I have an opportunity to get an excellent running 360/727 trans out of a '71 Champion motor home. The only thing is the trans is a shortshaft with the emergency brake on the end of it it looks like. What wold it take to convert this transmission to be used in a car? Will a 904 tailshaft and output shaft be the same? Or would I need a core 727 to use for parts? Is the 71 360 worth anymore than any other 360? I just want to pick this combo up for trade bait. My buddy wants it for his 68 Valiant. Thanks in advance for any info.

Can't help ya on the trans questions...but that early 360 will have extra thick cylinder walls, and should have J heads.

The '71 - '74 or so 360's came from the factory with the 340 water jacket core, meaning the walls should be roughly .020" thicker than later 360 blocks. 340 bore size = 4.04"; 360 = 4.00".

I pulled some J's off of a '72 motorhome once, & both of 'em were cracked. It had probably overheated at some point in it's life.

Thanks for the info. I can get the whole combo for $200. The trans looks be either new or rebuilt (spotless) but the shortshaft thing is really putting a damper on the whole thing.

I don't think it is that hard to swap, any 727 with the backside looking like what you want will do. The motorhome 727s should be built stouter than passenger car trannys. The 360 is the early one that the blocks were cast using 340 cores for the cylinder walls so should be safe out to 4.070 or larger.
$200?
WHY haven't you jumped on this deal already? I'd buy it just to have around................
R.

What is happening to the rest of the motorhome ?

You need to get a trans with a slip yoke. The shorttail trans has a bolt on yoke. If you use that you have to use a driveshaft with a slip yoke made into the shaft. TOO much trouble.

That's just it, you don't use the short bolted-on tailshaft and housing, you swap it for the one that works for your car. If you're dragging the engine and tranny out of a motorhome, swapping tailshafts and housings should be relatively easy.

If you just want to buy it and bolt it in somewhere then yes it's too difficult. But a stout smallblock 727 with a decent 360 bolted on the front is worth $200 or more where I'm at.

R.