Thread: best bolt in tranny 67 camaro 396

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ok well im going to do it ..im sick of my auto 3 speed im going for a manual tranny in my 67 camaro with a 396 it is a factory auto so ill need all the parts ..has anybody ever done any thing close to this b 4 ..i have on older trucks but never a car this nice..i dotn want to screw it up and hava a shiney paperweight sitting in my driveway lol now what im wondering is what factory manual tranny will bolt up to my 396 and what one was best or an aftermarket manual that will bolt in without modifying the flor board around the tranny hump i dont want it to lok like its been changed over to manual cuz alot of the ppl i know would kill em if they found out i was cutting my baby up lmao ..

Originally posted by vollick8
ok well im going to do it ..im sick of my auto 3 speed im going for a manual tranny in my 67 camaro with a 396 it is a factory auto so ill need all the parts ..has anybody ever done any thing close to this b 4 ..i have on older trucks but never a car this nice..i dotn want to screw it up and hava a shiney paperweight sitting in my driveway lol now what im wondering is what factory manual tranny will bolt up to my 396 and what one was best or an aftermarket manual that will bolt in without modifying the flor board around the tranny hump i dont want it to lok like its been changed over to manual cuz alot of the ppl i know would kill em if they found out i was cutting my baby up lmao ..

If you want to keep it stock (Like) you could install an aluminum case Muncie 4-speed M-20 - or a close ratio M-21 or a heavy duty close ratio M22.

Or you could go with a cast iron case Saginaw.

I'd go Muncie,

Or you could go G-Force
Or
Lenco


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Did a search and found this tidbit on transmissions.
* The M20 4-speed, standard transmission, RPO was a generic category. It was translated at the factory into a low-performance Saginaw when teamed with the L6 engine, as the higher-performance Saginaw in the low-end V8s, and as a Muncie in the SS and Z28 models.
* The M40 3-speed, automatic transmission, RPO was also a generic category in 1969. It was translated at the factory into the moderate performance THM350 (actually RPO M38) for non-big-block engines, and into the THM400 for big-block engines.
* The base 3-speed standard transmission for the SS-350 in 1967-68 was the 3-speed, column-shift, Saginaw. And it was only available in the column-shift. If a floor-shifted 3-speed was desired, the M13 HD three-speed, available only in floor-shift, was a separate option. The base SS-350 (and LM1) 3-speed was changed to the floor-shifted HD version in 1969 - the column shift standard transmission was no longer available in the SS or LM1 cars.
* The HD three-speed standard transmission was RPO M13 in 1967-68 (manufactured by Warner), but was MC1 (manufactured by Muncie) in 1969.
* A floor-shifter for automatic transmissions was only available with the D55 console. Except the 1968 L35/L34 396 engines with the THM400 transmission, for which a non-console M11 floor-shifter was available. (Note: the CRG would be interested in hearing from anyone with a 396/M40 with a non-console floor shifter.)
* The MB1 "Torque-Drive" two-speed transmission was only available for the L6 engines, and only in 68-69.

well a muncy m20 it is ..i hope its worth it im just sick of winding the engine up so far on the highway and dont want to loose the power at the low end so i figure a 4 speed manual to replace the 3 spd auto would help not to mention a manual is way cooler than an auto lol well all im wondering now is does anybody make a kit for this lol i found all the parts on classicindustries.com but i would rather get a kit if posible its not so easy to find a donor car in my year lol

Originally posted by vollick8
well a muncy m20 it is ..i hope its worth it im just sick of winding the engine up so far on the highway and dont want to loose the power at the low end so i figure a 4 speed manual to replace the 3 spd auto would help not to mention a manual is way cooler than an auto lol well all im wondering now is does anybody make a kit for this lol i found all the parts on classicindustries.com but i would rather get a kit if posible its not so easy to find a donor car in my year lol

I might be wrong but I don't think you'll find a kit as the parts to make the conversion are all factory replacement parts (Because 4 speeds were offered from the factory in that model). If your fortunate enough to snag one, the M-22 better know as the "Rock Crusher" would take more abuse from the torque the big block produces.

If you want to lower your cruise RPM and keep the low gears in the rear for quarter mile blast, maybe you should check out a "Gear Vendors" overdrive unit for your tranny. Give them a call at (619) 562-0060 and get some information from them.

As far as a kit goes, check with the Classic Industries folks to get all the right parts. I doubt there is a kit per se. I would recommend a Hurst or Mr Gasket shifter, unless you are tyring to keep it original, you don't want the factory Muncie shifter. Muncie Trans - yes, Muncie shifter - HECK NO!. Next find a factory service manual, you should have one of these for your car anyway, and if you can find another Camaro with a manual trans to look at and take pictures of. Things you will need to change for sure off the top of my head are:

Transmission, Bellhousing, flywheel, clutch plate, clutch disk and throwout bearing. The lever that moves the throw-out bearing. Clutch and Brake pedal, possibly the bracket they hang from under the dash. The Z-bar pivot that the clutch pedal connects to and pushes the rod to the throw-out lever. The frame bracket piece and pivot ball on the bellhousing that the Z-bar rides on. Possibly a different cross-member. Shifter, Shifter boots and shift linkage. Possibly Speedometer gears. Not sure about the drive shaft yoke, but possibly one of those. This is a fairly major project, but very straight forward and all the parts are available - somewhere!

Good luck.

Pat

Have you checked with your local tranny shop??

One more thing to try. Put some ads out in your area looking for someone with a 4 speed that wants to swap to an automatic. Different strokes for different folks, you might find someone who is tired of shifting or has bad knees.

By the way, it would not have to be a big block car to make the swap, most of the parts will be the same small block or big block. This would also be a good time to put in a scattershield instead of a stock bellhousing if you are planning to do any drag racing.

Pat

well i was wondering if a m21 or 22 would have enough gears to get em the speed i want out of the car ..or should i just get the manual in it and then worry about boosting hp over 350hp to get the power ant trq to go higher gears to ger speed ....or if there is a 5 speed newer tranny that i can get to bolt in fairly easily ..i have been looking around and cant find a company that makes a 5 speed that is a bolt in for the 396....