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1934 Buick diff ratio


John Greenwood

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I have a 35 with the same issue. There's a man in Ohio who will do an over drive conversion. I have his number if you want it. I wish I knew of someone who had them. About 25 or so years ago a man in Florida was having them manufactured for the larger series but not the 40 series like I have. I believed he passed but not sure. A fellow on this site named Jim Nelson can give you more o.d. information as well.Good luck.Greg.

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I’ve done a lot of research and I’ve decided to leave it all exactly as it was built and buy a 3 ton car trailer for when I’m doing long distance rally’s and tow it behind my land cruiser on the car trailer she’s a lovely 88 year old lady and she deserves to be pampered and kept away from trucks and stone chips 

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I’d like to go as I’m retired

where and when is this rally and who to I contact .I’m hoping to take delivery of this car next week then I’ll look for a suitable club for join and put it on club plates

i live at Golden Beach on the Sunshine Coast QLD Australia 

I’d like to know the length of the car so I can buy a car trailer in Sydney to take it to its new home in QLD 

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14 hours ago, John Greenwood said:

I’d like to go as I’m retired

where and when is this rally and who to I contact .I’m hoping to take delivery of this car next week then I’ll look for a suitable club for join and put it on club plates

I live at Golden Beach on the Sunshine Coast QLD Australia 

I’d like to know the length of the car so I can buy a car trailer in Sydney to take it to its new home in QLD 

Buick Club QLD--->https://buickcarclubaustralia.com/

 

And sign up for the AU Pre war newsletter--->https://buickcarclubaustralia.com/aussie-pre-war-buicks/

 

Edit

Another thread on this great Australian Holden bodied car--->https://forums.aaca.org/topic/360374-my-1934-buick/

 

Edit 2

These may be correct/incorrect.  Will look more for Buick info

https://www.conceptcarz.com/s24137/buick-series-50.aspx

 

Edited by 1939_Buick (see edit history)
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4 hours ago, Graham Man said:

Just a thought... an enclosed trailer is not much more, and you have a mobile garage.  I park my Graham in the trailer at night, I sleep much better.

 

Beautiful, Rumble Seat Coupe (dicky seat), my favorite year...

I’m thinking an enclosed trailer 

I’ll order a new one soon 

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21 hours ago, John Greenwood said:

I’ve done a lot of research and I’ve decided to leave it all exactly as it was built and buy a 3 ton car trailer for when I’m doing long distance rally’s and tow it behind my land cruiser on the car trailer she’s a lovely 88 year old lady and she deserves to be pampered and kept away from trucks and stone chips 

FD582BD1-8F9E-48B8-84DD-EBD15B3100B3.jpeg

06E48AFC-D1A0-4D84-9009-91A88E61C4C6.jpeg

3E806F28-3CE3-4F14-9357-F7A97CA4E0F6.jpeg

6BEA174E-5FAC-49E3-997A-76CA90D730E3.jpeg

Wow, what a sharp car, my favorite color.

Agreed with your decision to trailer and not cut new rear gears.

My wife and I like driving at 45-50mph (70-80kph) in our car waving traffic on by and waving to the neighbors in the countryside.

I wouldn't ever change the rear gears, but I might consider adding an overdrive, but not for a long while.

 

Enjoy your beautiful car!

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2 minutes ago, 32buick67 said:

Wow, what a sharp car, my favorite color.

Agreed with your decision to trailer and not cut new rear gears.

My wife and I like driving at 45-50mph (70-80kph) in our car waving traffic on by and waving to the neighbors in the countryside.

I wouldn't ever change the rear gears, but I might consider adding an overdrive, but not for a long while.

 

Enjoy your beautiful car!

Yes I’m of the same decision but when you start changing things it opens a can of worms and you end up with a Frankenstein car 

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Just now, John Greenwood said:

Yes I’m of the same decision but when you start changing things it opens a can of worms and you end up with a Frankenstein car 

Agreed, I would only do something like changing an antique car if I could do it equal or better than the original engineers and manufacturing teams.

So...this means I can't do too much, so I remain as a humble restorer...polishing what THEY did, making it as new as I can in the hopes that what I do is close to second best for another 90years...

Hopefully my kids can do better than I...

 

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The stock rear end ratio for the Series 50 is 4.88:1. I have the factory speed vs revs charts put away somewhere that were sent to me by the factory in the early 1970s. The basic ratio info is also in The Standard Catalog. The Series 60 rear end is 4.7 and the 90 4.36. I suspect these early diffs have no interchangeability with post WW2 models that the late 1930s models have.

 

The Series 40 that I have has a 4.33 rear end which means it does 3,200 rpm at 60 mph.

 

My 1929 Studebaker has a 4.66:1 rear end and will cruise at 50 mph which is about 2600 rpm and does sound like it is working hard.

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5 minutes ago, John Greenwood said:

What car did your diff come from as I thought the 40 and 50 series 1934 Buicks had the same diff 4.88 to 1 

John, I owned a 1934 56S coupe like yours, but with rear-mounted spare, for over 40 years.  Virtually nothing on 1934-35 Buicks interchanges with other series, except bumpers, headlamps and grille shells (50/60/90).  The diff ratio is indeed 4.88, and I was never able to find something faster to interchange--without major fabrication.  Plan on 42-45 mph as a comfortable cruise.

