On a tab on side of case just below side cover is R 5 K 2 1 stamped. I googled it and no luck. On right side of case is GM 4 K. Below that is 338935. On tail housing is 352254. And GM 1. The tail has a cast on bottom end with 3 holes. On the left side of tailshaft housing is 3 taped holes in triangle pattern behind the speedometer. Trying to identify sp I can order a shifter. Thanks. Mike
I can't ID, but if you do find out what it came from, the shifter would then have rods to clear whatever that car had for crossmembers, etc. Back in the day, the Hurst shifter for a certain car would also have the correct location to come through the floor, and have the best stick handle size and shape. so I'm just saying it is a typical Saginaw 4 speed, and a "specific year/model" kit may not be best for your build.
Yeah, it's a Saginaw 4 speed. Get a shifter that will most likely fit your car/truck, which you didn't mention what it is.
Back in 79, I bought a near new Monza Saginaw for $100 for a roadster build. I heard that a local Auto Parts store used to be a speed shop, and rumor said there were NOS parts upstairs All I found up there for 4 speed Saginaw Hurst shifter kits, was one sealed Hurst box and the label from Hurst said it fit 66 Impala, I don't recall if it said bench seat or console... Anyways, those old Hursts had a welded handle that you can't swap like a newer Hurst. It looked like it was tall enough, and not jogged to either side, and it fit my build perfectly. And fit the trans perfect, for $30
It will be going in my 71 Pontiac Ventura. I have a Hurst Competition Plus shifter, but I need to buy a installation kit, and want to make sure I buy right kit. Thanks. Mike
A quick look on the net says that car had a 4 speed available, and the biggest V8 was a 307. That would make me think that the original 4 speed in a factory built 71, must be a Saginaw, instead of the costlier Muncies. I had a stripped 68 Malibu 327 4-speed car, and it did have a Sag, and I also had a 65 Chevelle SS 327 with a factory Sag.... If you go online to a place that sells Hurst kits, it should give info on trans type on that 71...IF they make a kit. If not, look up a small block 71 Nova to see if they list a kit for a Sag in that car. Same shell, so it must be same shifter
Those old Saginaw 4 speeds are not a high performance trans, so don't put one behind a screaming 800 HP engine. In normal driving behind a small block built for normal street and highway driving, they are good transmissions. The ones out of Vegas have a really deep first gear ratio, since Vegas came from the factory needing an engine, and they needed a deep first gear ratio to get the car moving. Vega Saginaws used to be a popular swap in Chevy pickups.
Hurst has 1 basic shifter for the Saginaw tranny, as squirrel said get the handle which will work best with your application. How many rings are on the input shaft that will give you the gear ratios in that trans. KK
Ventura, Just one question for you, where is the reverse shift arm on that transmission. To me it looks more like a 3 speed. I've got 3 Saginaw 4 speeds tucked under my bench and they all have 3 shift arms on them, 2 on the side cover and one on the tailshaft housing for reverse. ................................ Jack
T-10s and Muncies have reverse on the tail, Saginaws have all 3 levers on the side cover. That's the quickest way to spot a Saginaw.
The three holes in the casting extension below the shifter mount , I believe indicate a Vega /Monza 4 speed. It was used to mount a vibration damper in the Vega and possibly the torque link in Monza. For several years in the seventies, the Saginaw was the only 4 speed available from GM and used in the Corvette.
It's a Saginaw 4-speed, and like Squirrel said, ALL the shift levers are on the side cover of a Saginaw. If there are NO rings on the input shaft, it's a 2.84 first gear, 1 line a 2.54 first (there are 2 different 3rd gear ratios with a 2.54 trans available), 2 rings a 3.11, and 3 rings a 3.50 first gear. The 3.11 and 3.50 came in Vegas/Monzas and have narrower gears, so they're weaker (ALL Saginaws are weak compared to BW and Munices). I am Butch/56sedandelivery.
I heard they were weak, so when I was putting the 427 into my 59 ElCamino, I bought every one I could find. I had about 10 of them, the most expensive was 80 bucks. I twisted a driveshaft, and shattered the spider gears in my rear end, and am still running my first 50 dollar Saginaw box. The rear seal started to leak after 12 years, so I may rebuild one of my spares. I have 3 left. Just found one under a box in the barn after 8 years. Forgot I had it. They make great Christmas presents.
Conversely, I owned a 72 nova with a puny 307 ....had a muncie M-20 from the factory. I know, weird, right? I also had one of those 3-ring vega saginaw 4 speeds in a 50 chevy sedan delivery behind a healthy 406 small block and I was known to beat on it....wore out the reverse idler but never broke that trans..3rd owner after me splattered it all OVER the street. Oddly, I broke a tooth in the Nova with the muncie after putting a cam and Q-jet in the 307...no rhyme or reason this stuff sometimes. BTW, I used a $5 brand new yard-sale 3 speed Hurst syncro-loc shifter on that saginaw 4 speed with an extra Hurst handle welded onto the reverse lever. Bought a saginaw 4 speed installation kit for a 66 Impala with a saginaw....Looked a little strange with 2 indentical Hurst handles coming outta the floor but worked flawlessly.
I bought a Saginaw that supposedly came in a 396 Chevelle of '68 vintage. The tailshaft had no mounting bolts for a shifter and at the time Hurst had nothing for it, wound up with a Mr. Gasket shifter which was very nice.
Picked up a 4 speed out of a scrappers junk pile for $50.00 last week. Price of scrap is so low that he jumped at the fifty. Turned out to be 1968 M20 Muncie....
Thank you to all the replies. Hopefully the 4 spd swap will be done this winter, if my 35 Ford coupe sells, giving me the funds and space. Thanks for the advice.
Saginaw shifter mounts usually bolted to 3 of the tailshaft housing bolts with a ubolt at the rear by the seal. jerry
That is interesting. The 72 Nova SS I bought NEW had a Saginaw 4 speed, and the shifter was bolted to the cross-member, and had a support strut that went to one of the transmission bolts. After a couple of dealer warranty visits, because I "challenged" the transmission, I put a Borg Warner Super T-10 4 speed in the car, and never had any more issues. I have bought and sold Saginaws 3 speeds, two 3 speeds with overdrive, and several 4 speeds, but I personally won't use them. My 56 Sedan Delivery has a Muncie 4 speed; when the new engine goes in, a Borg Warner Super T-10 also goes in. I am Butch/56sedandelivery.
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