[RamAirIV28]

Hi,

I own a 1955 Pontiac wagon 4 door, v8 3 speed, all original. Does PHS do back far enough to have the info on the 55's?

I have the 55 manual tranny behind my 287, will a 59 389 bolt up in front of the bell housing and tranny? what other tranny's will bolt up to that bell housing bolt pattern?

thanks

[Stuart]

Welcome to the site! Unfortunately, PHS only goes back through 1961. Records earlier than that were lost in a fire many years ago.

One of the other guys who knows the earlier cars better than I will be along in a little while to answer your other questions.

[barrierblue66]

Welcome aboard fellow Longroofer!

[Bill Hanlon]

Originally Posted by RamAirIV28

Hi,
I have the 55 manual tranny behind my 287, will a 59 389 bolt up in front of the bell housing and tranny? what other tranny's will bolt up to that bell housing bolt pattern?

'59 389 should bolt to your '55 bell housing with no problems. If your '55 had a Hydra-Matic you might need to trim the flange on the 389 crankshaft just a bit to bolt the Hydra-Matic flywheel down flat, but if I remember correctly that isn't a problem with the manual flywheel.

More info about the block to bell housing interface here http://www.pontiacsafari.com/L1Garag...eID/index.html

[Charlie Jones]

Originally Posted by RamAirIV28

Hi,



I have the 55 manual tranny behind my 287, will a 59 389 bolt up in front of the bell housing and tranny? what other tranny's will bolt up to that bell housing bolt pattern?

thanks

The 55 Pontiacs used the smaller Buick built 3 speeds. These trannys were built originally for use behind flathead sixes and eights of 100 HP or less. All 35 to 55 Pontiac, 35 to 48 Olds and 36 to 55 "junior " (series 40 & 50) Buick trans should bolt up to the 55 Pontiac bellhousing.
If all your doing is normal street driving, then this transmission would be OK. I would certainly not recommend "Hot Rodding" it or trying to put more than 250 HP through it.

[Safari Larry]

I have done this -- 1959 tri-power engine in 1955 stick shift 2-dr sedan. It bolts in and works GREAT (loved that car). Charlie gave good advice on the transmission durability. After installing the 59 engine and hotrodding it, I had the transmission out every few weeks (speed shifts didn't help!). But with experience, I could overhaul the transmission within an hour and have it back on the road. With experience, I got to where I could get the needed parts before pulling the transmission. That was back in early '60s when used transmission parts (Pontiac and Buick) weren't difficult to find and cheap. Different story today. As Charlie says, if you don't hot rod it, the 55 transmission should hold up.

1956-57 standard 3-speed is much stronger and will bolt in with same year bell housing. Use a 1958-60 bell housing to install a 4-speed or 5-speed.

Another issue to consider is the exhaust manifolds. The 55 exhaust manifolds will bolt up to the 59 engine and work OK but the 55 manifold ports are smaller than ports in heads. To get matching ports, use 57 or 58 manifold on driver's side and 57-60 manifold on passenger's side. You'll want to replace the exhaust pipes, header pipe is larger on the 57 and later exhaust. For dual exhausts, you'll need to cut a hole in the frame to route the driver's side exhaust pipe.

[RamAirIV28]

if I use the 56-57 tranny will the column linkage from the 55 still work, I want to keep it on the column,

I noticed that a lot of the guts from other GM 3 speeds interchange suggesting that it was used in some form or another on various other GM products.

so while the 59 389 will bolt up to the bell housing, I'm understanding that the 55 tranny probably wont live a long and happy life behind even a mildly hoped up 389? if I use a 58 bell housing will the tranny bolt pattern be compatible with the 67 and later fully syncro'd 3 speeds? I wonder if I can get the column linkage to work with that,

will the front engine mount from a 55 fit the front of a 59 or will I have to go with the 55 front cover? and will that fit the front of a 59?

Has anybody put a 70 and later (75 455) v8 in a 55? successfully? It seems the th400 would be the way to go with this but I really love the 3 speed on the column.

thanks for all your help

[Bill Hanlon]

Originally Posted by RamAirIV28

will the front engine mount from a 55 fit the front of a 59 or will I have to go with the 55 front cover? and will that fit the front of a 59?

Front engine U shaped steel mount from the '55 will bolt to the '59 front cover.

[Poncho60]

If you decide to go the 58-60 bellhousing route, and are looking for one, I have one that I'm about ready to sell. Just thought I'd throw this out there as FYI.

[Pontirag]

pm recieved.

