OD tranny hard to come by?

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KramerSwinger70

KramerSwinger70

70 Dart Swinger360
Joined
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just curious. i have an a904 but i want to have an a500 or a515 OD tranny instead. what cars would i look at in the local pick n pull for these trannys?
 
A518's came out in 1990 and were non lockup trans. Not sure when they went to lockup but it was soon after. All A500's were lockup's. Any trans. after 95 is computer controlled so unless your an electronics guru avoid them. Too bad your not close. I have one of each as cores and I'd take $50 for either. But I'm in Illinois
 
fishy68 said:
A518's came out in 1990 and were non lockup trans. Not sure when they went to lockup but it was soon after. All A500's were lockup's. Any trans. after 95 is computer controlled so unless your an electronics guru avoid them. Too bad your not close. I have one of each as cores and I'd take $50 for either. But I'm in Illinois
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No way dude. All you really need is a regular toggle switch. All the computer does is send power to the overdrive solenoid and close it to make the overdrive activate. nuthin to it.

http://www.hotrod.com/howto/43323_mopar_overdrive_transmission_swap/index.html
 
StrokerScamp said:
No way dude. All you really need is a regular toggle switch. All the computer does is send power to the overdrive solenoid and close it to make the overdrive activate. nuthin to it.

http://www.hotrod.com/howto/43323_mopar_overdrive_transmission_swap/index.html
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On the older models (42rh and 46rh) yes. On the newer ones (42re and 46re) no. They are computer controlled. I have a newer model sitting here and it has a connector that has a whole bunch of connections to interface it with the computer.
 
well an electronic guru i am not. and as far as bein to far away, story of my life! im not really in a hurry just gathering info. the motor is a 360 an i got a 904 with it but they rnt installed into a car yet and wont b for a while. but id prefer an OD tranny over the 3spd when the time comes for building and installing. so pretty much any mopar between 90-94 would have an OD tranny? would an a500 fit the same as an a904?
 
An A500 will bolt up to the engine fine but the tail housing is a bunch bigger because that's where the overdrive parts are located. It'll require modification to the trans crossmember and tunnel if it's being installed in an A-body. You can do a search on here for overdrive and you should come up with several threads some of which have pictures.

BTW: they were only used in vans and trucks so don't bother looking in cars.
 
thanks for the hint. yeah ill eventually be installing into my 70 dart but by the time i will install, i hope to finish school and have the tools and experience to make the modifications....or perhaps just find a someone here near by to help me out!

is the OD worht the modifications neccesary to install? im mainly doin it so i can run at a lower rpm, thereby increasing fuel economy.
 
oh and to be clear. when u say van, does that include mini vans and conversion vans? like will a caravan have em? and any truck or just the rams?
 
since you are a young man going to school...look at this..

figure out what it will cost your to modify the car..and cost of 42rh/46rh trans with converter...including initial cost and cost of having trans rebuild....

then make a guessmation of increased gas mileage.....then figure out many miles you will have to drive to break even....
 
well i kno you guys may think this sounds like a dream, but i plan to install the 360 setup an keep the car for a long time so in the end its worth it to me. its my daily driver and i hope to keep it that way for a loooong time instead of bein forced to drive a blend-in sedan
 
70aarcuda said:
since you are a young man going to school...look at this..

figure out what it will cost your to modify the car..and cost of 42rh/46rh trans with converter...including initial cost and cost of having trans rebuild....

then make a guessmation of increased gas mileage.....then figure out many miles you will have to drive to break even....
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Sometimes it is not about the fuel mileage. Not listening to the motor screaming while driving down the road is kind of nice. My Fairlane has a T5 in it, and everytime I start thinking about putting a top loader back in it I just drive in 4th gear for short while. Car is just a whole lot more pleasant to drive at 2200 rpm at 70 mph instead of 2900 rpm.....
 
inkjunkie said:
Sometimes it is not about the fuel mileage. Not listening to the motor screaming while driving down the road is kind of nice. My Fairlane has a T5 in it, and everytime I start thinking about putting a top loader back in it I just drive in 4th gear for short while. Car is just a whole lot more pleasant to drive at 2200 rpm at 70 mph instead of 2900 rpm.....
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thats another reason. i feel like im beatin the hell outa my car on the highway
 
73charger said:
oh and to be clear. when u say van, does that include mini vans and conversion vans? like will a caravan have em? and any truck or just the rams?
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Rear Wheel drive vehicles, mini vans are front wheel drive. Dakotas as well as Rams and the full vans (conversion vans could be mini vans too).
 
