Driving GM’s Worst Transmission: The Roto-Hydramatic (“Slim Jim”) 

Your shift demonstration ride brings back this memory: years ago I was chatting with a SEPTA bus driver on his lunch break in Philly and he invited me to ride along for a turn. I had time, so off we went. Corner to corner folks getting on and off. I asked about the trans, an allison angle drive job- he said it was just a torque converter that locked up at 50 mph. " Here, I'll show you" and we took off. He had that 6v71Detroit screaming under the back seat, and it was a rough street, everything rattling, windows, doors, everything. Finally, the little detroit suddenly bogged down and a loud screech came from the transmission as the lock-up clutch tried to grab ahold of the engine. He yelled "SEE THERE IT IS!" then slammed on the brakes panic style and dove for the curb. Stopped right at the bus stop sign. Doors open. I turned around and the passengers looked terrified, and two women behind me, who didn't seem to know each other, were clutching each other. Quite a bus ride!

I has a friend with a 63 Starfire convertable. 394 4 barrel, Roto Hydramatic. Three rebuilds later, he said "as long as I drive it like a grand ma" it's fine. First time I get on it, it's back to the trans shop!

What Mark said about other drivers is spot on. I hate driving my 62 Lincoln for the exact reasons that he gave. I leave space between me and the car in front in case they stop quickly. 9 times out of 10 some a@@wipe on their cell phone driving their SUV will cut in front of me. This happens in six lane traffic and also on local artery streets. Part of the problem is none of the drivers under 40 years old ever had drivers ed. Get off my lawn! Lol

I have a couple of comments about both the engine and the transmission... First the engine. At the time when these were still on the road and in wide use, I was working in a Buick dealership full time and in an independent transmission shop nights and weekends. At the Buick dealership, we got quite a number of those V-8s in with leaking head gaskets. In most cases, the leaks were external in that they leaked coolant out of the sides of the head gaskets. Otherwise, the engines were quite reliable, and were not prone to putting rods through the side of the block like the infamous Buick 350 that was used in LeSabre and Skylark cars. As to the transmission, the biggest defect was really some poor engineering. For first gear, they used an internal fluid coupling instead of a torque converter. This had some pretty poor efficiency, which made for a soft engagement, but a really "slippy" first gear. When they shifted into second, the input shaft was coupled directly into a planetary gearset with full mechanical drive. At this time, for whatever reason, the fluid dumped out of the fluid coupling only to refill for third gear. Somebody must have really sat up nights figuring all of this out! One odd thing was that the input shaft was splined directly into a damper plate on the engine's flywheel, so removing one from the car was like a stick shift with cooler lines. Weird! I tried to repair one of them on my own, and never did get it to work right. I even took it to some of the old school guys for help, and even they couldn't find out what I did wrong. I finally just bought another transmission and ate the job. hope to never see another one of them!

It sounds like there are some straight cut planetary gears. Lovvve the pod IP. Such a cool car. Makes me sad they weren't more of a success. Fascinating. Thanks for Showcasing.

I could live with the rough shifts, but the unreliability is such a detriment to an entire generation of otherwise excellent GM cars. There was a 63 Catalina for sale near me recently, absolutely gorgeous, but I don't have the confidence to live with a slim Jim in today's world of difficulty trying to get parts and not pay a ridiculous fortune for them. Love the brochures! Automobile marketing back in those days is almost as much fun as the cars themselves.

All of those sounds of the transmission shifting, the mechanical sounds, make you love these cars from the sixties. Glad to see this model in such great shape.

Neat car. New cars will never compete with the ride of the older American cars. Back when comfort and cruising was prioritized over the rough, tight, sporty feel found in todays cars. Great video.

