This week a new noise popped up down low in my '64 A100 van. Kind of a low pitched metal on metal knock, but not a rod noise. Sounded like it was coming from the back of the motor down low. The noise changed/ went away at higher RPM's. I pulled over and quickly checked the oil only to find My dipstick was broken off and the broken end was bent from being hit by something in there. I had checked the oil level just a few days before, and the dipstick was fine.The same sound was there even after I pulled what was left of the dipstick out of the motor. I checked the oil level with a piece of welding rod, and the oil level looks fine.

So I pulled off the oil pan to see what hammered my dipstick. Ouch. Nothing obvious, but the crank comes AWFULLY close to the dipstick. The broken bits were at the bottom of the pan away from all moving parts.

Then I thought about looking at the flex plate, and found that the flex plate has a crack through it next to one of the bolts to the torque converter. Would that make this knock like noise?

So, Does anybody know where I can find a new or good used flex plate?

Also, is there some kind of tube the dipstick fits in inside the oil pan that keeps the thing from getting hit by the crank?

To make matters even wierder, The morning I went to pull the oil pan (the day after the noise surfaced) there was a huge puddle of trans. fluid under the van. Leaking out of the rear seal just in front of the ujoint.

Are these 3 different unrelated issues that all sprang up within a day of each other?

I'm thinking the leaky seal can be from a bad ujoint or maybe rear trans mount, but when I was under there I shook everything and it seemed ok, but I'll check again.

Anybody have any thoughts?

Crankshaft smacked it. Not too uncommon. Just bend the top of the dipstick tube inward towards the engine block so as to move the tip of the stick away from the crank a little, and it won't happen again.
Yep!
I'm not 100% certain, but it looks to me as if all the slant-6/A904 flex plates interchange, so you should be able to get a new one at the dealer under p/n 4058 428.
Unrelated failure. It's probably been an iffy seal for a long time, and when you jacked up the front of the vehicle to get at the oil pan, you sloshed a bunch of trans fluid rearwards and past the seal. It's worth looking very carefully to make sure the actual leak (or another leak) isn't at the speedometer drive pinion. If the truck's jacked up in the front, fluid can leak at this point and drip rearward to look like it's coming out the back seal.

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

Slant six flex plates are 67 and earlier, small center hole., 68 and later large center hole.

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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 was afraid someone might say that But, are you absolutely certain? I ask because the P/N for the slant-6 flex plate "except police/taxi" changes for '68, but the P/N for the slant-6 flex plate "police/taxi" is the same (2204 719) as far back as at least '64 and as far forward as at least '74 (I didn't check earlier or later than that year range). There were no slant-6 A727s until '67 or so, and no slant-6 A727s in passenger cars until several years after they became available in trucks. There were no large-counterbore slant-6 cranks until '68, either.

So, it would appear that at least some flex plates interchange across the '68 crank counterbore changeover. I do not know the difference between the standard-duty and the police/taxi flex plate...seems we've got a mystery on our paws here!

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

Most of the 64 to 68 A100 trucks came with a 727 short rear case- with adapter plate between the engine/trans for the slant.

Don't know if this will help
but here are the stock parts numbers from my
66 truck parts book.

\6 flex plate truck application 2204 719
tork conveter 2536 762

v8 flex 2204 768
converter 2125 090

Don't know if those numbers will cross to cars, but worth a try...

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http://imageevent.com/jeffc
62 D100 225 3sp lwb
64 D100 A318 727pb custom lwb
66 D100 A318 4sp lwb
68 D100 B383 727 swb
65 Belveder A318 727 4d
65 Dart GT LA273 2bbl 904
73 Scamp 225 2bbl 4spOD
Old iron or no iron

If I'm not mistaken, the slant six police/taxi used the 727 trans, which has a larger converter "snout". The early 67 down police/taxi used the LA engine 727 with an adapter, which included a crank adapter for the large snout converter/flexplate to small crank.

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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

In that case, following the chain of part numbers and recollecting (thank you, Jeffc) that the A100 in question will probably have the 727, then the initial p/n I gave (4058 428) ought to fit and work correctly, and is still available new.

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

If it has a 727, very possibly.

Thinking a little more on this, can any one verify what year the "LA" 727 trans was 1st avalable? Since 64 was the first year for the engine, I'm wondering if the trans was available in 64, also, or was it a later year?