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4 minutes ago, Grimy said:

John, I owned a 1934 56S coupe like yours, but with rear-mounted spare, for over 40 years.  Virtually nothing on 1934-35 Buicks interchanges with other series, except bumpers, headlamps and grille shells (50/60/90).  The diff ratio is indeed 4.88, and I was never able to find something faster to interchange--without major fabrication.  Plan on 42-45 mph as a comfortable cruise.

Thankyou it is good to receive advise from a past owner of the similar car and series 

Having owned and driven a 1934 chev sedan and a 1930 model A ford roadster,they both were happy at 50 mph so I thought the 1934 Buick being a more expensive car would of had longer legs on the highway 

so it’s going to be a fully enclosed car trailer as a better solution for me on long rally’s especially as it’s the only known survivor 

 

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I may have been conservative as the engine was not at all fresh for any of my ownership.  That's a very small bore (2-31/32 inches), long stroke engine that is torquey with those gears but runs out of string, as it were, beginning at 40.  Of course, most highways speed limits were 35 at the time.

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2 hours ago, John Greenwood said:

What car did your diff come from as I thought the 40 and 50 series 1934 Buicks had the same diff 4.88 to 1 

I don't think there is anything which interchanges between the Series 50 and 40. The series 50 has history going back to the Marquette I think, whereas the Series 40, as far as I know, uses a Pontiac gearbox and diff, and of course the new design engine which continued in production through to 1953. Looking at the figures quoted in The Standard Catalog the 1934 Pontiac diff ratio was 4.55 - so I guess the Buick version was a 'special'. 1934 and '35 were the only year Series 40s to use the 4.33 diff. From 1936 on it was 4.44. Another point to remember re the Series 40 was that it had a mid-year introduction - only arriving on the market in May of 1934. The reason being that it was realised that Buick urgently needed a lower price car and it was the Series 40 that was developed very quickly. The very early Series 40 engines had weak conrods and were know to break them. I had one engine that had a patch on the side of the block.

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On 1/25/2022 at 6:28 PM, John Greenwood said:

Thankyou it is good to receive advise from a past owner of the similar car and series 

Having owned and driven a 1934 chev sedan and a 1930 model A ford roadster,they both were happy at 50 mph so I thought the 1934 Buick being a more expensive car would of had longer legs on the highway 

so it’s going to be a fully enclosed car trailer as a better solution for me on long rally’s especially as it’s the only known survivor 

 

It is worth remembering of course that a straight eight, especially a closed car, will always sound busier than a six or four, especially these older cars with little sound proofing. I reckon a coupe will be noisier than a sedan due to the restricted interior space. At least by 1934 most cars had a silent second gear. part of the 'charm' of driving the older ones is the noisy second. My 1929 Studebaker is like that.

 

We are a little spoilt these days with modern cars being so quiet. There are a few videos of Duesenbergs on the road and they are not quiet, although I am sure they are taller geared.

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I’ve driven my 34 chev and 30 model A ford on long runs up and down the east coast of Australia 

mid they had more gears like a modern they would not put so much strain on the engine 

I’m now conditioned to my modern Toyota Land Cruiser 6 speed tow car that sits on 110kph “70mph” at only 1500 rpm ,hense even hiring a car trailer is a better cost effective option to preserve and enjoy our cars and not be a hazard on a modern motorway 

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On 1/23/2022 at 8:56 PM, John Greenwood said:

I’ve done a lot of research and I’ve decided to leave it all exactly as it was built and buy a 3 ton car trailer for when I’m doing long distance rally’s and tow it behind my land cruiser on the car trailer she’s a lovely 88 year old lady and she deserves to be pampered and kept away from trucks and stone chips 

FD582BD1-8F9E-48B8-84DD-EBD15B3100B3.jpeg

06E48AFC-D1A0-4D84-9009-91A88E61C4C6.jpeg

3E806F28-3CE3-4F14-9357-F7A97CA4E0F6.jpeg

6BEA174E-5FAC-49E3-997A-76CA90D730E3.jpeg

John, I’m am going through the same thing, my 36 Buick special has 4.4 gear ratio I’m trying to put a rear end from 36 Buick Century 3.9 gear ratio but keep running into lil problems but I’ll get it figured soon or do like you leave it alone 

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On 1/23/2022 at 10:07 PM, Fossil said:

Keep in mind that if you do this all gears are going to be higher making starting out more difficult especially on hills. Your clutch is going to get more of a workout. 

 

 

 

 

I thought the same thing. In the mountains where I live there is no such thing as a flat surface. You are always climbing a hill, or going down a hill. 

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12 hours ago, Uptowndodge said:

John, I’m am going through the same thing, my 36 Buick special has 4.4 gear ratio I’m trying to put a rear end from 36 Buick Century 3.9 gear ratio but keep running into lil problems but I’ll get it figured soon or do like you leave it alone 

A588068C-2E93-4DAD-A84B-FF9D3DBB9502.png

I have read somewhere that it is possible to fit a taller gear set from an early 1950s car into those later 1930s Buicks. Whether that applies to the '36 rear end I don't know. The '36 Century diff may be bigger than the Special diff?

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