Adam, thanks again for your 2nd video on the 1961 F-85. During my junior year (1963-1964) in high school, I had a similar 1962 4-door standard F-85 - white with blue interior, auto and factory a/c. Showing off to my buddies, I backed out of a driveway and slammed the gearshift into Drive whilst still rolling backwards. An incredible clunking noise eminating from beneath the floorboards ensued. After much worry, I took it to our only Olds-Cadillac dealer for an inspection. A workorder with the notation "auto needs a rebuild" and a $214 quote shook my little 17-year-old world. As my part time job as checker at a grocery store earned an incredible $1.15 per hour, I didn't know where to turn. A customer suggested that her auto mechanic husband have a look. A day later, Ray test drove it, pulled to the side of the road, lifted the hood, asked me to give it a little gas while holding the brake. From beneath the hood, I could see the engine raise up as torque was applied. Long story short, he replaced the engine.mounts and the noises went away. Small shop mechanics are a LOT better than certain dealerships. The only thing that I miss from that little F-85 was the "Ka-WOO" moan from that 2-bbl carb under hard acceleration!

The reason for the harsh 1-2 shift on these, and also the 2-3 in the earlier original 4-speed Hydramatic, is that it has to simultaneously engage and disengage two elements. The 4-speed used two 2-speed gearsets in a row, each providing either direct or reduction, so the 2-3 shift there was one gearset going from direct back into reduction while the other goes into direct. If one goes into reduction before the other goes into direct, 2-3 becomes more like a 2-1-3 and the engine flares up in the middle, while if the other goes into direct first, it becomes a 2-4-3 and briefly bogs down. However, since that transmission used regular clutches and bands, that simultaneous shift could still be somewhat accurately timed. Some modern transmissions do have 2-element shifts just with clutches and bands, and the shifts are electronically timed with a computer, but they still give harsher shifts than ones that have exclusively single-element shifts. On the Roto, one of the elements being controlled is actually the torque converter which gets emptied and filled with fluid to act as a clutch. In first, it's filled, and then on the 1-2 shift it has to empty and the front clutch apply simultaneously. However, emptying the torque converter of fluid obviously takes a lot longer than releasing a clutch, and therein lies the problem: both the clutch and converter filled gives third gear (direct), and it'll always take longer to empty the converter than apply the front clutch. Furthermore, emptying and filling the converter is dependent on the viscosity (related to temperature) of the fluid, so it's not very consistent. Thus during the 1-2 shift, while the converter is emptying but the front clutch has applied, the transmission is actually in 3, so 1-2 is always like a 1-3-2 shift. This is further harshened by the fact that 2 doesn't involve any transfer of power through a fluid but is a direct mechanical connection from the engine through the gearset to the output. Then the 2-3 shift is very soft since it only has to fill the converter again. Looking at the hydraulic schematics, it seems they did try to soften the 1-2 by slipping the front clutch with a pretty complex system of valves for the timing, but that only leads to higher wear and shorter service life. The TH400 that replaced it and became a GM standard was and is highly regarded as one of the best in reliability and shift quality; all of its shifts are single-element. tl;dr: Rotos always shift 1-2 roughly because they have to do two things at the same time or else end up in 3rd briefly, but one of those two things (the converter emptying) will always be slower than the other. Trying to slow the other thing down (the clutch applying) makes it wear out faster.

The station wagon looks much like the Corvair wagon. I wish I still had the 1961 Corvair Lakewood wagon that I used to drive around in the late 1970ʻs. It was a really nice size. My dad had modified the engine (a 1964 Monza engine, base HP 110 but ours put out about 180), put stiffer springs and shocks on it, and it had the 4-speed manual (no PowerGlide, yay!). It was a lot of fun.

Brochures, literature, and repair manuals are awesome. Please keep inclluding that on occasion.

That V8 was ultimately developed by Leyland Australia into a 4.4 litre version (taller deck for longer stroke) for the P76 sedan in the early 1970s.

What a great demonstration of the Roto-Hydramatic transmission. A beautiful car indeed. The brochures are a great resource, thanks for sharing.

It would have been nice if there WAS LESS TALKING so we could actually hear the shifting......

