Transmission / Overdrive: Turbo 350 transmission questions

[Scott]

My mechanic is pretty sure my 1965 Daytona has a turbo 350 transmission behind the 283. He says the pan looks right and the shifting puts 1st gear where the indicator says I am in reverse!

I have a few questions:
1. Does the 350 start in first or second gear? Is it a three speed?
2. Is there a way to change the shifting pattern to match the Studebaker pattern (is it PDNLR ?)
3. Is it a good transmission?
4. Are there kits or parts I need so the speedometer cable is hooked up properly to the transmission? Now there seems to be some mucked up homemade adapter that the car shop took out because the transmission fluid was leaking around it. So now I have no working speedometer .

Thanks.

[buddymander]

A 350 is a great transmission. It has a cable to the carb whereas a PG has a rod. I'd change the indicator. The PG has a 1.8 first gear and the 350T has a 2.5 first gear, since the PG is a two speed and the 350T is a three. There are two seals on the speedo that could cause leaking; just replace them and get your speedometer back.

[Scott]

Thanks for the information. Are those speedometer seals available though local sources? Do you know if any Studebaker vendor has replacement indicators with a different pattern than the standard Studebaker one?

[buddymander]

There's an o-ring and a very small lip seal. You could check with a NAPA, but I don't have much luck with those kind of parts. Any tranny shop would probably be helpful with those. A mid seventies ford might have a usable shift indicator. Sometimes the plastic speedo driven gear is worn, and sometimes even the aluminum pop in housing is worn causing a leak.

[gordr]

Scott, if you have some old car wrecking yards around, look for some '70s-era Jeep Wagoneers. Some models were made with TH350 transmissions, IIRC, and they used a shift quadrant housing IDENTICAL to Studebaker Larks. I think the steering column parts came from the same supplier. The plastic shift quadrant plate fits right in, and I expect the metal detent plate would also.

Take your existing detent plate and housing with you while you browse the wrecking yard.

This would be a great item for one of our vendors to reproduce: conversion detent plate and quadrant set.

Gord Richmond, within Weasel range of the Alberta Badlands

[Scott]

Thanks, Gord. I'll keep that in mind. There is a junk yard that specializes in very old stuff about 25 miles from where I live.

I'm not sure what a detent plate is.

[Jeff_H]

I have a indicator insert with PRND21 on it in my '53 to match the C5 Ford trans. The plastic lens is from a early wagoneer. I don't know when they changed the steering columns but they are quite different in the later 70s and newer. The shifter bezel is square and bigger. The early ones are identical in appearance to studebaker parts, including the chrome part. I had a hard time finding old enough wagoneers. The lens tends to get eaten by the sun too so often those times I found one it was no good (yellowed and crazed). If you find a wagoneer with a vertical bars grill that looks jeepish, its certainly old enough.

Jeff in ND

'53 Champion Hardtop

[Scott]

I could make one, I suppose, but it would not be transparent or translucent. I could design it and have some made in clear, but I bet the cost would run $40-$50 each, maybe less. They'd be start out a little yellowed, though.

[buddymander]

I got some clear 1/4" plexiglass if you want a chunk to make your own.

[Scott]

I might, but isn't 1/4" really thick for this part?

[buddymander]

You need some thickness to drill holes downward to hold it onto the column.

[Jeff_H]

Here is a photo comparing a shifter indicator lens from a late Lark to a Jeep Wagoneer. These look better in the photo than they really are. The letters were repainted but the plastic is not too good. The Jeep one has vertical crack in it. I took the shot with the parts on a black background and shown a flashlight edgewise to make them "glow" some. I can't find my calipers but my old drafting ruler shows the Jeep one to be 1/8" thick and the Lark one a little thinner. These insert into the back of the chrome bezel that mounts on the top of the steering column. The bezel has the mount screws in it.



Jeff in ND

'53 Champion Hardtop

[buddymander]

That Jeep shift indicator lens is the bomb. Forget about making your own. Does anybody have an exact year of jeep that these are on? How about a part number? I doubt they could be too expensive from a dealer.

[Warren Webb]

From what I can find it seems the 66-69 Jeep Wagoneer used this lens. Seems they changed in 70 when AMC took over & started using Chrysler transmissions & changed the steering column.

60 Lark convertible
61 Champ
62 Daytona convertible
63 G.T. R-2,4 speed
63 Avanti (2)
66 Daytona Sport Sedan

[TPpower]

A 350 is a great transmission. It has a cable to the carb whereas a PG has a rod. I'd change the indicator. The PG has a 1.8 first gear and the 350T has a 2.5 first gear, since the PG is a two speed and the 350T is a three. There are two seals on the speedo that could cause leaking; just replace them and get your speedometer back.

hi! im putting a THM350 in my 1965 studebaker cruiser to replace the original borg warner unit. i need a new neutral safety switch and i was wondering what i should use to ensure that the shift pattern is the same for a TH350 so that way the neutral safety as well as the reverse lights work. thankyou!