B Body 904 Transmission int a 65 A Body

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J

Jesters65

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I have a 904 transmission that came out of a 68 Charger that I want to put into my 1965 Dart.
Can anyone tell me what I will need different as far as linkage/speedo cable/kickdown etc?
Will I still be able to use the floor shifter I have or will I need to swap it out.

Any and all help is greatly appreciated.
 
I'll try to remember everything. Is the trans for the same engine family? slant six, small block, big block. cannot interchange between families.
1) 65 Is cable shifted, 68 is mechanical linkage. So different shifter needed
2) need speedo cable for a 66 "A" body
3) New driveshaft. 65 uses a B&T front u-joint. 68 trans uses a "normal" slip yoke and u- joint.
4) Have to modify wiring for backup lites and neutral safety switch.
5) I think you can use the same kickdown linkage, but will probably need to swap the lever on the trans
 
Yes, both are for a small block
1. Ok, kinda figured that
2. Gotcha
3. Yikes. Wasn't expecting that one
4. How hard is that to do?
5. Ok

Thanks for the advice
 
3) If the 68 trans has the "short" style tail housing, you could probably get a drive shaft from a similar wheel base 66 up "A" body
4) easy

PS: If you do this swap, be careful of the 65 shifter and park cables. They are getting hard to find. you should be able to sell them
 
Do you have the stock 273 in your Dart? If so, the register in the back of the crank is smaller than the nose on the front of the 68 torque converter. If you have a later small block in your Dart, that may not be a problem. If you do have the 273, you might have to get a new converter made with the smaller nose like a 65 converter would have had, and the proper splines inside for the later trans. If you ever swap to a later LA engine, the good news is that you won't have to hunt yet another converter. Someone makes an adapter ring to go from small nosed converter to larger register in the end of the crank.
 
I have a rebuilt 1967 273 with the original 65 904 transmission in it.
The 68 transmission didn't come with a torque converter
 
What JD said ^^
Hughes made me a converter to do exactly that
It wasn't expensive

Linkage I went lokar and while it's great it's also a compromise.
Shifter will have to change or be modified. Had to clearance the floor for the kickdown and used a Hurst V Matic to shift it via cable.

Hurst/B&M/etc aren't so cheap anymore and having the original shifter modified is $$$ and may not be a good option.
I'd try to source original type linkage if at all feasible

All this stuff will add up quick!

Edit: took out some bad info I posted
 
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I can't remember which year the register in the tail of the crank got bigger, but I think it was 68. You can get a set of calipers to measure the inside diameter of the register before you order a converter. Hopefully, I explained it to where it makes sense. The later style transmissions have different spline counts on the input shaft than the 65 does, so that's why you can't simply reuse your existing converter.
 
Understood. I appreciate the info. Another member on here said that I will need to replace the driveshaft because that's different as well.
Definitely more involved than I thought
 
66 Dart driveshaft, Valiant won't work because of the different wheelbase and I think 67 Dart also has a different wheelbase than a 66.
 
JDMopar said:
I can't remember which year the register in the tail of the crank got bigger, but I think it was 68. You can get a set of calipers to measure the inside diameter of the register before you order a converter. Hopefully, I explained it to where it makes sense. The later style transmissions have different spline counts on the input shaft than the 65 does, so that's why you can't simply reuse your existing converter.
Click to expand...
Only the slant 6 and the 273 has a small crank hub and they used it until the end of production, LA318 on the other hand only has the large hub. The slant 6 hub upsized in 68 the above statement only applies to the 273.
 
There is a certain type of aftermarket shifter you can use and it fits under your stock shifter cover, but I can't remember which shifter? I think it was @pishta that did that in his Barracuda.
 
@toolmanmike Did the register in the rear of the crank get bigger on 68 273's? I thought they did when 273 four barrel motors went away in 68 because that was the year 340's were the HiPo motor for A bodies. Just want to make sure I'm telling the OP the correct info.
 
JDMopar said:
Do you have the stock 273 in your Dart? If so, the register in the back of the crank is smaller than the nose on the front of the 68 torque converter. If you have a later small block in your Dart, that may not be a problem. If you do have the 273, you might have to get a new converter made with the smaller nose like a 65 converter would have had, and the proper splines inside for the later trans. If you ever swap to a later LA engine, the good news is that you won't have to hunt yet another converter. Someone makes an adapter ring to go from small nosed converter to larger register in the end of the crank.
Click to expand...
That is correct. I forgot about that (sorry). Slant six, and small block had the small crank pocket through 1967. Pocket went large in 1968, also the transmission input spline changed in those same years. So to use a 1968 or later trans, behind a 67 or older small block or slant six, you need a custom torque converter, with the late input splines and the small crank pilot. Need to use the older flexplate.
 
Hurst pro-matic 2 fits and lookse stock (round ball and HURST).if you cut the hangers on the tunnel and mount to the tunnel top like a standard shifter mount.
 
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