HISTORY
OF THE A-833 CHRYSLER FOUR SPEED TRANSMISSION
Chrysler's
first factory-installed four-speed transmission (1963) was the Borg
Warner T-10. It didn't take long for the engineers at Chrysler to conclude
a stronger and more durable transmission was needed, and the A-833 was
introduced with the 1964 model year. Both '64 and '65 models carried
the flanged output for the ball-and-trunnion style universal joint.
B- and C-bodies utilized the common 2.66 low gear ratio, while the A-body
transmissions were 3.09 low gear ratio. The 1965 Super Stock 426 Hemi-powered
vehicles received the first heavy duty "Hemi" 18-spline input
models.
The
flange-style output was dropped for the 1966 models, and the slip-yoke
tailshaft was introduced. The long tailshaft versions utilized the larger
30-spline output shaft (same as the 727 Torqueflite) and the short tailshaft
version the 26-spline output shaft (same as the 904 Torqueflite). The
production of the 1967 383 big block-powered Darts and Barracudas mandated
the addition of the 30-spline output shaft in the A-body transmission,
which was expanded to include all A-body transmissions in 1968.
Beginning
with the '68 models, a small (3" X 7/8") raised machined pad
was added to the main case, just above the casting numbers on the passenger's
side. The car's serial number, along with the transmission's build date
(10,000 day calendar code) and a 4-digit sequential production number
are stamped into this pad.
With the 1970 models, the new "lug-style" synchronizer rings
and the wider (.382" vs .216") synchronizer struts were introduced.
Production of the AAR Cuda and T/A Challenger Trans-Am models in the
spring of 1970 introduced two major changes in the A-833, the first
being the 2.47 low gear ratio (or "close ratio") and the replacement
of the tried and true ball-detent side cover with the interlock lever
design. 1971 18-spline transmissions also received a gear change with
a similar 2.44 low gear ratio gearset.
1974
ended the long tailshaft B- and E-body 4-speed production, while 1975
was the last year for the A-body short tailshaft 4-speed and the beginning
of the overdrive versions of the A-833. The 23 year run of the famous
A-833 ended with the 1986 model Dodge trucks.
