[Tim Younker]

Have a 62 Cat with a 389. Sick of the leaking slim jim and wanting to upgrade while keeping the original motor. Wanting to swap out in the next few weeks. Going with Bendtsen's adapter kit. Is the 2004r a cleaner fit than the 700r4. Not going to race this car but will have a over 300 horses. I have a good transmission shop near me that can build a strong 200. What are your thoughts. Thanks, Tim

[Stuart]

The 200r would probably be an easier fit since it's physically smaller than a 700r4. For the 700r4 you'll most likely have to cut the transmission pan and reshape it to make enough room, I *think* but don't know for sure that the 200r will not require modifications to the floor pan. However, there have been a number of discussions here about whether a 200r can be built up enough to be reliable behind a Pontiac engine, do an advanced search in this forum to find them.

[Deadhead]

IMO: For the trouble you have to go to to do the swap, I would go ahead & massage the sheetmetal if necessary and do a TH400. Indestructable for the most part, & you would not have to deal with it ever again. I know you don't get an OD, but with the right rear gear the mileage difference would be worth it for the durability. I had a '66 with 2.56 I could get 18 on trips cruising at 75.

I know one guy that had 300+ HP with a 700R & Pontiac torque was just too much for it. I don't believe any amount of modification could have overcome it. The shaft was his issue as I recall.

[Tim Younker]

Thanks for the replies so far guys. Jeff, my rear is an open 2.56. Thinking about installing Fabcrafts 3.42 gears. Thats why I thought it would be nice to have the OD. Would love to have 3.08s but can't find them. My car is mainly being used as a fun street cruiser with some highway driving. Still wanting to use the original motor (only has 78,000 miles and runs great). When using a 400 turbo, does the Catalina tunnel need to be widened by cutting a seam or can it be beaten with a 5lb hammer? Also how much more clearence is needed 2"/3" or even more? Regards, Tim

[stevep]

64 Droptop has done this conversion and I believe that it is archived here.

[Deadhead]

Originally Posted by Tim Younker

Thanks for the replies so far guys. Jeff, my rear is an open 2.56. Thinking about installing Fabcrafts 3.42 gears. Thats why I thought it would be nice to have the OD. Would love to have 3.08s but can't find them. My car is mainly being used as a fun street cruiser with some highway driving. Still wanting to use the original motor (only has 78,000 miles and runs great). When using a 400 turbo, does the Catalina tunnel need to be widened by cutting a seam or can it be beaten with a 5lb hammer? Also how much more clearence is needed 2"/3" or even more? Regards, Tim

There are varying experiences with this whole deal. Some claim they have not had to modify the tunnel at all. Others have had to use the BMF hammer towards the rear of the trans to clearance. I have also seen guys cut the tunnel & weld in larger ones.

Steve at Indiana Pontiacs.com might have a 3.08 rear. It is worth a check. Would be some savings there I would think. I have 3.42/TH400, & you absolutely would want the OD with that gear. The great thing about that Trans. is the 2nd gear goes on forever with your foot in it. That, and you can beat on it. I know an older fellow who ran one behind a 327 that was set up to launch at 7000 RPM & change at same. Many, many passes made without fail. Try that with a 200 or 700.

[Stuckinda60s]

Guys:

I've heard that you can get sufficient clearance for the T-400 simply by jacking the car up on the tunnel. Can you get enough clearance for the 4-speed Hydro by the same method? P'Burgh, it looks like maybe you might have tried that? Or no?

I've got a 4-speed out of a 62 Bonneville and am thinking of trying that trans in a '62 Catalina. I've got a '58 trans/engine combo that I believe has the higher ratio first, it came out of a '58 Chieftain wagon that had 3.23's in it. I'm pretty sure my wagon had a higher first than my buddy's '58 Olds, The Olds wasn't faster than my Chieftain but would smoke the tires at launch and the wagon wouldn't. Could have been due to the weight bias of the wagon, though. Does anyone remember what the higher ratio was? I used to know, but that "archive's" been deleted.

Did '63 GP's come with the Strato Flite or just the Jetaway?

Rich

[gregneun]

Remember the part about the trans vs block mounting starter.

Mine is a 64 Gp, so it had a block mounted starter. I installed the th400.

Good luck,
Greg

[Deadhead]

Originally Posted by Stuckinda60s

Guys:

I've heard that you can get sufficient clearance for the T-400 simply by jacking the car up on the tunnel. Can you get enough clearance for the 4-speed Hydro by the same method? P'Burgh, it looks like maybe you might have tried that? Or no?

I've got a 4-speed out of a 62 Bonneville and am thinking of trying that trans in a '62 Catalina. I've got a '58 trans/engine combo that I believe has the higher ratio first, it came out of a '58 Chieftain wagon that had 3.23's in it. I'm pretty sure my wagon had a higher first than my buddy's '58 Olds, The Olds wasn't faster than my Chieftain but would smoke the tires at launch and the wagon wouldn't. Could have been due to the weight bias of the wagon, though. Does anyone remember what the higher ratio was? I used to know, but that "archive's" been deleted.

Did '63 GP's come with the Strato Flite or just the Jetaway?

Rich

GPs came with the Rotohydramatic A/K/A Slim Jim - 3 speed only I believe. Seems like all the column shift cars got the 4 speed rotos. Superhydromatic is the bigger 4 speed auto trans that came in Bonnevilles. They put larger tunnels in the Bonnes to accomodate them, so you would have similar clearance issues with these in another model.

I would agree with Pitts and go with a Super, but in many places it would be impossible to find anyone who knew how to service or rebuild one.