lookin for a good bulletproof manual trans to put behind my 56. i know there is lasalle trans but thats for the 50 is there a way i can bolt it up to my 56?
You'll have to find a '50 Olds bell housing. The '51 and newer standard bell housings had a unique transmission pattern that nothing else fits.
how about a 55 hydro..they will hold a 1000 hp from the factory. i don't know if that's bullet proof.but,i won't shoot your car.
here's three options, the '49-'50 Olds stock bell on the top right the Transdapt (Ansen?) bell, top left and the Offy two piece, bottom row Hildebrandt made a Ford to Cad similar to the bottom one notice no hole in the Transdapt unit for the '37 shift shaft this one was meant for a side shift transmission I do believe you will need a flywheel Stock, Cragar, Schiefer, etc... a clutch disc, '60s International Scout 11" 1-1/4" spline and pressure plate, mid '60s Ford truck crankshaft needs a 5/8 pilot bushing and of course a throwout bearing, fork etc...
Is it a manual trans now? If you have a stock bellhousing than it probably has the light duty Buick 3 spd trans with the 5 bolt top cover. The 56-57 Buick HD trans with the 6 bolt top cover should take quite a bit of power, if getting one out of a Buick it still has the torque tube and you will need an extension housing from a Pontiac/Olds trans.
It is possible to modify the '51 to '59 Olds stick bellhousing (same bolt pattern as the big Buick 6 hole top cover) to accept the later GM 3 and 4 speed trans. Saginaw, Muncie, Borg-Warner. Frank
oh,and good luck with the pedals.i have changed my 55 to a stick.using the stock pedal locations.then i found a stick olds years later..it going on the firwall...will a bitch.you'll have to move the air vent box and make the firwall stronger for the push of the pedals..bla,bla,bla...i alot of work.. a 55 cad hydro would be the chit man..
Chevy transmissions work fine behind the Olds too several people still make the adapters, Ross, Speedway, Bendtsen's, Wilcap, etc.. or you can watch for a used one, they can cost almost as much as the new ones though and if you go with Ross, Bendtsen's or Wilcap you can get the whole she-bang as a kit here's a Ross bell with an M20 on the 394 and a swapmeet T10 will go behind a craigslist transdapt bell on another motor
thank you everyone i think im leaning towards a lasalle trannny whats the deal on changing side shift to top loader?
technicaly the Lasalle is a bottom loader and you don't change one to the other without swapping transmissions if you are working with a side shift transmission you should be able to fab up a mounting bracket and use a Hurst 3 speed shifter without too much trouble. or keep an eye out for one made specificaly for that transmission. like the Mystery Shifter by Hurst the bottom transmission here is the later stock tailed sideshift the middle one is the '37 top shift next up is later side shift setup for Ford torque tube and mounted to the 303 behind a stock bell is a later side shift with '50 Olds tail and Hurst Mystery Shifter
You use the words "bulletproof" and "LaSalle tranny" together so casually........ Want something that'll take punishment, might want to start shopping for super-T10s and muncies. Not really bulletproof either, but compared to the LaSalle, extremely bullet resistant. When was the last time you heard somebody with a big block musclecar talk about how they gotta ditch their automatic for a LaSalle trans? You probably haven't. There's a reason.
no t10s or muncies for me i dont want somethin that brucy beefcake has in his nova i want soething that an old man will see and tell me a big long amazing story about one he had in his olds just like it true true muncies can handle just about anything i can give it though thanks
you're really not going to like your self after you put that trans in..all that work and money .for what ?there's a reason why they don't use that trans anymore.it has no syncros and it has 3 gears.insted of 4 like the hydro.if you want to bang gears change the gear ratio in the rear end or put a little tweak on the trans.trust me. i've driven these olds both ways.the hydro is killer. good luck
I bought my '57 Olds as a factory 3-speed. The stock trans gave up very quickly and I changed first to a '37 (floor shift) La Salle, and subsequently to a sideshift with Corvette 3-speed linkage. They were all failure-prone, and lousy for launching a 4200# car with a 3.60 rear end gear. Eventually I changed to a B&M 4-speed hydro. Absolutely night and day; totally woke up the car. Knowing what I know now, I would NEVER change back to a non-synchro 3-speed. A synchro 4- or 5-speed with the right ratios, maybe, especially with a shorter rear end gear.
How often do people look under a '55 Olds to see the trans, anyhow? Of those 3 people a year, how many will know what trans it is by sight? Put in something that works and you won't have to screw with it when you break it 8 times in 6 weeks. Unless you're going to baby the car, and it doesn't sound that way. I drove a big Pontiac with the 56-up dual coupling Hydro and it was a blast to drive, the most fun I ever had with a car that only had two pedals in it.
I'd go with the chevy-style tranny adapter and use either a muncie or a T-5....preferably a T-5 from a late S-10 [worldclass] and incorporate a LaSalle-style shifter tower to make it look old-timey. Those old guys aren't gonna get outta their wheelchairs to look underneath anyway. Keep an early, low geared rearend in your car so you get the best of both worlds....great low-gear starts and easy cruising around town, overdrive for the freeway and "Jackrabbit" starts at the strip. Just my opinion from a guy who sold all his LaSalle/hemi stuff right here on the HAMB. Here's a little photo of where the S-10 shifter comes out on the floor of a 33 ford pickup..perfect placement and you can discuise it any way you want.
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