Anyone here ever do a 3 to 4 speed swap in a big body? I want to get rid of my 3 speed in my '71 Coupe and am curious as to what it will take, I would like to run a toploader 4 speed. The motor now is a 250, but it will soon be a 302. Thanks in advance for the help.
I think the only thing that you will need to change is the slip yoke (28 spline I think), and the equalizer bar. I am not sure, but I think it differs from the I6 to the small block.
Depending on the positioning of the 302 vs the 250, you may need a different driveshaft length ( even if you keep the 3 speed) Some Toploader 4 speeds have longer tailshafts than others ( the Galaxie units are 3 inches longer than the Stang/Fairlane ) There are also different shifter positions on Toploaders for different cars. I would wait til you get the 302 in before buying a 4 speed. Then see if the transmission's position has changed. I don't think it will, but you never know when doing engine swaps, especially from a 6 to an 8. Most likely you will need a 4 speed with similar dimensions as your 3 speed.
So will I be able to use the 250's bellhousing clutch etc? If I cant use that can I use the bellhousing from the C4? Or am I going to have to get all new stuff? thanks for the help.
I'm not familiar with the 6 cylinders, so I cant tell you if the bell will work or not. Maybe someone else can. A C-4 bell, definately won't work, that's an automatic trans bell.
My dad tells me that the 250 bell should be the same for the 302, he may be wrong though so I thought I would run it through you guys. I'll post in the 6cyl section too.