Hot Rods Am I old fashioned?

One thing that I notice when looking at the cars for sale adds is there are a lot of really nice cars. But, when they show the undercarriage there are lots of them that have no fly wheel covers on the tranny. That was something that I always installed on cars when I built them. Call me old fashioned but I felt it was a much needed item. Just wondering why it doesn't seem to be the case any more.

Later,
Dick

 

One time my dad got a rock wedged between the flywheel and torque convertor that rotated around and wedged against the block. It was because we pulled of on the rocky shoulder on the highway for something. Took us a while to figure out. Finally figured it out and dug it out with a big screwdriver.

I have an SBC with a wilcap adaptor backed by a 39 box. the flywheel is open to the back of the oil pan but covered on the bottom. I guess it's fine, been like that for many years.

 

because have you priced what that little pieced of stamped steel is selling for 75.00 to 150.00

 

The guy that built my truck didn't put one on. I ran over one of those Mylar balloons. Yep, it got sucked up into the bellhousing. Didn't hurt anything but made weird noises. I am currently totally rebuilding the truck, and it will have a cover.

 

I had a bunch of N.O.S. G.M. flywheel covers, a few years back. One of the guys at work, was building a sbc model A ,he asked if i had one. I brought one in, gave it to him, & another guy asked "where does that go?" (He was not a car guy, his "car club" practically built his 53 for him)I like to keep things where they went originally, so, i put those flywheel covers back on

 

They are getting hard to find around here. Every one I find seems to fit some alien spacecraft or something

 

Got 3 hanging on the wall for my 390 ford toploader ,non on the truck . Guess I will wait for a problem and then call myself a dumb ass !!!

 

I can't fathom why anyone wouldn't use one.

 

If that's something that is old fashion I guess I am, I always use them. HRP

 

I don't run a dust cover on my Ford or Mopars, air flow around the converter will help it cool. Both are high stall converters that don't even see gravel roads so I don't see the need.

 

I finally put one on Plan II. Makes maintenance a bit more difficult, but looks better under there.

 

Best to wear a cup.

 

I never ran one for years, my buddy who built my transmissions surmised it acted like a quasi-transmission cooler. Never had a problem. I'm going to run one on my latest project because it's so low.

Thankfully on all my other cars the oil pan acted as a perfect skid plate to protect the converter.

 

I've had a hot rod of some sort for a little over 50 years and never run one. Never even thought about until now. I've got 4 speeds and automatics and never had a problem.

 

On the overdrives, I find that the plastic ones are hard to come by to nearly impossible.

 

I ran a plastic one for a while. Would bottom out and it would start banging. Soo now for 50,000 miles without one. Oil pan acts as a skid plate. I wear out my oil drain plug every two years. From rubbing on the ground. I guess I`m just foolish. But I don`t have an I phone. So, who is old fashioned?

 

Yes. But that’s acceptable here. Encouraged even.

My 37 came without the trans cover. I hit the local junkyard to find one. I think it was $5? Maybe $10? The bigger problem was that the mounting holes were stripped. Some helicoils fixed that problem.

 

I'm old fashioned.

There's a thousand and one dinks and chips out of the torus housing- something got caught and dragged round plenty.

If GM didn't think it was worth fitting, they'd certainly have saved their nickels and not stamped that out and put it on.

So I found one for sale and fitted it.

Phil

 

One thing to consider is a lot of guys buy a crate transmission or one from a junkyard or a buddy who has one in his shop or garage, and none of them have the cover with them. Even the cars that I have parted out for the engine and transmission seldom have one. If the transmission has ever been out of the car, it’s usually missing the cover.

I haven’t ran across one in years.

 

The best one is the Tempest, where the torque converter just hangs out in the breeze under the back of the car.

 

I have always installed them back. My dad insisted on replacing them so I did. That makes me old fashioned from way back I guess.
Ed

 

Can't fit a cover to that, think of the additional unsprung weight it would add!
(Plus, it will reduce the effectiveness of the rear anti-body-corrosion system.)

Edit: never mind, just spotted the rotoflex joints.

 

I never realized how important they are till I read these posts. You can bet I'll have one on my next build. Lippy

 

I put a cover on mine simply because I found one laying around. Straightened it out before I installed it and it immediately got a dent in it.

 

Down here you won't pass yearly inspection if it's not on. Same with racing at the strip in a street car.

 

I always run one, but can anyone give the proper reason they have always been part of transmission/gearbox design?
Surely it's not so if you run over someone, the ring gear doesn't eat their face off................

 

Everytime I get a old engine it seems like the first place the mice build a nest is in the clutch cover.....instant rot

 

No, you are not. I always have one. 100 bucks is cheaper than damage or having to remove the tranny to fix the problem caused by not having one.