’ve seen some do that, including Cope, but haven’t seen part numbers.
Click to expand...
Thinner frictions and steels are not chosen just because they are thin. There is a given amount of space in the drum. That given space was designed for a certain number of frictions and steels at the original factory thickness. The number varies in some drums based on torque capacity of the transmission, like an additional friction and steel for heavy duty truck.

The thinner pieces are sometimes used to get an additional friction and steel into the drum at the same total clutch pack thickness. The extra friction adds to the "holding capacity" of that drum.
 

Bobzilla said:
The thinner pieces are sometimes used to get an additional friction and steel into the drum at the same total clutch pack thickness. The extra friction adds to the "holding capacity" of that drum.
Click to expand...

Yes, I understand the concept but don’t know where to get the physical parts. My drum is for five clutches and I’d like to fit six.
 
wish4hemi said:
Yes, I understand the concept but don’t know where to get the physical parts. My drum is for five clutches and I’d like to fit six.
Click to expand...
See post 12. You order those parts from dedicated transmission supply house or builder. They will also help you choose the right parts for your application. No reason to buy a bunch of race parts for use in a street car with 400 horsepower, for example.
 
Looking into it, it looks like you can get the clutches in .063 or .086. Using the thin plates may just allow you to sneak an extra one in. The math seems really close depending on the thickness of the extra steel disk you'll need to add.
 
gdonovan

Thread '42RH / A-500 in a Duster with pictures.'

This thread is for detailing the install of a 42RH or A-500 in an A-Body. This should also apply to either an A-518 or 46RH as well since they have the same overdrive unit as a 42RH.

The car in question is a 1974 Duster with a late model 1994 5.9 with Enginequest heads, CompCams .510 roller & Edelbrock RPM intake. The car currently has 318 manifolds which are going in the trash since I had to cut off the front section of the dual exhaust and H-pipe anyways. The manifolds will be replaced with a '73 340 manifold on the drivers side and a early magnum Dakota manifold on the passenger...
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Some other changes I made on my 42RH:
Sonnax billet accumulator piston 22841-04K. Original plastic piston can warp
Sonnax manual valve 22771-09. Allows converter to fill in Park
Sonnax pressure regulated valve 22771A-02K. Improves cooler flow at low RPM.

I think there are at least three different depths of drum recess and perhaps top plates in these transmissions. Those on the 46RE should allow you to fit more clutches and steels but I don't know what will fit from the 46 into the 42. Careful measuring required.
 
TT5.9mag said:
The controller is $$, but mine works great. The floor pan mods are the same, you have to remove the upper crossmember and beat the floor in a few spots for both transmissions.
Click to expand...
Which controller are you using and is it with RH or RE transmission? Is it just manual or fully automatic?
 
Headintheclouds said:
Some other changes I made on my 42RH:
Sonnax billet accumulator piston 22841-04K. Original plastic piston can warp
Sonnax manual valve 22771-09. Allows converter to fill in Park
Sonnax pressure regulated valve 22771A-02K. Improves cooler flow at low RPM.

I think there are at least three different depths of drum recess and perhaps top plates in these transmissions. Those on the 46RE should allow you to fit more clutches and steels but I don't know what will fit from the 46 into the 42. Careful measuring required.
Click to expand...
I used a 44 drum in my 42RH.
 
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