Im looking to replace my powerglide pretty soon to a 3 speed automatic....any suggestions of what i should get? looking to get one from summit racing...and this needs to handle daily driving, getting the engine rebuilt also... what are some good brands? does a 350 bolt right in? Do i have to change anything in the rear end? not looking to race just to be reliable and help on gas i have a 340 5.6L lesabre all stock. thanks
the 350 should be a bolt in ,no driveshaft cut or rear end change needed might even be able to change to a better gas mile gearing with the 350 deep first(2.55 or 2.75 i cant remeber which) just find a way to hook up a passing gear cable(detent) to carb i would check local shops for stock rebuild and possible look in junk yard for a core , you could even get a lock up 350 from a 81-87 regal/grand prix/cutlass/g body wagons and other rear wheel drive with a buick v6 or olds 307(if the trans has a "metric"stamped in pan leave it) with lock up it will be like a fourth gear as you would not loose slip in convertor you would just need to get a kit to turn it on and off
am i looking to get a foward shift or reverse shift...????? i dont know much at all about trannys. thats why im looking at summit right now cuz they seem to have alot.
forward or regular shift is what you want it would be - P RND21 reverse pattern P RN12D-most use this with race pattern shifters
the tci 311100 you will need to confirm lenght of your trans to get the right length tailshaft housing i dont know what it is in your car but i would guess 6 in you can measure your trans and compare it to tci website trans specs for 350 and for power glide
GREAT! thanks. How hard is this job for me to do alone with a buddy or two? is it straight bolt on and go or are there mechanical things beyonfd my abilities involved? im not good with tranny related issues at all.... rick
2 guys and a good floor jack should be ok job to do i would drain the fluid first(take off pan) otherwise you will be laying in it the whole time you will need a detent/downshift cable the trans will work wthout it hooked to carb but it will need to be there so fluid wont leak,get a ne dipstick and matching tube
metric 's are lockup but there are 2 one is a 3 speed th200- its junk for any hp,has square pan with corner cut off the other has 4 speeds 200r4 can be built but somewhat costly has a long pan shaped similar to the state of illinois
do new trans usually come with their own down shift switch or do i already have to own one? i remember my grandpa said it used to have one on there but he said it busted and hasn't been able to find one since.
can i use any kick down switch or do i have to have one made specifically for my car? where can you get the tube and dipstick?
The THM 350 uses a downshift (detent) cable, not a switch. The tube and dip stick can be had in any junk yard I would think, or if you want a new one this is one possibility. http://store.summitracing.com/partdetail.asp?autofilter=1&part=HUP-HP3235&N=700+0&autoview=sku
how does the cable work, does it kick in once the carb uses more gas which is determined by the depression of the gas pedal?
The cable is adjusted so that it reaches it's full travel at wide open throttle. Basically, it tells the transmission valve body what the throttle position is. In the same way, the governor tells the road speed, and the vacuum modulator tells engine load. The valve body uses those 3 inputs to determine shift points and line pressure (shift feel).