[RamAirIV28]

Pontirag, will be in touch.

[78 WS6]

Hi there,

I have been trying to restablish contact w/ you in regard to HO Specialties Turbo kit. Either my pm's have gotten lost or you have reconsidered interest. I don't mean to bug you, but am curious if there is still interest.

THANX, Roger

[RamAirIV28]

does anybody have pictures of the 57 and later Heavy duty tranny recommended above?

what should they cost in usable condition?

Exactly what year HD tranny , 57 and later will fit? 57, 58 59 60....?

if I go with a 58 and later bell housing what fork will work? I have a 55 fork,

what tranny yoke will work with the 57 and later tranny?

I'm looking at the possibility of installing a later and stronger tranny, what else do I need? Fork? Bell housing? Mounts? drive shaft? Yoke? what else.

[Safari Larry]

See

MPC Transmission -- Synchro Mesh (Typical 1956-57)
MPC Heavy Duty Transmission -- Synchro Mesh (Typical (1958-59)
1956 Shop Manual, Section 7
1957 Shop Manual, Section 7

The 1956-57 Pontiac Transmission is a heavy duty transmission, probably about as strong as any 3-speed transmission. This would be the best choice for ease of installation. It has considerable gear whine in first & second (similar to 55) and that's probably why it was discontinued. Personally, I find the gear whine desirable, music to my ears. You will need the 1957-57 bell housing for this transmission. Your standard transmission cross member will work and the motor mounts will bolt up without any modification. I suspect clutch linkage will bolt up but not certain. I don't know about shift linkage, you probably will need at least the shift rods from column to transmission. I don't know about internal steering column shift mechanism. A search in the Master Parts Catalog will tell you what internal parts are the same/different. You would need the 1956-57 yoke so would probably have to modify your 55 drive shaft or use a 56/57 drive shaft. Your best bet would be to find a 56/57 parts car with the standard transmission. 57 would be better because you could use the stronger rear end and probably would have everything you need for bolt in installation, including the steering column if needed.

For the 1958-59 transmission, you will need the 1958-60 bell housing. You will need a different cross member, 1956 or 1957 Controlled Coupling Hydramatic cross member can be used by making a couple of simple adapters. I don't know about linkage issues you would run into. I don't see this as a good option for simple installation.

I have no idea about cost.

[Jack Gifford]

What Larry said. But be advised that the weird "selector"-type shift arrangement didn't lend itself to fast shifting, nor to floor-shift conversions. '58 and later are the more common 2-lever style (R-1 and 2-3 levers).

[buds56]

On my 56 I have a 59 389 with a
55 flywheel,
55 clutch fork and linkage,
58 bellhousing,
58 rear mounts on the bellhousing (Originally slotted the holes on the 55 mounts and they worked)
Saginaw 4 speed, and yoke,
The original driveshaft worked ( my car was originally an auto)
It works and drives very well
Unless your trying to use your original column shifter,
IMHO I'd find a more modern transmission.
The gm manuals, 3-4 speeds late 60's into the 80' shift smooth, quiet, you can get shifters for them, and still readily available.
Hope this helps.

[PRC]

Plenty of good information here. I second the opinion that you would be better off using a '58-60 bellhousing which would allow you to use any GM 3 or 4 speed from that date up to the 80's or even an aftermarket 5 speed with the GM bolt pattern. My '57 wagon has a '59 389 with a '58 bellhousing and Tremech 5 speed. You can use your stock driveshaft with a 3 or 4 speed. The 5 speed requires shortening the driveshaft.

[Rocky 389]

Like several of the other guys here, I've suffered through using the old selecta-shift 3 speed trannys. Mine was a 57 Pontiac and even though it was supposed to have the "heavy duty" 3 speed, I blew up 4 of 'em with a tired 347 before changing to a '59, 389 and swapped in a muncie 4 speed at the time I changed engine. What a change! The modern 4 speed made an entirely different car out of the ol 57> I never realized how bad the gear spacing was with the 3 speed until I remembered that 3 speed was designed and built in the 30s-40s when rear gearing was in the 4.30 range. Put that tall geared transmission [in 1 st gear] in front of a 3.23 or even a 3.63 rear gear and it makes for plenty of clutch slipping to get started, especially going uphill. And the whining noise [3 speed] got old fast.
The 389 will bolt up to your 55 car with no problems and the added low-end torque will help with starting out from a stop but........damn, those trannys were sooooooooo improved beginning in '58.
Just my opinion...your mileage may vary.