3-Speed Overdrive

[John-T-53]

So I picked up this Borg Warner R-10 overdrive from a buddy of mine up north, for the price of "on the house". He said it came out of a '52 Plymouth, and he showed me the flathead 6 that it was mated to as well.

Not knowing much about these trannys, I said sure, I'll take it, and see if it could be installed in my B-4-B.

I did some research on these, and I'm now informed they're known for being bullet proof and easy to operate. If I were to put it behind my truck's motor, I could get 5 speeds, keep my rear end as is, and make my daily driver more enjoyable and economical to drive. But take cover, the big elephant looms in the room....

Taking some preliminary measurements and observations:

1. The mounting holes on the bellhousing don't match up.

2. The throw out bearing collar surface looks like a smaller diameter (from memory).

3. Not sure if the input shaft is the right length.

4. The e-brake control is on the other side.

5. The Speedo cable needs to be longer.

6. And, finally, the driveshaft will need to be snipped a bit.

Anybody ever do a mod like this in their truck? Not sure if I'm wanting to violate the backside of my flathead with a different transmission, I'd like to get some imput on the items listed above, and any others, from y'all.

I like this option for OD better than a T-5 because I can keep the column shift, which I like. I had also looked into a Gear Vendors divorced mount unit, which would be easy to install and provide great performance, but they're cost prohibitive ($3k +).

[Young Ed]

John you've got a lot of work to get that into your truck. All of the steps to do a t5. Truck trans and car trans are way different. Plus you could sell that and get a t5 and the install kit and still be ahead.

[Dodgeb4ya]

I put one in a 52 dodge panel for a friend back in the very early 80's. Shift linkage was the most difficult part as it required a lot of figuring out how to make it shift Smooth/correctly and have the proper throw ect. Also made a steel ring to center trans in the truck bell housing. Input shaft wasn't a issue as I recall. One bolt was an issue as to enough meat to drill in the bell housing. After the shifter linkage was 100% correct and it was all hooked up- worked great. Drove it all over Washington state on the hunt for old MoPar parts. It would easily drive 65-70MPH if the roads were good. A pasnel is a tad bit top heavy and scary with cross winds doin 70!

Bob

[John-T-53]

Wow that's a lot of work. Sounds like I need to invest in some metal working tools and a welder too. I wonder if I could get the OD bellhousing and just use that with the OD tranny?

I told my friend who gave it to me - if I can't make the OD work, I'd give it back to him, so being an honest dude, I'd be at $0.00.

The T5's I've seen have the shifter way back on the tranny housing and it looks like it would interfere with the seat, or just be out of place, if installed in a Pilothouse. That and the e-brake issue are the reasons deterring me from it.

[Young Ed]

The bellhousing for that OD will bolt right to your engine. You'd have to get or make a cross member for it as the cars bellhousing is totally different. Probably a lot easier though to install the car bellhousing. Here's what the car crossmember for the bellhousing looks like