Serious question: Powerglide mated to a Spicer 18, has it been done?

I want to put together a Jeep for my daughter that has an automatic. I will be using a GM Iron Duke 4 cyl., and want to use a Powerglide since they are so short. It will be 98% street driven, so I figure some 4.27s front and rear would be good. The 'Glides were behind 4 cyls. from the factory so I shouldn't be underpowered for what it will be used for, kinda like a DJ with 4x4. Anybody ever seen the 'Glide/18 package before? Not interested in the 350 or the 700-R4.

 

Hmm. I know that Advanced makes a 'Glide to D300 adapter ... but then you'd need a centered rear axle. You might call Novak and ask them if they have any advice about such a thing. I had thought that the Powerglide was popular with rock crawlers for some reason. There may have been earlier interest in such a combo.

Have you searched the net for "Jeep Powerglide?" There are a bunch of links that come up, including a Pirate thread that says these folks make one (apparenntly no longer) - http://www.samsoffroad.com/samsoffroadsto/Transfer Case.htm - I suggest you follow up with the company at the link, and look through the rest of the search results.

 

The Iron Duke never came with the PG. The older Chevy 153 4 banger did as its bellhousing is a standard Chevy 90 degree. The 69-70 DJs came with that set up stock.

The 153 is not too easy to come by anymore since it has not been put into a vehicle since 1970. The Mercruiser 120 is the same engine in marine form and could be used (Mercruiser 140 could be used also). That motor is still made (in Mexico) and is not too hard to come by from marine sources.

You could consider a 4.3L V6 as the PG should bolt up. The 4.3 is much easier to find and plenty of guys have transplanted them into CJs.

Edit: according to Jeep tech .com, the 151 would mate up to a PG, but it may depend on getting the right bellhousing since they also came with the 60 degree bell.

 

Why not just use a Turbo 350? That swap has been done many times & you'll have 3 gears instead of 2...

 

I had a Powerglide behind a 250 I-6 in a '74 nova. It sucked. I couldn't imagine it behind a 4 cylinder.
We ran them in our Stock cars but that was behind some fun horsepower and we weren't trying to take off from a dead stop (we had push trucks to get us going).
The TH-350 would be a much better option IMHO. Lower first gear, readily available adapter (there was one in the classifieds for a good price recently), and cheap to build. Cores are still fairly readily available also.

 

A short tail stock 350 is only about 2" longer than a Glide.

 

I have a Duke out of an '80 AMC Spirit. It originally came with a T4 hung behind it. The engine has the Chevy 90 degree pattern bellhousing. The bellhousing, drilled for the T4/T5, also has the bosses cast in so it can be drilled to fit the Chevy trans or the Ford T18/T98. I also have a 91 4.3 with a 700-R4 w/drivers' side xfer case on it from an S10 Blazer. I'd like to do a CJ6 or Scrambler with that package if I find a cheap project.
I was looking at the 'Glide trans over the 350 because of shortness, it's bulletproof, and it came behind the 4cyls. I don't know if the 350 ever came behind a 4 cyl. I don't remember what the Vega/Sunbird used for an automatic. Is it the 350 or the 700-R4 that has pan clearance problems with a D18/20 xfer case?

 

Besides saving a couple inches- ie not having to hack the rear driveshaft anymore than necessary, probably the only reason to keep a Powerglide over a TH350 is the PG has less parasitic loss. The 350 will eat up a chunk of HP with a 4 banger, the PG less so.

Still think a 4.3 would be the way to go, especially if it's a 4x4 and going to have an auto. Maybe with a V6 you could move the engine forward a bit to compensate for the longer tranny.

Forum member Daryl I think has done a number of conversions with the TH350.

As I recall, Novak doesn't really want to talk to you if you contemplate a 700R4 in a short base jeep. Just too long with that OD unit in it.

 

The parasitic loss with a 350 is a main concern of mine. That's why I was pushing for a 'Glide.

 

The problem with the Powerglide is it has a taller first gear which is why it sucked in my Nova and exactly the reason we used it in our stock cars. We could stay in first gear much longer so fewer shifts.
It made the Nova a dog to take off from a stop.

 

I've had a couple '65 ChevyIIs with the 230 or 250 engines and Powerglides. I drove them like sports cars. They are lightweight vehicles (unibody design) and the PG was perfect. Had I wanted to beef up steering, brake and suspension systems (and ignore the inevitable citations from the PD), I could have routinely whipped any number of V8-powered rigs. There's no energy or time wasted in shifting- the PG will get up into the 60s in first gear if you keep your foot in it. It was easy to drive beyond the capabilities of the brakes, steering, etc.


Nick, by the time they made your Nova, they were a much heavier vehicle and laden with smog, mileage and safety stuff. Take a bare bones 230 straight six with a stock 1 barrel and a good tune-up and it pushes the ChevyII just fine. (Actually the 230 was a better, seemingly more powerful engine than the 250- it's a shorter stroke and has a quicker response). OK, now back to our regularly scheduled Jeep program......

 

I respect that Gunner but my '74 Nova was about the same weight as an early CJ with 4 wheel drive and the op is talking about putting a 4 cylinder in front of it. Plus you have the adapter issue to consider.
A TH-350 can easily clear a front driveshaft, has a lower first gear for better drive ability, and is easily adapted. All these things make it a much better choice than a Powerglide. Just my opinion.

 

I did some lookup on the Chevy Vega, and it came with a Powerglide as well as a Turbo 350. It looks like the way to go, since there are no adapters for the 'Glide. OKAY, 350 it will be. I'm bummed, because I could have picked one up last month with an NP 205 bolted to it for cheap!

 

Nick- I wasn't advocating a PG for a jeep. Powerglides have their place and you're right, it's not in a jeep. The 350 is a much, much better choice. Regardless of the additional parasitic loss or longer length.

I still question if 90 HP is going to be enough to happily push an auto-equipped jeep. On my DJ build, I opted to get rid of the PG it came stock with and went with a T5 out of an S-10. It added a ton more complexity to the project (and is the reason it's not completed yet) but I think the ~95HP the 4 banger produces is better utilized with a standard shift tranny.

 

90 HP is all the Vega had with the T-350. It had 110 HP when first introduced with the 'Glide. With the lower gears of the Jeep, as well as a low range, I think it will get around just as well as an F head and T90. Another thing, If I don't like it, V6 it! I need to find one of those combo cases that had both Chevy and GM corporate bolt patterns. That way I could use a 231.

 

I had a iron duke in the Cj7 I sold a while back. Around town with a swapped in T-4, stock 3.54 gears on 31's it had no problems at all. Where it lacked was on the interstate if I tried to go faster than about 55 or 60 uphill. Had enough power that I could put it in 4 hi and let off the clutch and not stall out. Can't speak on the automatic aspect though.