Re: [FWDLK] Shiftless.....and clueless
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Re: [FWDLK] Shiftless.....and clueless



Well, if the 3.73:1 rear end, coupled to the 1958 manual trannie's
gears,  winds out to 54 mph in 1st, and 85 mph in 2nd, would it not make
sense to conclude that the ideal rear end ratio would be the 3.54:1 , so
that 2nd would wind-out  well-higher than the 85 mph limit, and also
higher than the 86 mph trap-speed that SCI recorded in the 1/4 mile (and
which might have required a shift into 3rd, to get to 86 mph ?)

The answer probably lies with the engine's torque curve, but, the 3.54
would be easier to hook-up, than the 3.73, and the higher rear end might
allow for a better sweet-spot shift, than a max'ed-out rpm shift point.

I know that with my car's Rambo-like 2.76 open rear end, I can high rpm
power-brake-start in 1st gear and move out very quickly, and then
short-shift (Ron Swartly has written) at 35 mph into 2nd with no rpm
fall-off (it would be nice to have a tach, instead of a clock, in the
dash!)

Neil Vedder


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  • From: eastern sierra Adj Services <esierraadj@xxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Sun, 27 Jan 2008 00:40:20 -0800
A week or so, ago, I'd asked if anyone had a definitive listing of the
various iterations, or applications, or part numbers for the 3-speed
transmissions that went into the FWDLK'ers.

Sports Cars Illustrated (3/58) has a very complimentary review of the
'58 Fury, and states : " The '58 Fury's manual transmission
is smoother in its opeation than that of the '57.
It's still on the heavy side, though, and requires prior engagement of a
synchronized gear if clashing is to be avoided on engagement of low or
reverse. But, its crossover (fore and aft motion in the neutral
position) and up and down shifts between second and high are smoother. 
This transmission has undergone two re-designs dictated by increasingly
powerful engines. In the course of making the gear teeth
huskier, low's ratio has gone from 2.58 to 2.50 to 2.33, and second's
from 1.83 to 1.68 to 1.55 .
In the '58 Fury with 3.73 axle gears, it is possible to wind out to 54
mph in low and 85 mph in second.

Rear axles have undergone a similar beefing-up, with the result that the
choice of optional final drive ratios now has dropped to two. They are
3.73 for the stick and 3.36 for the Torqueflite torque converter
transmission."

Nothing was said about the 350 c.i. Golden Commando engined 58 Fury
being so much slower than the 295 c.i. 1956 D-500-1 ( with its own
'beefed'-3-speed, which allowed it to exceed 100 mph, in the quarter
mile, right?) , but the article concludes : " As for sheer go, it far
outstrips the already hot '57 Fury."

The '58 Fury only managed a paltry 15.5 second quarter mile, at 86 mph

Interestingly, the Fury got to 80 mph in 13.2 seconds, so, it took about
2 seconds longer to get to 86 mph.

The '56 D500-1 broke 14 seconds in the quarter mile, huh? Must be the
power to weight ratio.

The '58 Fury weighed 3830 lbs; the mythology on the D500-1 would have it
weigh around 3400 lbs in order to reach 15 second quarter mile times,
IIRC.

ANY WEIGHT, does anyone know/have the model/part numbers for the various
3-speed transmissions, that were produced in the 50's, and what ratios
they may have had, in them, and what their applications may have been?

Neil Vedder

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