Since Im yankin my engine to do the head an clean it up abit I got to thinkin about the tranny, it still seems to work alright but Im sure its gettin tired. I saw when Mopar Muscle did their Hyper Pak build they had Art Carr do up their stocker since he is the only that still makes hop up goodies for them? Well I did just get a '73 slant trans and maybe I should just build it, swap the dash panel out(to a manual one so no holes for type writer), and do a floor shifter since parts might be easier to get? Any insight would be great thanks!
-Jesse

I know I really like having the pushbutton tranny. I like that it's different, and when people see it they get a kick out of it. I don't know if that's enough to make it worth rebuilding though, but I'd probably keep it.

+1 thats what more people notice about riding in my car. I can't imagine it would be all that expensive to rebuild.

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'72 4 dr Dart
'63 4 dr Dart

I'm not sure I understand your question. What makes you think the pushbutton trans might not be "worth" rebuilding?

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Mainly parts availibility and price are my main concern, I dont want to sink a bunch of money in the typewriter when I could possibly rebuild the later one more cheaply. I am unaware of anyone that makes a shift kit for the early 904, and I more than likely cant afford to send it someplace to get tricked out when I could buy a whole new later style valve body for less. Im just weighing my options, tryin to see what others have done.
-Jesse

I asked the question about a shift kit just a week or so ago. Transgo makes a shift kit for the early torqueflite A904 and A727 so that is not an issue. I don't believe parts availalbility is an issue either. Most of the internal parts were essentially unchanged for many years. Use the pushbutton tranny, it's cool and you don't have to jump through hoops to make it fit.

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David Kight
'62 Valiant Signet, White
'98 Dodge Dakota
'06 Jeep Liberty

Growing older is unavoidable but growing up is strictly optional.

There's no problem with parts availability for the cable-shift (pre-'66) transmissions. You'd spend a great deal more money, time, and effort modifying the car to incorporate a lever shifter than you could possibly save by rebuilding and retrofitting a '66-up transmission.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

ok, I was under the impression that the early 904 was a completely different beast, so I take it that certain parts interchange between the years then? Question about the Transgo kit, the TF-2 full race shift, is it a manual valve body conversion or still automatic? Thanks guys you've sure been helpful!
-Jesse

I use a 65 "cable shift" trans in my 66 Cuda. I used a 64 PB full manual valve body, with the pushbuttons mounted in a console on the floor, between the seats. There is no problem getting rebuild/beef up parts for the early 904. The main thing to be aware of, is the fluid filter. The 65 and earlier filter has two holes, one for the front pump, and one for the rear pump. The 66 up filter only has one hole, and will damage the early trans if used. Also the 64 and 65 valve bodies are different, due to the different shifters (PB vs lever), but they will interchange between the transmissions, as long as you keep the correct shifter with it's correct valve body.

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Charrlie_S
65 Valiant 100 2dr post 170 turbo
66 Valiant Signet 170 nitrous
64 Valiant Signet
64 Valiant 4dr 170
64 Valiant 4dr 225

I have the PB on a '63 Dart & '64 Cuda. I rebuilt both, and just finished up a '66. As far as rebuild costs, there is no difference. Most of the internals are the same from '63 up, so even hard parts (gear clusters) are easy to get, although I have never seen any broken hard parts. I would never swap out the PB unless I couldn't possibly fix it or get another.

When I had my shop, I rented space from a trans shop. He would have people come in all the time for a "shift kit" for the MoPars, and he said that they never needed them because they shift so tight as it is. Just another opinion.

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Chuck Rivers, Webmaster

I once temporarily used a later model '67 and up trans in my '63 with a B+M cable shifter while the original trans was out for rebuild/late input swap. It should be noted that while it is possible to make this swap the floorpan interferes with the shift arm and must be massaged with a hammer or cut. That said I must agree with all stated reasons plus this one for why you should keep your early trans.

-James

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