64 pontiac catalina tranny very weird...

[SpeedRacer2002]

this thing has a clutch and pressure plate but is a automatic no place to fill any fluids and goes behind a 389? anyone know anything about these trannys?? and by the way it has about 3 different linkages on the side of it...

[C9]

It was common to run a clutch in front of an automatic in drag racing cars.
This before really high stall converters and trans brakes were available.

[shifts]

Thats a dampner plate, not a clutch plate. The torque conv is inside the tranny. Its a Roto-hydro aka SlimJim. Whats your problem w/ it? DAVE

[Rocky]

Sounds to me like you may have encountered a {B&M?} GM slant pan hydro with a clutch in front of it. Some of the earlier hydros filled throuogh a very short tube right in the top of the tranny case. If still in the car, [like my 48 Pontiac] you had to remove a plug in the floor on the tranny hump to access the fill tube. I've never seen a hydro with a clutch setup but if the famed "clutchflite" could be fab'd from a mopar torquflite with a clutch, why not a 4 speed hydro with a clutch? Again, I've never seen one.

[Rocky]

Shift's reply makes much more sense than mine...especially to me!

[shifts]

If it truely has a clutch & pressure plate in front of it, I agree w/ C9 & Rocky. Hard to think that someone would put a Hydro stick in that size car tho.DAVE

[SpeedRacer2002]

a buddy of mine has this car at his shop these people want to use this car as kind of a daily driver.... we dont know anything about the tranny done have any of the linkages or anything the car was originaly a 3spd ... anyone know of another tranny that will bolt to this motor???

[C9]

[ QUOTE ]
Hard to think that someone would put a Hydro stick in that size car

[/ QUOTE ]

A Hydro-stick is a good option in a heavy drag race car.
Or - in medium weight (55 Chevys etc.) drag cars with smaller engine as well.

Some of the San Fernando dragstrip Chevys running D/Gas - which usually meant a 265 or 283 engine ran the low geared hydros as well as some very low diff ratios.
With the rpms the little Chevys could spin up, it made for a killer combo.

The hydro's 3.45 low gear ratio made for some really good launches.
Course the 2nd to 3rd shift made the 4 speed hydro sound like a five speed with third gear missing.... http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[TerrytheK]

There's a shop in Ham Lake MN (near Mpls) called Bendtsen's Transmission that makes adapter kits for these cars, so you can bolt a 350 Turbo behind them. Their phone number is (763) 767-4480. If the car's starter is bolted to the transmission, check to see if the engine block has holes drilled and tapped for a starter. If it does, there are quite a few guys who have swapped in a later 400 Turbo and gone to a block-mounted starter. You will most likely have to do some minor massaging of the trans tunnel with a BFH to gain a little clearance since the Turbo is a little larger than the Rotohydramatic. From what I've been told, it's not a real tough swap.

[Rocky]

If the car has the original bellhousing, any chevy-pattern manual tranny will bolt up. Be careful of bearing retainer to bellhousing-hole size. The tranny's front bearing retainer has to be a close fit in the bellhousing hole. A lot of the 60's Pontiacs had the speedo drive on the right side of the tailshaft too. Not sure why, when chevy's were the same tranny with the speedo on the left side. Must be some kinda interferance problem there.

[SpeedRacer2002]

bad thing is they want a automatic...

[Tubby]

If they want to use an automatic then TerrytheK has the right info. I'm up against the same problem with a '63 Catalina, will probably go with a TH350 which won't have the clearance issues of the TH400. At least that's what I've been told, time will tell.

[cadlights]

I have this 350 case made for all GM models. It's brand new if interested let me know.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v298/cadlights/350_trans_case_008.jpg