a833 into a '63 Valiant

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oldmodlover

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Looking at a a833 tranny. Came from a '67 l was told. It has the forward shifter mount.
What is involved in installing it place of a 3 speed in a '63 Valiant ?

Car is a slant 6 and currently 3 on the tree but l was planning on going floor shift anyhow because l have a complete 230 setup.
Any big hassles / hurdles in installing the 4 speed?
 
A couple of quick things come to mind: You'll need a slant 6 bellhousing (and possibly flywheel) from an early A- if I'm not mistaken, they weren't dual pattern and 3 & 4 speeds each had their own dedicated bellhousing; clutch linkage MAY be the same, or at least workable; you'll need the early A floor hump, or be able to fab something similar; you'll need a non-ball and trunion driveshaft to fit the '67 trans.; the '66/67 trans, if I recall correctly, had a smaller output shaft than other 4 spds. but is the same as a 230/904 yoke? I could be mistaken about that, but I'm pretty sure... I think the speedo drive will hook up with a '66 ('67?) cable.
 
You will need a 64 4spd bell housing for the clutch linkage to line up without custom fabrication a driveshaft from a 66 valiant will fit without cutting not sure on the later years but 108 wheel base is what you want. Transmission tunnel hump from an early A 4spd car and of coarse an 833 transmission from an Abody
 
It would be easier to use 65 and under A833 and all related parts. If you did this it's just a bolt in install and a floor tunnel from a 63-65 .
 
Looking at a a833 tranny. Came from a '67 l was told. It has the forward shifter mount.
What is involved in installing it place of a 3 speed in a '63 Valiant ?

Car is a slant 6 and currently 3 on the tree but l was planning on going floor shift anyhow because l have a complete 230 setup.
Any big hassles / hurdles in installing the 4 speed?

Not really. It's pretty straight forward. What you gonna do with the A230?
 
The 64-65 ball and trunion four speed with the lower gear 3.09 first would be a better choice with the slant six. Plus there cheap and you get t use your current drive shaft. If the car is a stock manual three speed it's a direct bolt on to the back of your cast iron bell housing. All the linkages fork bell crank torque shaft will work. You just need to open up the floor in two places get the correct linkages and your ready to fly.
 
I called Brewers. I got my answer..
Trans is from a B body.
Torsion bar mount is in way of shifter.
Basically won't work.
I’ve got a 65 4 speed out west that I’d make you a deal on if you were interested. PM me.

Jake
 
The 64-65 ball and trunion four speed with the lower gear 3.09 first would be a better choice with the slant six. Plus there cheap and you get t use your current drive shaft. If the car is a stock manual three speed it's a direct bolt on to the back of your cast iron bell housing. All the linkages fork bell crank torque shaft will work. You just need to open up the floor in two places get the correct linkages and your ready to fly.

They are also arguably stronger than the slip yoke 833.
 
They are also arguably stronger than the slip yoke 833.
Yep, just ask MR.WEDGE

IMG_1107.JPG
 
You can do the 4 speed with that slant but you need a dedicated 4 speed slant bell, there are 2 cast numbers, don't have them in front of me, I have one. They are not cheap nor easy to get. I bet your 3 spd has the provision for a floor shift??? IF so that is the most economical route unless you just want the 4 speed. There are also A833 OD trans and they take a dedicated bell, many were found in F bodies ( Volaries, Aspens,) some pickups.
LIke said, Brewer Perf. is a great source of info and parts.
 
The 64-65 ball and trunion four speed with the lower gear 3.09 first would be a better choice with the slant six. Plus there cheap and you get t use your current drive shaft. If the car is a stock manual three speed it's a direct bolt on to the back of your cast iron bell housing. All the linkages fork bell crank torque shaft will work. You just need to open up the floor in two places get the correct linkages and your ready to fly.

The driveshaft that came with the car is junk.
Car had been picked up with a fork lift at some point and bent it.
Probably sticking with the 230 for now.
Thanks for your reply
 
I used the 63-65 stuff in my 65 Valiant station wagon when I took out the automatic and everything from the 3 speed worked except the bell. After the automatic it was a 3 speed then in went the 4 speed a year later. I do have these transmissions and may even have a correct bell .I'm in NY on Long Island
 
I used the 63-65 stuff in my 65 Valiant station wagon when I took out the automatic and everything from the 3 speed worked except the bell. After the automatic it was a 3 speed then in went the 4 speed a year later. I do have these transmissions and may even have a correct bell .I'm in NY on Long Island

I have collected up some bellhousing. I should be able to make one work.
I will keep you in mind
 
AFAIK, both the A230 and the A833 have the same bolt pattern, so should take the same bell.
Physically they are very similar. The output shafts can be the same.
As for the B-body trans not fitting, I think that is a mistake. You can grind off the front shifter mount for clearance, then use the rear mount, with a new home-built adapter-plate. This gives you a chance to put the shifter wherever you want to.
I did this on a 68 Barracuda, putting the shifter about 7 inches to the rear, between the buckets, next to my thigh, and jacked it up high enough to install the top shifter mounting bolt from inside the cab. Then I fabbed up some longer rods using stout tubing and pirated ends. Finally, I used a very short shift handle. It sounds like a lotta work, but only took me a few hours.
I agree with the Commando 3.09 low box being a better fit for a slanty, but second gear is then further away, so in compensation,you might have to rev first gear higher than what you are accustomed to, to drop into second in a better place. I don't think this will be too much of a bother. The 2.66low gear box has a tighter 1-2 split, otherwise they are ~same.
The long-tail will have a 727-sized slip-yoke on it but that don't bother you either on account of the driveshaft will have to be shortened anyway. This will be an extra cost.
The short-tail Commando will bolt right in.Only the Commando will bolt up to the 3-pot coupler.
The A230 is a short-tail, and will need a new driveshaft as well, different from any of the above.

IMO any 4 speed for a slanty is a good deal, because the ratios are much closer together than in a three-speed. You will have the right gear for the circumstances more often. A 5-speed would be even better.
 
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You may want to double check the front bearing retainers on your 230 transmissions and compare them with the holes in your bellhousings. I think a few years had a different diameter, like many of the 833's. Getting rid of that old 903 is a good move. Those things were junk. Going with a modern u-joint over that ball and trunion is a define upgrade too.....not that your S6 would likely hurt it!
 
They were a bit bigger on the max wedge cars over a slant 6 Abody, but, they still broke a few of the big ones too. The later style u-joints are just a better design, less maintenance, cheaper to buy, and less hassle to replace.
 
Nothing wrong with B&Ts, they're just getting difficult to find rebuild kits for... u-joints, no prob.
 
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