Re: Transmission Modifications/replacement

Posted by Craig the Clipper Man On 2013/3/7 14:47:58

Not to get too far off the subject, but I was recently talking with some guys at a Packards Virginia club meeting and naturally the conversation drifted to the Ultramatic. Go figure ...

Anyway, it was their contention that the Twin Ultramatic is a fundamentally souind transmission which requires a fairly gentle touch (i.e. let off the gas and allow it to shift from first to second) and dedicated maintenance. Both of these seem to make good common sense, if you think about it and are certainly cheaper than replacing a good, working transmission.

One major problem that I found out about less than one hour after I bought my '55 Constellation last June in Richmond, VA was the fluid in the tranny get VERY hot and when it overheats it has nowhere to go but up the filler spout. This in turn means the transmission fluid with spill onto the No. 8 plug wire, which after the next spark, will ignite causing a huge cloud of nasty white smoke that will completely freak out your spouse following you!

The PV boys unanimously recommend installing a transmission fluid radiator, but having never done something like that, have any of you ever installed a radiator to an Ultramatic and if so, is there an after-market one you would recommend?