Use the Force, Luke!
(Use the factory parts catalogue, Reed!)
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| "Heavy duty" 904 questions https://www.slantsix.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=38913 |
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| Author: | Reed [ Fri Feb 05, 2010 3:39 pm ] |
| Post subject: | "Heavy duty" 904 questions |
I am in the process of gathering parts to rebuild a 904 transmission for my brother's van. I had planed to go to the boneyard today and grab a mid-80s 904 V-8 transmission and just swap the V-8 tranny guts directly into an early 70s 904 case. However, to my surprise, there were NO 80s V-8 904s. There was one 79 V-8 904 in a pickup, but it was siting in a big puddle and (a) I didn't want to crawl around in a muddy puddle and (b) I had no way of confirming that a 79 transmission had the wide ratio gearset I was looking for. To my even greater surprise, there were TWO 1984 dodge vans in the boneyard that had slant sixes and 904s! They both were ex-government fleet vehicles. Both of them had the broadcast sticker under the hood listing options, and both of them listed the vans as being equipped with a lockup torque converter and a "heavy duty" 904. Now, according to my 1984 Dodge van factory service manual, all 904s and 999s used in vans in 1984 were lockup with the wide ratio gearset. Yay. I wanted both those features. However, I had also wanted the increased number of clutches used in the v-8 904s. I ended up buying one of the two heavy duty 904s. I think it might have been rebuilt recently, but I won't know until I pull the pan and look around inside. The current plan is to just get a rebuilt torque converter and rebuild the HD904 I pulled today instead of swapping guts into the 73 904 I have under my workbench. Here is my question: What made the "heavy duty" 904s "heavy duty"? Is it an increased number of clutches? How do they compare to the V-8 904s? Thanks! EDIT: The specifications section of the FSM says the A-904T put behind 225 CI engines has four front clutch discs, four front clutch plates, three rear clutch plates, and four rear clutch discs (the same number of all as the 727). But what else made this a "heavy duty" transmission? |
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| Author: | SlantSixDan [ Fri Feb 05, 2010 3:57 pm ] |
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Use the Force, Luke! (Use the factory parts catalogue, Reed!)
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| Author: | Reed [ Fri Feb 05, 2010 4:06 pm ] |
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Away put your keyboard, parts manual I have.  
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| Author: | SlantSixDan [ Fri Feb 05, 2010 4:47 pm ] |
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What the…? Those dang jerks! I said double cheese, no Yoda! |
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| Author: | slantzilla [ Fri Feb 05, 2010 5:23 pm ] |
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Quote: What the…? Those dang jerks! I said double cheese, no Yoda!
Could be worse, it could be a Toy yoda.
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| Author: | mpgFanatic [ Fri Feb 05, 2010 6:23 pm ] |
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Quote: Could be worse, it could be a Toy yoda.
Reminds me of a story: I didn't talk at a young age... waited for something important to say, I guess. My parents tell me that my first words were something like, "hey Daddy, look at that red Toyota over there!". Followed a short time later with, "When are we gonna see a Real Ota?" Precocious kid, i tellya. - Erik |
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| Author: | Reed [ Fri Feb 05, 2010 6:51 pm ] |
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| Okay, so I pulled the pan and I really think someone has been in here before me. The cork pan gasket came off way too easy to be original, the pan was clean with pretty ruby red fluid in it (the pan also has a magnet! yay!), and the gasket between the main body and the tailshaft housing is still stiff, in one piece, and has "Trans-Tek" stamped all over it. On the outside of the transmission was written in yellow grease pen, "3-2-2006 A904 Add lube gard sold at Napa (red bottle)." The gasket in my rebuild kit also has "Trans-Tek" stamped all over it. So maybe I got REALLY lucky and picked up a tranny that was rebuilt in 06. Hopefully, I will only have to disassemble far enough to inspect clearances and then install the Trans-Go shift kit I got. Here's hoping... Oh yeah,  touch the Yoda for a neat story. |
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| Author: | 00spy [ Sat Feb 06, 2010 7:33 am ] |
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 Quote: touch the Yoda for a neat story. Dave |
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| Author: | Reed [ Sat Feb 06, 2010 12:47 pm ] |
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Wel, the inside of the tranny as so clean that I went back to the junkyard and grabed the torque converter. Sure enough, there is a "remanufactured- removal of this sticker will void the warranty" decal on the front of the converter. It is really starting to look like this is a rebuilt tranny and torque converter.  Not bad for $76 total cost! 
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| Author: | SlantSixDan [ Sat Feb 06, 2010 1:25 pm ] |
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Score! |
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| Author: | Reed [ Sat Feb 06, 2010 1:42 pm ] |
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Yup, torque converter was rebuilt on 10-4-05. So far, the valves and pistons and bores are looking clean and smooth in the valve body. Haven't gotten to the clutches yet, but I am pretty happy with what I have found so far, especially since rebuilt torque converters run about $160 in my neck of the woods. 
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| Author: | wvenable [ Sat Feb 06, 2010 1:58 pm ] |
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Looking at the ingredients on that pizza - whoever consumed it - the FORCE had to be with them!
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| Author: | Reed [ Sat Feb 06, 2010 4:50 pm ] |
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Well, the tranny is all buttoned back up and ready to install. There was ZERO input shaft end play and I didn't even bother checking the clutches. Everything I could see looked clean and new, including the fluid and filter. So, all I had to do was install the Transgo shift kit and put it all back together. Yay. The shift kit isn't even that had to do. Drill three holes, swap out a valve and some springs, and that's it. Now it is time to buy a BUNCH of ATF+4, install the transmission, cross my fingers, and put it in drive. I didn't take many pictures since I wasn't doing anything exotic. I still have a complete and unused rebuild kit that I will save for another day. I am very interested in getting the transmission that failed out of my brother's van and tearing it apart to see what happened. |
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| Author: | 70valiant [ Sun Feb 07, 2010 9:14 am ] |
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Thats what I was running for the last few years in the Valiant and then the Swinger an 84 lock up out of a van. I could feel it lock up, it was like going int 4th gear. Sweet score!! I traded an 87 cutless cierra wagon with a wiped 3.8 for mine |
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| Author: | Reed [ Sun Feb 07, 2010 9:40 am ] |
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Yeah, if I had the money, I would go back to the yard and grab the other 84 904T, both aluminum one barrel intakes, and the stock exhaust manifold with the O2 sensor port. Unfortunately, indigent criminal defense work doesn't pay much, so I can't buy all the cool things I find in the boneyard.  80s era Dodge vans with slant sixes have the coolest stuff... |
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