73charger said:
thats another reason. i feel like im beatin the hell outa my car on the highway
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Fuel mileage is real nice but I totaly see your point there. I had 4:10 gears in my car for a while and while it was a ton of fun to blast from zero to 60 in nothing flat it sounded like the engine was going to blow up if I tried to cruise at anything over 60 mph. Got 3:55's in it now and it's tons better. Lost a little take off but at least it drives decent now.
 
fishy68 said:
Fuel mileage is real nice but I totaly see your point there. I had 4:10 gears in my car for a while and while it was a ton of fun to blast from zero to 60 in nothing flat it sounded like the engine was going to blow up if I tried to cruise at anything over 60 mph. Got 3:55's in it now and it's tons better. Lost a little take off but at least it drives decent now.
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yeah i wanna get something like 3/23's or 3.55's in it for speed, acceleration and mileage all in one very cool, and rare car. at least for around my area
 
Supershafts said:
Since you are keeping the car, do it once, and do it the best....... Get a GV.... then you have a 6 spd....
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yeah but gearvendors are over $2k and its not automatic. you gotta install some button dontcha? thats how i understood it. i want to just put it in drive and let the tranny do the work
 
No that isn't true, only on a manual do you have to manually engage it.
On a auto you can leave it on all the time and it'll do it itself, but lets say you were using it at the track, then you can manually engage it for the most performance.
I became a dealer for them after i got my 3rd one... been using them for over 18 years, if you are keeping the car it's a great piece
 
well i was looking into em a while back but an OD tranny would be so much cheaper and easier than a GV anyway. i dont have $2k to throw at a GV...hell i still gotta build my motor, do major body and paint work, interior, ect. not to mention the actual swap.
 
73charger said:
well i was looking into em a while back but an OD tranny would be so much cheaper and easier than a GV anyway. i dont have $2k to throw at a GV...hell i still gotta build my motor, do major body and paint work, interior, ect. not to mention the actual swap.
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Just remember an A-500 trans will probably need to be rebuilt, and "upgraded" If you can't do this yourself, a trans shop will probably charge over $1,000. Call some trans shops to get an estimate. Then you need to modify the floor and cross member (not on the GV), and shorten the driveshaft (also on the GV install).
I'm not saying the CV is a better way, just letting you know the A-500 install is not inexpensive, either. I have long term plans on a A-500 install, on a early "A" body with a slant six. I think I can do the trans rebuild, myself, as I do my own 904 and 727 builds.
 
well in the end is it worth the extra money to get the GV over the a500? though id like to think id do the builds myself, i will more than likely take it to a tranny shop. so it would cost me around $2k anyway, is it worth the $3k for GV? i mean it is a 6spd instead. ive been playin with this idea for a few months now, since i have plenty of time before anything gets done
 
I would take the GV over a 500 all day, if you sell the car, you can keep the GV, just get the shaft re-tubed, put the tailhousing back on and put it on the new car.

If you do need the 500 rebuilt, and don't have a welder for the lowering the mount in the crossmember.... well now the gv is cheap
 
Speaking of gas economy in regards to the over drive... Overdrive will give you about 20-30% increase in fuel economy according to what I have read. I think it's worth it in the long haul. I am looking into installing an A500 into my 67 Dart.

Good luck to you.

Oh and what school are you going to (auto tech school?)
 
All this talk about a GV has me curious. The GV gives you 6 gears? Is it difficult to install on a 727? What type of mods needs to be made? I have a 67 dart with a 727 trans.

Thanks
-Mark
 
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