Transmission compatability

[moparnole]

Might be a stupid question, but will a 1969 transmission work in a 1972 car? I don't see why it wouldn't but I am concerned about if the mounts/cross member would still line up. Any help is appreciated!

[Ghoste]

Yes it should work.  Where you might need to check are things like torque converter.  You would be better off to use the 72 converter.

[moparnole]

Awesome! I am doing a 904 to 833 swap, and I want to make sure things are going to work before I shell out money. Thank you for the wisdom!

[Troy]

You'll have a slight issue but it's easily resolved... the 833 is longer than the 904. I think they changed something in 1970 so I'm a little fuzzy. Prior to that there was a dedicated transmission cross member for the 4-speed. After that it may be universal but the mount itself is likely different. Just be aware. Also, from a technical perspective, the flywheel was reduced to 10.5" in 1970 so everything related to it (bell housing, clutch, fork, rod, etc.) needs to match. If you have the 11" bell from 1969 it will physically fit but you'll have to verify the linkages (z-bar for sure). The shifter changed position (and the handle got shorter) so make sure you have the rearmost mounting point on the tail housing.

Troy

[John_Kunkel]

The OP needs to be more specific; besides the above,  the mount pad and shifter locations come into play with year and body.

[Ghoste]

Yes, you are doing much more of a swap than assumed from the first post.

[moparnole]

Thank all you guys for the information! Might it be a better idea to get the setup from brewers performance? I see where they have transmissions for different years, and perhaps that would be a bit less painful to put back together?

[Ghoste]

It can be.  You can likely save money by getting the individual pieces and watching for bargains on each but for a time and convenience factor its pretty hard to beat Brewers (not to mention the peace of mind knowing that everything is in good working order).  Their customer service is to be applauded as well.

[Troy]

If you don't own anything yet and you don't want to spend a lot of time finding the correct parts then a complete "kit" from Brewers or Passon is a good idea (plus the transmission will be rebuilt and all the parts new or refurbished).

Based on the fact that you have a 904... are you doing an engine swap as well? If you aren't putting a ton of power to the ground and primarily drive on the street then the 23 spline and/or later model 833 overdrive transmissions are much cheaper than the 18-spline (used behind Hemi and 440 engines from the factory).

The second mounting point on the tail housing appeared in the 1970 (or late 1969?) model year I believe. The tail housing and tail shaft are interchangeable among all 833s I believe so if you did happen to own an early version already you can just swap the housing for one with the second mount location. Also be aware of A-body transmissions because they have a really short tail that doesn't fit a B-Body. The pedals, clutch rod, z-bar, clutch fork, bell housing, flywheel, clutch, throwout bearing, shifter, shifter handle, trans mount and cross member should all match the year and body type of your car. Then you won't have fitment issues. The 833 main case is the same so any of them from any year will fit in any car.

Troy

[moparnole]

Thank you all for your help! The engine is a 1969 340 that I certainly don't want to get rid of, and isn't super crazy with power, so the 23 spline will work fine?

[Troy]

The 23 spline is what would have been found behind 383 and 340 engines from the factory. Generally (obviously not always) you won't get enough traction on the street to break one. When you put on a set of slicks and power shift down a sticky track is when the weak links in your drive train appear (it's the sudden impact that tears things up). I have a Passon rebuilt 4-speed overdrive that I'm putting behind a 440. Other members here have successfully run the lighter duty transmission behind 440s on the street successfully.

Troy

[birdsandbees]

Be forewarned that your automatic power trains engine may not have the crank pilot bored out,so you may need to cut off the input shaft on the transmission and modify or run a bearing in the crank flange to hold and center the transmission input shaft. I learned this when I was 17, way back in 1979 when I put a 440 and standard in my '69 Fury II.