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Does one have to remove the overdrive unit to be able to remove the transmission so as to get out the clutch?

It seems that if I try try to move the transmission far enough back so that I could have the input shaft far enought aft to slide out of the bell housing I can't get the transmission far enough back because the overdrive case hits the X frame.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

I didn't have to remove anything on the 47 and I don't recall anyone else mentioning they had to either. Depending on where it is hitting, once you remove the cross or K member maybe you can jack the engine and trans up or lower it slightly for improved clearance at the rear and then block the engine in position while you slide the trans off.

Be sure and keep the transmission straight and not let the rear end drop as you slide it back until it is clear of the clutch plate. If you don't have any pilots you can buy a couple of 1/2-13 x 4" long bolts and cut the heads off. Get the bolts that are just threaded at the end and the rest is smooth. Remove a couple of mounting bolts and then screw the pilots in their place before removing the other bolts. That will help guide the transmission so the input shaft slides out of the clutch plate smoothly and no damage occurs.

Pull the trans back till it just comes out of the clutch disk. Shaft is still well inside the bell housing. Then drop the back of the trans down sharply. Then it is down and back till it is out. It can not be removed if you try and keep it parallel to the crankshaft. You also want to be sure that when your remove the rear mounts and block the engine that it does not move toward the rear of the car. You want it as far forward as possible.

It cannot be this difficult!!!

I've been working on cars for 32 years and have done lots of MAJOR projectsso I'm not new to cars...just Packards.

Anyhoo I did get the transmission out... had to removerthe governor and overdrive solenoid, remove the steering crosstube (center link), disconnect and move to the side the exhaust pipe, disconnect the column shifter to engine bracket links, even disconnect the temp sender wire so that I could drop the tail end of the engine down to a sufficient angle so I could slide the transmission back far enough so that the input shaft would clear the bell housing... the problem was that if the engine was in its normal position then when I slid the transmission back to remove it the overdrive case would interfere with the chassis cross member (the chassis has an X structure between the side rails and this is the part where the drive shaft exits through) .

I could simply not get the transmission to slide back far enough so that it would clear the bell housing.

The manual does not describe how to remove the transmission.

This cant be right. I have a two post lift and a transmission jack and it was this difficult.

I tried to remove the overdrive housing however it looks like the mechanic who rebuilt it used sealant to seal the overdrive unit to the transmission housing so I could not get that to come off when it was up inside the
tunnel.

I like the idea of using pilot bolts to help guide the transmission home... thanks!!!

Has anybody removed
the transmission with the overdrive attached?

THANKS
!!!

I think Ross described the procedure fairly well & can't believe the 47 has any more space than the 48 so yes, I have removed the trans/OD as an assy. The thread of a few days ago where I mentioned installing a 3 pinion planetary in an R9 OD in place of a 4 was done in my driveway without much drama. I can assure you I didn't have to dissemble or move as much as you did to get it out.

Dave in Canada detailed his experiences somewhere on site when he changed the clutch plate on his 47. I believe his had OD too. For both of us the hardest part was the weight of the complete assy. IIRC, Dave did it by himself without a jack and one of his experiences was balancing the heavy trans on his chest as it came out. I had a cheap scissors type trans jack which as I recall was mostly used in transporting the unit after it was out rather than actually holding the thing during removal. It didn't tilt in the right places so I think I did the brute force method too.

thanks all... I'll report back tomorrow