I got this in a trade deal, but don't really know what it is, or if I should keep it. I was told it was a three speed with electric solenoid operated overdrive. What is it? What's it worth?
It looks like a 3 speed OD, but I don't see the OD solenoid. It would be behind the shifter if it is still there.
It looks like someone removed the OD solenoid so thjey could mount the floor shift conversion. The solenoid wants to live right where the shift linkage is now. I have a Fenton shifter for one of these, and the shifter mechanism sits quite a bit higher in order to clear the solenoid. It would function just like a straight 3 speed transmission with the overdrive locked out.
Sell it and buy another girlfriend to go with the one you got. Luv your avataur! Seriously though, should be desirable to someone with a flathead but doubt you want it behind any decent OHV engine......and it would require adaption anyway. Just not enough torque capacity in those old trans. Much better to adapt something with overdrive out of a later model.
Larry, 51 had the small 4 bolt pattern, like a 49-64 Ford Pass. 51 Merc bellhousings are special and rare, as they have the early cross shaft throwout bearing setup.
Marty is right. It's a 49-50 Merc o/d with the solenoid removed. Might be worth a little more then a Ford of the same era (around here the Fords go for around $150-$200 complete), the missing solenoid detracts from the overall price. That's the governor.
I believe it was the early ‘51 Merc’s that had the cross shaft with the bell housing shown in the OP’s post. That bell bolted to the flywheel housing that also held the starter. The late ‘51 Mercury used a bell housing that bolted directly to the block and had a fork, not a cross shaft. Those are my recollections from working on the ‘49-‘57 Fords and Mercury’s the guys I hung with drove in the early ‘60’s, but I could be mistaken.
'49 - '50 Mercury. These are getting scarce. By modifying the rear cross member/motor mount you can use these in a '40 - 48 Ford or Mercury passenger car. Probably in earlier models too. Rear axle must be converted to open drive or modifications made to use a later rear end. Makes a nice setup.
Early ‘51 Mercs used the same as ‘49/‘50 style bell housing and trans case as shown. Somewhere through the model year they were replaced by the Ford style transmission case and a sort of hybrid bell housing that DID have the pivoting cross shaft throw as used in the earlier version as shown in OP’s post but bolted directly to the block. I have actual hands on experience with this particular situation. Ray
I have that exact transmission but need to find or make a floorshift for it. Thanks for the good pictures!
It’s been correctly identified as a 49-50 (and early ‘51) Mercury overdrive transmission with a Hurst, or similar type, aftermarket shifter assembly. I does appear that the shifter may have been for the non-overdrive version of the transmission as it’s hard to tell if the electric solenoid could fit behind the shifter mounting bracket. The solenoid would normally angle downward and could possibly miss hitting the bracket…..it’s just hard to tell from your pictures. If you were to put the solenoid in place to complete it as a functional overdrive transmission, you’d probably have to make some modifications to the bracket and the two shifter rods in order to clear the solenoid. Hurst did make a kit designed just for this application but finding one of those with all the parts could be a frustrating exercise, even with the help of the internet. It would probably be easier to make the needed modifications yourself. This unit is a fairly popular swap into the typical 1948-52 Ford F-1 pickups. If you have a-50-52 F-1 with the steering column shift, it’s practically a bolt up and go. The only mods for the F-1 are the rear motor mount and having to have a new driveshaft made up.
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