i bought a 3 speed overdrive transmission at a swap meet a couple of years ago thought it was a 55 or 56 unit but it is different.its a top loader and is marked t-96  1A pretty sure its a ford but cant find ford logo anywhere.can anyone shed any light on this   Carl

I believe that's the one used behind the 292s. Not very much in the strong department. If the car is for puttering around then it should be fine. If you're wanting to put more power behind it then opt for a T-85 which is a LOT stronger and came behind the 312s and were used behind the 390s and some 406s in the early sixties.

-Gary Burnette-

No its not a 292 the input shaft is different its longer and the end that goes into the pilot bushing is smaller diameter also has a smaller throwout bearing and the total length is 1 inch shorter than the 55 56

Carl,

I can't help you with info about your transmission,but I have essentially the same question.A 56 I bought a couple of years ago had no drivetrain,but at one time had a Windsor in it.It had,hanging in it an overdrive transmission that's marked as a T-86 and does have Ford logo's on it.Does anyone know what this one is??

 

Paul,

Boonville,MO

Paul and Carl:

T85, T86, T89, T96, T98, T10, etc are just a few model numbers of transmissions built by Warner Gear Div. of Borg Warner in Muncie IN.  The GM "Muncie" 4 speed transmission was built in the "Chevrolet Plant" in Muncie too.  Sadly, the GM plant is now empty, and the Borg Warner plant is in trouble.  They build transfer cases for Ford, and with Ford's huge cutback, well, you can guess the outcome.  BW in Chicago will have a corporate meeting this month do decide whether or not to close the Muncie plant.

Anyway, the above model numbers were built for many different car and truck makers.  Inputs, outputs, bolt patterns, and mounts varied with each manufacturer's needs.  My friend used to drag race a '51 Studebaker in stock class, and would take the top cover off his Stude trans and install a jeep floor shift lever.  Ingenious, yes, but you have to know him.  He still has his '51, with twin turbos on a 289 inch Stude engine and gm turbo 400 trans that goes low 10s and 140+.  Back to the transmission.  Many of the internal parts are the interchangeable, such as gears and synchronizers.  There were only two basic overdrives, R10 and R11, light and heavy duty, and all the "working" parts of each model were the same.  I knew they guy who invented the OD for them, and he got $1 royalty for each one sold.  Sorry for the long post.

John

John - "The Hoosier Hurricane"

Thanks John   Is there anyway i can tell if the trans i have is a r 10 or r 11 carl

Carl:

The numbers should be cast in the overdrive case.  You no doubt have the R10 on your light duty transmission.  The R11 was fitted to the T85.

By the way, the T10 (4 speed) prototype was developed from the T85 (three speed).  They took the production T85 case, bored out the back for the two piece reverse gear setup, installed the 4 speed forward gear train in the T85 case, added a different tail housing and, voila', a 4 speed.  For production they cast cases especially for the 4 speeds with T10 casting number, but still used most of the T85 machining operations on the case itself.  I believe the T85 side cover was used on the T10.

They sold the T10 to everyone who wanted a 4 speed until demand got high enough that other manufacturers set up to build their own.  The gm "rock crushers" were built in the Muncie gm plant when they decided they could build them cheaper than buying T10s from WG.

John

John - "The Hoosier Hurricane"