Technical automatic transmission or 3 speed manual?

Easy to check. Put it in gear and turn the input shaft and count the output turn. Then you'll know for sure.

 

One problem. Ever watch your car take off in reverse with someone else at the wheel?

 

Hey don't be afraid of getting aftermarket knees and bein painfree! I've had mine for over two years and can stand and walk as long as I want painfree. Get em both done at once cause you aint goin back once you go thru that! First few weeks are hell but then ya only get better.....okay, sorry for the commercial here. I realize my new knees are not traditional.

 

I have both and I like both... If I only had one car, it would be an auto.....or maybe a manual?

 

As the flirtatious young man once said...

"Can't we do both Babe"

 

This is where I'm at anymore. It's not that I don't like banging gears once in a while, I do. I also like having the engine compression for braking too when I'm headed down a twisty section of highway, it saves wear & tear on the brakes. But in a Model A pickup, it's already so tightly packaged in there I'm really glad I'm not having to work a clutch pedal, that would suck. And I like having some place to put my left foot. You guys that don't drive one of these, you don't know what it's like. These cars were built for a smaller generation of people. I've shifted gears manually, worked a clutch pedal, driving a truck through So Cal traffic for years; I've had multiple cars with manual shift, I've done my time sitting on LA freeways in stop & go 5 mph traffic jams, I don't need anyone telling me about manual shift trans, I'm all too familiar. Automatics are faster anyway, and tough. And you can always manually shift them when you want to.

 

Got 3 manual trucks, 3 automatics, 2 stick tractors, 1 auto, 2 stick hot rods and 1 auto. I'm just happy when they go in the right direction.

 

Since I already had a three on the tree and a Muncie 4 speed in my fleet, decided to stick a TH350 in the '33. Sometimes it's nice to just put it in D and go. Variety is the spice of life!

 

If you have all of the parts, I say go with the 3-speed. I think a good shifter would make the difference.

BTW, at cruises/car shows I've come across some OT muscle cars with factory floor-shift 3-speeds and I have a new appreciation for the owners NOT converting to 4-speeds.

 

That mattered back in the 50s n 60s to me,it was like a rule kind of,auto trannys was for Grandmom,stick shift for hot rods. So here we are 2020,an frankly don't care that much now,geees guys are fixing up 4 doors now!
I still have a 1957 tranny ,,3 speed standard Ford in my hot rod,it was design with out sinc. first gear. I'm kind of OK with that an use't it.
But helped my son Lance build a "T"bucket some years back,an used 350SBC an TH350 auto,sure drives great!

 

My 68 442 (you know the 4 speed, 4 barrel, dual exhaust thing?) yeah, it came with an automatic and I wouldn't change a thing. It'll blow the doors off a 4 speed version. My flathead has a stick behind it but the PU has a 4 speed auto.

"Real hot rods have 3 pedals" is kinda of a stupid expression, "real hot rods are driven". Whatever it takes to achieve that end. @Lloyd's paint & glass I voted for the manual by the way. I will enjoy watching the build. I'm 10-10 on the side

 

4 speed and Chauffeur please.

 

I currently have a Sag on the shop floor and do not have a T350 or other automagic. So my vote is for the Sag. LOL

By the way my legs are bad, I fake it good but they are bad. I am not afraid to run a hydraulic clutch and let the trad police be damned.

 

About the same as " steel is real " & "hotrod engines don't have valvecovers " ....

 

Late to the party. I love manuals. When we needed a new SUV for kayaking and camping, my wife insisted on a stick, even though it meant we might be in our 80's when we traded it in (we keep our vehicles a LONG time) and, curiously, if we got a stick, we couldn't order the vehicle with a sun roof or back camera. However, the Model A has a TH350. Not much room for a stick anyway. I cope.

 

this thread is timely, and I've enjoyed the read as I've been pondering swapping to a floor-shifted manual in my '56 210. I have been doing some reading here and there, but what I'm really interested in (and hopefully don't derail this thread) is what are my best options for a manual 5-speed w/overdrive behind a SBC making 350-400hp? I'd like to avoid spending TKO money, if I can help it. I ask because my only prior personal experience with a manual is an OT import DD.

I'll gladly take a thread link if this was a prior discussion.

