Dear V-8 Buick owners who enjoy some modern driving conveniences, The Hemmings blog has a light-weight but still interesting article on the growing trend of back-fitting older cars with overdrive transmissions. https://www.hemmings.com/blog/2017/...d-overdrive-have-made-the-70s-more-palatable/ It caught my attention because I remember back in 1979 discussing with my Dad how nice it would be to fit our trusty wagon with an overdrive transmission. When we had her engine rebuilt that year, we had some modifications done to improve fuel economy. As a result, our wagon's gas mileage went from 12 MPG to . . . . 13 MPG. Obviously we were more than a little disappointed! It took over 30 years, but da' trusty wagon finally has an overdrive transmission! Cheers, Edouard
A article detailing a OD install appeared in the print mag not long ago on a Camaro. They highlighted the benefits in doing this conversion in fuel economy, performance & drivability. However, it is not a easy drop in project. Not just sourcing the parts [OD Trans, mounting plate, drive shaft], etc. but the fabrication was extensive. Considering the money in fuel savings at todays prices does not justify the expense at this time for me. I am not doing a lot of highway driving & when I do I have no problem keeping up with traffic.. Of course I am not driving my 67 at 70-80 like many drivers do.
it depends on the rig. first the car needs to have 3.08s or lower to make it worthwhile. on a car with a th350 either a 2004r or 700r4 is bolt in. the driveshaft can be reused on either. the crossmember needs to go back for the 2004r. that's easy. the 700r4 would need an adapter for a bop engine. that's easy too. figuring the tv cable out is no big deal. that issue has been beat to death. lastly the engine has to have the right cam to run efficient at 2k and lower. no window shakers. it is a great swap if done correctly. which is very easy to do.
Dear Mike, Joe, OHC Joe, and V-8 Buick fans of overdrive, Agreed it isn't a weekend project, but for a Buick swapping, a 200-4R is especially easy. It swapped right into the position of the TH350 that we put in 1979. That TH350 replaced the ST-300 that Buick put in 1965 Specials back in the day. The biggest headache is getting the shift indicators to work again. This time I gave up and went with a IDidIt replacement column. Until then we just lived with the incorrect shift indicators on the stock stock column shifter. Nowadays, there is an aftermarket cross-member that accommodated the 200-4R and the large exhaust headers my wagon now has. She still has her original drive shaft from 1965! Cheers, Edouard
