About 10 miles of road testing and now the downshifts are great. I wonder if the synchronizers were just dry from the trans being apart? You'd never know it had downshifting issues.
My wife watched the video and said "Where's the big smile?!" I told her I was smiling inside during the video but I really was smiling, LOTS. I am SO happy with how it drives. It feels very very natural, like it was built with the 4 speed.
I so badly wish this was a radio delete car. I've don't think I've even turned it on. The radio would have been long gone except for the hole in the front fender where the antenna is.
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1966 Strato Chief 2 door, 427 4 speed, 45,000 original miles
1966 Grande Parisienne, 396 1 of 23 factory air cars
Next weekend, the 12th or 13th. This weekend I am in Sioux Falls SD. Black coffee it is and let's drive everything in your garage just for the sheer fun of it!!
I know this is an old thread but it seems logical to add to it rather than start new.
For years we have known that GM always used a torch of some sort to cut this hole in the floor on the assembly line on the B bodies that came with a 4 speed.
Not too long ago I bought a factory hump from Howmac in preparation of doing the 4 speed conversion on my Grande Parisienne this winter. What I got from him was the hump that had been cut out with part of the surrounding floor still attached, so it included the area cut out just like in the above picture. Yesterday I decided to remove the factory hump from the larger piece of floor that was cut out around the hump. When I was removing the hump, I noticed the factory hole cut in the floor. This one is definitely a factory cutout as evidenced by the seam sealer, the attaching bolts, the spot welds etc but look at the lines of the cut. They are clearly NOT done with a torch. I've seen many of these cuts but this one was done with some sort of mechanical cutter, not a torch.
Again I've learned to never say never. No more saying that GM never used anything but a torch to cut out the floor hole.