Thanks in advance,

Gotta56forme/Scott

Edit: btw, it was this guy's videos that got me interested in the manual swap (since drive train is out right now, anyway)

 

I'd say the nv3500 would be the best option without spending a fortune

 

Here is the thing you have to consider. If you buy any transmission, the initial purchase price should NOT be the thing that makes your decision. If you buy most of the OEM 4/5 speed transmissions, they will not survive behind a 400hp engine. Then you have to spend time and money to rebuild them and forever worry about tearing them out again. Its much better in the long run to save up enough money to buy a NEW never abused Tremec TKO 5 speed. Then it should stand up to any kind of reasonable abuse you throw at it. If you ever decide to sell that car, get something cheap to put behind the engine and sell it. Then you have your Tremec for your next project or you can resell it and probably recoup 75% of your cost. A used $2500 Tremec will bring $1500-$1800 years later. So your max cost is $1000 after years of use. If you buy a "World Class" T5 and put it behind a 400 HP engine, your outlay will be more than $1000 after you rebuild it. Sometimes its hard to justify an initial outlay, but you have to consider long term cost when buying something like this. If you have a 300HP engine, a world class T5 may survive, but not with 400 HP. I knew a guy who had replaced one in a Camaro several times till I sold him a Richmond 5 speed.....then no more problems.

 

That's all good information, but the subject is about 3 speed manual shift vs auto. IMO most any auto trans is capable of handling more power/torque than any 3-speed car manual transmission.

 

Oh yeah!! I've had this recurring dream about me driving my wagon, it's got tons of horsepower and a 6 speed transmission! I'm cruising town, burning tires, doing donuts! But it's a dream lol. I've got 2 options, leave the automatic in it, or put the 3 speed manual with a floor shift in it damn reality lol

 

It's saying, I believe View attachment 4886759 I need a clutch pedal

 

First, it's not HP that's important, it's torque. Running a hot 302 or a medium 327? A T5 may be adequate. A 350, 383 or 400? Now your bumping into or exceeding it's torque limit and longevity gets questionable. Same issue with the NV3500. A 'base' T5 is only good for about 300 ft lbs, some are rated as much as 350 (same for the NV3500), if you do a major rebuild on a T5 with all the super-premium parts you can get one up to about 400 ft lbs but you're now very close to TKO money and are still giving up at least 100 ft lbs of capacity.

Both Ford and GM limited the T5 to 302/305 motors from the factory as they knew they wouldn't take the torque of the larger motors. When Ford built the 351-powered Cobra-R Mustangs, they switched to the Tremec TKO; same thing for the GT500 'Stangs.

If you can 'curb your enthusiasm' (to quote Larry David, LOL), a T5/NV3500 may be adequate, but failing to curb may leave you sitting by one....LOLOL

 

I thought about putting a manual in my F-100 but then I remembered that both my knees are semi arthritic and operating a clutch pedal isn’t a good idea. ( painful that is)


Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

3 on the tree.

 

^^^^^

 

Do it Lloyd. Ya know you want to. Don’t be a sissy!

Or put it in gear and enjoy the ride


After all the replies here, what do you prefer? If you like and enjoy a manual, do it. If you’d prefer an auto, do it.

You’re putting the car together for you, not for my viewing pleasure

 

I'd prefer the manual, but only having the 3 speed makes it a little harder to push forward on it. Yeah I know it's my decision and my car, but pulling popular opinion from the community kinda gives me the feeling that maybe I wouldn't be laughed at too bad for doing it.

 

This statement right here here does it. Put the automatic in it.Ive got both. Both are fun. but knee/hip thing keeps getting a little rougher each day. I got a few years on ya ,but really thinking about taking 4 speed out for Matic.

 

Buy a 4 or 5 speed and if you got any money left pay the rent.

 

I made the change in my Cameo in 1976, from the M-21 to a TH-400 with a shift kit, and have never regretted it. The only reason I switched my Cameo was because my wife is a tiny person, and driving the truck with the 4 speed was a problem for her.
I have, however, collected a super T-10 as well as a 57 OD, including matching Hurst Comp plus shifters, so I could switch back but have never felt the need.
My daily driver for the last 40 years, has always been a 4 or 5 speed, and we get all the gear changing we want.
My first real swap back in 1959, was a 53 Olds engine, hydramatic, and rear end, into a 34 Ford pickup, and loved the combination. That one swap, convinced me that an automatic can be a lot of fun, and permanently changed my perspective on auto vs manual transmissions. (I also found that I was breaking less stuff, and with my limited pocket book at the time, that was a real plus).
Stick, manual, flip a coin.
Bob