Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

Has anyone used Shell transmission fluid? My Diesel loves shell rotella oil, and i was wondering about the quality of their ATF. Thanks for the great information!

I don't think the brand of transmission fluid is as important as the type. That said, I'd avoid the "no name" brands. I don't know what types Shell offers, what's on the label?

Mike, you will find that your "power rear suspension" is the whole car, front to rear. The torsion bars in that Pat are 111 inches long. The auxiliary bars compensate for load and move the front of the car as well as the rear. You'll have to study it a while to get the hang of it.

Wow. I learn something new every time i check back! the shell fluid said (if i remember correctly) dexron/mercon. I try to avoid using no name brand fluids.

I read somewhere that some people use Diesel oil for a better additive packge. is there any truth to this?

Mikec: Type F or FA fluid is, in fact, as close as you can get nowadays to the original fluid. Some of us who've acquired cars that sat for years have had good luck with B&M Trick Shift (original formula ? NOT the synthetic). It seems to do a good job of cleaning the general crud out of transmission components as well as breaking up the glaze on the direct drive clutch plates and eliminating resulting slippage when the transmission locks into direct drive.

As to your question about the filter, it is of the metal screen type and designed to be removed and cleaned. You have to drop the tranny pan but it's no big deal. The gaskets are available from all of the speciality parts houses (Kanters, Max Merritt, Tuscon Packard, etc.) and other places. Wouldn't hurt to look in there anyway ? just to see what you can see.

Owen_Dyneto wrote: ?I had one of their "locked hydramatics" in the 54 Hudson we drag raced many moons ago.?

We put a B&M, ?Stick-Hydro,? in a '53 Stude Starlight Coupe with an Olds engine (can't remember just which one after all these years), modified semi-positrac rear end and modified hell out of the suspension. The fellow that owned the car was trying for sort of a combo street legal dragster/road racing machine. The effort turned out to be pretty successful for a bunch of semi-alcoholic Air Force types in their time off. I still remember how impressed I was at the time (early sixties) with the B&M setup and performance.

thanks for the filter info Loyd. I will probably drop the pan just to see. where does one check and add fluid to this tranny? i dont remember seing a dipstick under the hood.

Should be a transmission dipstick closer to the firewall than and on the same side of engine as the oil dipstick.

By the way, the Shop Manuals, Parts List and Service Counselors (information sent by the factory to dealers)along with the appropriate Ultramatic Service Manual is available for download on this website.

Excellent! those manuals should come in handy!

Realize that the founder of this thread wrote Hydramatic when he meant Ultramatic, but Turbopacman asked how one put a Hydramatic in a Packard. My 1956 Patrician has a TurboHydramatic 400 installed in place of the Ultramatic about 15 years ago by the fellow I bought it from. An outfit in Georgia (now defunct) did this on a number of V-8 Packards. I don't know all of the technical details involved, but the front of the bellhousing is cut off the Ultramatic and aluminum welded to the front of the GM transmission which has had the front of its bellhousing removed. Works very well and I can have it repaired anywhere. I believe that some outfit in Texas is doing the same type of conversion using the newer GM overdrive transmission.

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If someone has any info on this company would you please post it on this thread. Thanks
Bill