Cast Iron 4 Sp. Hydro-Matic

[jbgroby]

I had responded to a posting last week and another posted made a comment on the type of transmission I have for the truck. I only knew it was a hydramatic, but he said is was a "cast iron hydramatic and the're so rare, it's almost a rumor".

Are these type of trans. rare? It works perfect and I know it was considered the high end optional trans for the 160 GMC, so I suppose it was a good one. The shift patterns still gets a few folks looking at it as it is as follows

N-1-2, 1-3, 1-2, R.

I understand that a few yound men dropped it in low and shot backwards into the car or walls?

[padresag]

everything becomes rare as time passes it by and they are made into something new. at one time (54-56) almost every olds and caddy had one along with pont, some buicks and other applications inc gmc trucks. same model of trans was used up to 62 in gmc. they were quite common at one time

By rondavid at 2009-11-22
ron

[andyh1956]

when i was in high school i had a '40 ford coupe with a caddy engine & one of those trans in it. we drained the tranny oil & filled it up with some kinda turbine fluid we got at the grain elevator & after that it would jerk a knot in your a$$ when it shifted. one night something happened to the engine & we pulled it home. when i pulled the pan off it had SEVEN broken rods. oh well, it wouldn't be the last blown up engine. i think i traded the car for a m38 jeep.
andy

[markeb01]

The following link provides more information about Hydramatics than most of us will ever remember. I particularly like this entry:

"The all cast-iron Hydramatic was the heaviest automatic transmission ever produced for automobiles".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydramatic

My parents had a 52 Olds Super 88 when I about 14. The "Super" in the name designated it was equipped with the 4 speed Hydramatic. The engine came from the family of a kid killed in a racing accident. It had been recently built and not yet been installed, and had all the popular stuff of the day - Jahns pistons, McGurk rocker arms, 3/4 solid lifter cam, etc. It also ran a 4 barrel and dual exhausts, and Buick wheels for a wider track.

No way of knowing if it's true or not, but my dad mentioned several times it had Buick clutches in the transmission which radically shortened the shifts. During normal driving it was the firmest shifting car I'd ever been in (at that time). Under full throttle it banged violently through the gears chirpiing the tires at each shift. I thought it was the coolest car I'd ever seen, but my mom didn't share the same enthusiasm.

My dad pulled the transmission once for an undisclosed problem, and I clearly remember all the complaining about the 32 bolts holding the torque converter to the flywheel! Taking one of these out was a major project using the max capacity of just about all the equipment we had.

The Hydramatic was extremely popular with drag racers in the late 50's - early 60's, being the basis for the famous B&M Hydrostick. For anyone interested here's a thread on the Hydrostick.

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/s...d.php?t=147409

[jbgroby]

...."I clearly remember all the complaining about the 32 bolts holding the torque converter to the flywheel!"

Yep, if not for another 'bolter from New Orleans, It would have taken me over two hours to bolt her back up.

[padresag]

Originally Posted by markeb01

The following link provides more information about Hydramatics than most of us will ever remember. I particularly like this entry:

"The all cast-iron Hydramatic was the heaviest automatic transmission ever produced for automobiles".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydramatic

My parents had a 52 Olds Super 88 when I about 14. The "Super" in the name designated it was equipped with the 4 speed Hydramatic. The engine came from the family of a kid killed in a racing accident. It had been recently built and not yet been installed, and had all the popular stuff of the day - Jahns pistons, McGurk rocker arms, 3/4 solid lifter cam, etc. It also ran a 4 barrel and dual exhausts, and Buick wheels for a wider track.

No way of knowing if it's true or not, but my dad mentioned several times it had Buick clutches in the transmission which radically shortened the shifts. During normal driving it was the firmest shifting car I'd ever been in (at that time). Under full throttle it banged violently through the gears chirpiing the tires at each shift. I thought it was the coolest car I'd ever seen, but my mom didn't share the same enthusiasm.

My dad pulled the transmission once for an undisclosed problem, and I clearly remember all the complaining about the 32 bolts holding the torque converter to the flywheel! Taking one of these out was a major project using the max capacity of just about all the equipment we had.

The Hydramatic was extremely popular with drag racers in the late 50's - early 60's, being the basis for the famous B&M Hydrostick. For anyone interested here's a thread on the Hydrostick.

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/s...d.php?t=147409

I doubt that the super in the name stood for the hydramatic. they pretty well all had the hydramatic trans.. I cannot remember seeing an olds with a std trans, which doesn't mean that there were not any.
I also doubt that dynaflow clutches would fit in a hydramatiic unless they were the same clutches. there were dynaflows installed in caddies and olds in 53 due to the fire( http://www.autotran.us/TheGreatHydraMaticFire.html ), but they were not known for a harsh shift under throttle
ron
super could have been the difference between a 2 brl and a 4 brl carb

[markeb01]

Further checking indicates the 88 or Deluxe 88 came with a 2 barrel while the Super 88 came with a 4 barrel carb, upgrade seat padding and body trim. Information I originally shared was what I understood to be true back in the early 60’s when there were no validation resources.

Automatics were somewhat standard by this time in Oldsmobiles, although a cost saving delete option was available for those that preferred a stick shift. Before I could drive I met a guy just out of high school that had a 52 Olds coupe with a factory stick on the column. I also replaced the clutch in a 55 Buick special for a family friend. Both were rare and very cool IMO.

[padresag]

things were simpler then. one knew every model and make. there were british cars in lieu of japanese and whatever else there is now and of course there was the beetle.
it was pretty hard then to find a std bellhousing for an olds or buick. more than likely easier now with the advent of the computer
I rebuilt a lot of planetary gearsets for those old trans inc p/gs
ron

[raycow]

Possibly the best endorsement for the Hydramatic in those days was the fact that it was used by makes of cars that were not part of the GM family. It was offered by Nash, Hudson, Kaiser, Willys, and even Lincoln, which must have been a terrible embarrassment for Ford.

Ray