One of my favorite GM bodies AND a groovy mid century neighborhood!

Good video! I've subscribed. I learned a bit about the Roto-hydramtatic. Never knew there were two versions, never knew the senior compacts used it. However, it was very hard to hear/sense what the transmission was doing thanks to ten minutes of non-stop conversation about how smooth the ride was ! 🙂

After owning and servicing 6, 1964 Oldsmobile, FS models, I opted to swap in a TH400, behind the 394, of my ‘64 98 Coupe. What a major difference it made. Bought my first one, while attending tech college in Lima Ohio, circa 1983. My automatic transmission instructor, had been a GM line tech, when these were new. When asked if I could fix Slim Jim, he told me, “Son, they were junk then and they are junk now” Thanks for sharing this delightful video. Love the car.

Listening to the upshift from 1st to 2nd brings back memories of a buddy of mine's 1964 Olds Dynamic 88. Since the car had a 394 cid V8, it moved quite well, but that upshift from 1st to 2nd is unforgettable. Oh, and it had an enormous trunk, ice-cold factory air conditioning, and that dashboard mounted sensor that automatically dimmed the high beams.

What a joy listening to you and Mark take that beautiful car for a drive. Thanks!

Adam, every session with Mark is a treat. The F85 drive was a revelation, but then what was GM thinking when it released the rapidly proven to be unreliable Sim-Jim Roto Hydra-Matic to the public?

I have admired these for over 50 years. Innovation, creative design, beauty.

We had a 62 Olds full size wagon and we had it for about 20 years. It was really a wonderful car. We liked the way it shifted. When the car was about 10 years old with about 100k miles, we did need a transmission repair. But again, we loved the way this car shifted and we loved the powerful engine.

Thanks Adam and Mark. That was insightful and enjoyable.

So good to see the drive video of this car. Reminds me of my parents '62 Pontiac Tempest Le Mans. Loved riding in that car, and wish they'd kept it around until I was old enough to drive. Continued thanks for your videos.

The sound of the transmission brings back memories! I really like the script on the dash of this car. It was also interesting to see that it was not equipped with a radio. And the interior/dash looks as great as the exterior. P.S. They used to measure trunk capacity difrerntly than they do today.

Nice follow up! Have a good day!

That drive was actually sort of fun, to me! The idiosyncrasies of these ancient classics are really fun. But I'd say that if the Roto-Hydra-matic was paired with a four-cylinder, it might actually stall it! 🤣

My first car was "my father's Oldsmobile"...a '61 F-85 station wagon with the Rockette V-8 and the Roto Hydra-Maric. The engine overheated, and the transmission leaked like a sieve and finally went out on me after a relatively short time. My dad ended up getting me a 1964 Chevelle with a 230 six and a Powerglide! Oddly enough, my dad had a' '63 Star Chief with the four-speed Super Hydra-Matic (which was a tank!)

I learned to drive on our 1963 Olds Super 88, with the "Ultra High Compression" Rocket V8, and Roto Hydramatic. The drive brought back (bad) memories. My best friend's mother had a 1963 F-85, which she bought used. The transmission failed not more than a year after she bought the car. Her replacement for the F-85 was a 1964 Dynamic 88.... Same boggy transmission, but it didn't crap out. Great to see Marc again!

I had one of these transmissions in my Australian 1964 EH Holden . I loved it, but they did not last too long, maybe 100,000 miles with the small 6 cylinder engines. I had a Australian Trimatic (turbo hydra 180 to you) fitted in 1988, still in there 35 years later. but a big drop in fuel economy. 24-25 mpg down to 19-20 mpg

Very nice. I can't believe how early this transmission shifts up. My Dad built a plastic model kit of the 1962 F-85 from Jo-Han. I inherited it and that's what made me click on this video. Greetings from Canada.

Now that was fun…love to hear that the F-85 was such a smooth ride…and the brochures were icing on cake.

