my brother in law has a 63 riv with a 401 and dynaflow tranny.the transmission went out,is there a differnt transmission that would bolt directly to the motor,if someone has any thoughts on a different transmission let me know,hes having a hard time finding someone to rebuild his.thanks Ray
Yea a 64-66 Buick ST400 can be bolted up with an adapter from http://nailheadbuick.com/transadaptors Your shift/gear indicator will need changed as well as some other things
As Jason mentioned, he can put in an ST400. I put one in my '62 in place of the Dynaflow. Trans crossmember will need to be narrowed, driveshaft will need to be shortened, and shift linkage modified. Trans cooler lines are different too if I remember correctly. Also need a later flexplate, later starter, and different inspection cover. I have a used Dynaflow from a '62 Electra that I was told was "good". Not sure where you are located but I'd let it go for cheap...
guess ill ask another question,would it be better to just put the same tranny back in so he dont have to mickey mouse around changing everything else.any benifit to the st400.located in hartford wi.
The Dynaflow in the 63 Riv historically has been very reliable. But when it does need rebuild the old guys that know how to rebuild them are few and far between and sometimes requires shipping it to a shop that specializes. There are shops out there that can do it. Just need to do some digging. Big benefit of the 64-66 ST400 is that parts are cheap, plentiful and no problem with rebuilds plus they are superior from a performance standpoint. 65 and 66 ST400s had a switch pitch converter which boosted performance even more. Lots of variables that determine if the swap is worth it for your brother in law. Unless you have a 64/65 parts car handy you are probably better off staying with the Dynaflow unless you want to increase performance
Yes, agree with all of this. If a performance increase is a big deal, go with the ST400 and just deal with all the modifications. If it's just a cruiser, I'd probably stick with the Dynaflow. You guys are about 4.5hrs from me - if my trans is at all interesting to you, shoot me a PM. I was going to throw it in my car as is (has new front seal, rear seal, and pan re-sealed) but ended up going the ST400 route. Like I said I can't comment on the condition of the internals, but bought it with impression it was from a low mile '62 Electra that rusted away.
OR....... go with a 4L60E. With the correct bell housing it fits like a glove. You have to add a controller but then you have lower first gear and overdrive. This means more tire smoke off the line and a nice RPM on the highway. I did this on my Electra. I went with a 3:23 posi from a Riv I stripped and a 4L60E from monster transmission. The bell housing is from nailheadbuick.com https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BuVoJe7t0lA/VSrStS_MXTI/AAAAAAAAFPc/crN6dtM-e3gDknDAuh4XiL_eEZQxDe7hACHMYBhgL/s640/photo+1%281%29.JPG I used a controller calle TCI EZ-TCU. I can control shift points, performance and I can set it up to toggle (or paddle shift if you will) the shifting up and down with simple toggle switches so there is no need to change the shifter indicator. https://www.summitracing.com/int/parts/tci-302820/overview/ I also went with a different tail shaft so that I could use the regular speedo cable. I got it from shift works and I figured out what speedo gears I would need at that time: http://www.shiftworks.com/tailhousing.htm I'm still doing the resto on the car so I have only driven the car on the street in front of my house but I feel a huge difference in the power off the line as opposed to the stock TH400 and 3:07 gears
Or go with this and skip the plate adapter. Trans adapter, put a 4L60-E from a 98-99 1500 GM truck or a 98-02 Full size van with 4.3-5.7 Engine. These transmissions have a bolt on, not cast in, bellhousing. Makes for a simple swap. Russ Martin is selling these. http://centervilleautorepair.com/transadaptors
