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the '54 has an ultramatic in it. Is this the same transmission as the ultramatic in my '51 or do they differ in some way?
I'll stick my two cents in on the trans. The 54 Ultra transmissions were of two types. Original single speed no shift type Ultras were the same operation but somewhat refined from 51s. Considerably different direct drive clutch assy from 51s and slightly different valving to alleviate some issues with the forced manual shifting which was frequently the way people wanted to drive them.
In late 54 production they introduced the Gear Start Ultras so if the car is late build it could have one of those. They are completely different in operation with either an automatic shift from L to H and into direct drive or you can still select the old single speed operation. Those were renamed Twin Ultramatic and continued and refined thru 56.
The original Ultra has a shift quadrant PNHLR and it is crawl under to find the dipstick and fill opening. Gearstart quadrants have PN -a dot to the left of H and then LR. Gearstarts also have a long dipstick and fill tube that come all the way up into the engine compartment on the drivers side of engine.
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