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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

A LA 727 was available in 65. I had one in my 65 Coronet.

Uhhhh...'64 was the first year for which engine?

First year for the slant-6 (and for the slant-6 904 trans) was 1960.

First year for the LA V8 (and for the LA V8 904 trans) was 1964.

First year for the LA 727 trans was 1962. This (I have confirmed with more FPC work) is the trans that was used with the bellhousing adaptor behind slant-6s in police/taxi cars and trucks/vans until the release of the slant-6 727 transmission.

First year for the slant-6 727 trans (not requiring the bellhousing adaptor) was 1966 or '67, possibly '68.

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

64 was the first year for the "LA" motor, and I know the first year for the A-904-LA trans. My question was, what year was the first year for the A-727-LA trans. 62 could not be the first year for the A-727-LA trans, as the designation did not come out untill 64. It is possible it was the A-727-A. The old "poly" head engines were "A" engines, not "LA". I do not know if the bolt pattern on the back of the block is the same as the "LA".

PS: there is a push button 727 slant six 727 trans on e-bay right now. It has the trans mounted park brake drum. So that would be prior to 1965.

Dan, you know Pat Blaise. Is there any chance you could get the definitive info, about this, from him?

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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

What I meant. Same trans, A-engines have the same bellhousing bolt pattern as LA-engines.

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

correct, the new 727 alum case trans was released for use in 62 models.
Both the A727a and A727b forums were the only 727 till the 6/case
type.

Still not sure what year the slant model was released, but after
67 for sure as the adaptor is still shown in my 67 truck FSM
and the adapter plate is still shown in my 66 parts book.
Some of the truck guys still find them in the 70 model trucks.....
so it may even be later then 68/69...

A A727a fits all small block bell/engine bolt patterns A poly block
and LA blocks, although the LA273 has the small converter crank
hole/center till 67 like the slants- at the same time the 273 has the
same hole offset crank pattern as A and later LA block engines.

The hole LA engine type is just a light casting of the old A poly
block with wedge heads........ which why they share many bottem
end parts. The old A blocks are called wide block just because the
heads make it larger, fact is the blocks are all but the same
size if you remove the heads.......

_________________
http://imageevent.com/jeffc
62 D100 225 3sp lwb
64 D100 A318 727pb custom lwb
66 D100 A318 4sp lwb
68 D100 B383 727 swb
65 Belveder A318 727 4d
65 Dart GT LA273 2bbl 904
73 Scamp 225 2bbl 4spOD
Old iron or no iron

A727A 1962
not sure when they changed it to A727LA
but sometime after the front pump change in 68
and most of the old poly head engine applications
were gone...( the old poly engine were still around
long after the last one was installed in a car in 66,
many Canada made trucks got them in 67 and
they lived even longer in heavy trucks and as indust. engines-
the Windsor plant still made them up into the 70s)

904LA 1964

A pushbutton 727 with the park brake on the rear----
62 to 64 in the D100 and D200 trucks, 64 is the last year,
however, some of the 65 trucks will have a case just
like the pushbutton case with a differant valve body
so that they can use the one year only two cable lever
dash shifter (this shifter type was used on A100s as early as 64
but one year only on D/W pickups). I have also seen both
slip yoke and ball and trunions behind 65 trucks depending
on applications........ 65 was a funny year for the D/W trucks
since a lot of mid year changes happend- from the frame to
the sheet metal......

After 65 only heavy trucks (RVs too) will have the brake on rear housing
and they all will have the sifter arm like all later models of 727.

I might add that the A727a bell holes match many the early hemis
bell holes (not all but enough to bolt them) and if I recall
there is a pin alinement issue to------
but the big issue being the crank change that happend 61 to 62
with v8 engines
in both the number of bolts and the early crank being longer.

_________________
http://imageevent.com/jeffc
62 D100 225 3sp lwb
64 D100 A318 727pb custom lwb
66 D100 A318 4sp lwb
68 D100 B383 727 swb
65 Belveder A318 727 4d
65 Dart GT LA273 2bbl 904
73 Scamp 225 2bbl 4spOD
Old iron or no iron

That is what I thought, also, but what about the slant six, cable shifted 727 with the park brake, on E-bay? http://tinyurl.com/25vh7s

_________________
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