I remember back in the early 60’s, Dad bought Mom a nice new car after my brother came along. It was a 61 F 86 Sport Wagon, that I remember fondly. There were bucket seats in front and three rows, with enough room for 6 adults, or 5-6 kids and a driver. I’m not sure of the transmission, but I know it had an aluminum V8 w/4 brl dual exhaust, as Dad loved cars. I remember going for ice-cream in sat nights after the softball games, with Dad driving an coaching, plus three wagons full of the team’s players, the other two wagons were a 59 Chevy Impala with a 283, and the other was a 60 Ford Country Squire with a V8 is all I remember. There was this long uphill stretch with two lanes on each side, with a slow speed truck lane on the uphill side making it three lanes. When we all approached the hill we would all start yelling last car to the top PAYS! Well let’s just say Dad never had to pay, but he always did anyway, he was better off that the other two Dads, one of whom was his brother in law, my uncle, in the big Ford. But it was the big Chevy that always came in last, with at least one more kid than the other two! Since then I’ve always loved the sound of the secondaries opening in a 4 brl carb!!

Adam! I just learned that you and I are now colleagues! Congratulations, on your new role, I hope you have much success.

LOL, I thought the fly was on my monitor. Thank you for shoeing it away for me.

That’s a really nice looking car. It’s a shame that their so rare. I’ve never seen one in the wild. The wagon was very cool. Thanks Adam.

I owned a '61 F85 for 7 years (until '68) and drove it 70k miles. Loved it and no significant issues, except for the aluminum radiator, which needed cleaning several times.

Lovely ride. I like the standalone instrument cluster on top of the dash, and the speaker grill holes on top with no radio. 😃

These cars also used a two-piece driveshaft with a double Cardan joint in the center, which helped keep the tunnel smaller. Somewhere I have one of the little brochures like the one featured in the video. It was inside a Popular Mechanics magazine that I bought at a used book shop when I was a kid (50+ years ago). I can re seeing these cars when I was a kid in the ‘60s (who could forget that dash?), but these disappeared quickly, headed to an early demise, thanks to the Slim Jim.

I own a ‘63 Pontiac Grand Prix with the 389 Tri-Power. It had the Slim Jim. The thing was always dripping trans oil. Even after a rebuild. I finally ditched the Roto and installed the 200r4. The best mod I have ever done. 70 MPH at 1950 RPM.

Thanks for this, I had questions about the transmission after the last video

The f85 is an absolute sweetheart. I love that vehicle the way it looks and the way it rides

My 1st car was a Pontiac with this trans. Had it "rebuilt" & still had problems. Only good thing about it, it motivated me to trade it for low mileage '67 Impala convertible.

You may appreciate I know a very clever and innovative car buff who figured out how to adapt a GM Turbohydramatic 350 to this aluminum 215 V8 used in the small Olds, Pontiac and Buick in the early 1960s. This is a huge imrovement over the auto trans used from the factory in the early 1960s. This same buff installed the electronic ignition distributor from a Buick 350 V8 into this 215 V8. Additionally he determined the crank from a Buick 300 cu in would bring this 215 V8 up to 262 cu in. The HEI ignition had the coil in center of distributor.

The 1-2 shift kinda reminds me of the TH125 in my 1982 Citation X-11. The H.O. V6 is so torquey, if you are laying on it, the 1-2 shift is very apparent and the torque steer will grab the wheel if you are not expecting it. The 2-3 shift is always imperceptable unless you are at wide open throttle. Never been an 1960's Oldsmobile fan, but this F85 has really sharp styling.

What space capsule did that speedometer dash pod come off of? Good video, nice looking car.

Wow, such a Gr8 Ride, even with the quick automatic shift from 1st to 2nd gear, Marc and Adam.😊🤲

Hi Adam, My parents gave me a 1961 Olds 98 4dr hardtop, white over skyblue interior whenI was in high school. Thee car burned up 3 transmissions in a very period of time. According to my dad's friend who owned a transmission shop the trans cooler in the radiator was not sufficient to cool the fluid enough to prevent the transmission from burning up. My dad who was in the auto business ignored his friend's advice that he should allow him to add a trans cooler when the trans was replaced. After the 3rd transmission in a few months, we sold the car and I purchased a 1955 Pontiac Starchief 2dr hardtop cream/brown from a friend at college.

I love small wagons and these are great ones. I have seen many of these over the years, a grade school classmate of mine's family had the Olds version. They got rid of it in 1968 and replaced it with a very nice blue Chrysler Newport. I'm sure their fuel bill went up pretty dramatically after that.

We had a '62 Pontiac Catalina with a 389 2V and a Slim Jim tranny. I don't remember ever having any problems with it. We lived in Colorado and my father was a mechanic. He didn't brag about it, but it was trouble free for over 8 years.

In the 80s, I bought a restored 1963 Oldsmobile F-85 Cutlass with the 215 aluminum V8 and yep, a roto-hydramatic. I bought the F-85 because of the low price at the time, and the impressive restoration job, both inside and out. It was a beautiful off-white color with a tan vinyl interior, bucket seats. The car looked new and turned eyes everywhere it went, even with the awkward '63 one year only body style that transitioned these cars from compact to mid-size.The 215 V8 was a miracle, silent, smooth, and fairly powerful, that started instantaneously in any sort of weather with just the slightest touch of the starter, and never leaked nor burned a drop of oil. But then there was the transmission. I don't remember exactly, but it wasn't shifting very well at all the day after I bought it, and clearly needed to be rebuilt. I remember being turned down by a series of something like 5 or 6 transmission rebuild shops, who laughed me off the phone the minute they heard the words "slim jim". Finally, I brought it back to the seller, who actually tricked a local transmission shop into rebuilding it against their will by not disclosing which transmission my car actually had until it was too late. After it was rebuilt, the transmission still never worked very well, but the car was at least drivable. The thing I remember most is that the torque converter frequently failed to unlock when coming to a stop, stalling the engine every time like a novice manual transmission driver who forgets to disengage the clutch. After around a year I had to regretfully sell the car because it just really wasn't drivable. I wonder where it is now ...

I loved my sister's new 1961 f-85 4 door. Transmission was manual in the column. You could take the key out of the ignition while you were driving. Her's was a deep garnet mist.

1:07 also formed the basis of the Repco-Brabham 620 Formula 1 engine, which employed an extensively modified version of the F85's block casting.

What a beautiful car. Seems like a nice, soft ride as well.

I owned an F85 wagon in the 80s but it was bigger, more like a Cutlass since it was a '67. Great car! Took me coast to coast in 1979 and up and down the Pacific coast with no trouble save for an axle and wheel sliding out about 3 or 4 feet to one side. That was interesting.

What a great car, I bet a car like that would go forever is it was a manual shift. Wish you had segment of taking the air cleaner off the carb to see how it cooled the carb, I have never seen a air cleaner like that. Thanks for your time, work and posting......

I liked the way they shifted & didn't know of my friends having tranny trouble nor did I with my '62 Olds 88. That was when the 409 engine came out in Chevys and they blew up right and left! In 65 Chevy came out with the 396 which was an awesome engine.

Former Hydra-Magic Engineer here... thanks for the great video!

I used to daily a 62 Super 88 (about ten years ago), and while I loved the car, the trans was indeed trash. I understand they could be built up and tuned right to perform ok, but my unit wasn't close to being in top shape - I did love the PNDSLR shift pattern though, and the high compression 394 was a pretty cool mill. Love all of your videos! Thanks!

I had the Roto Hydromatic transmission rebuilt in my '63 Olds 88 coupe, and it functioned fine after that, but it still had the odd shift trait. Some people described it as having a "bumped from behind" kind of feel, and I think that's a fairly accurate description of the sensation. Once you know that's just the way the trans operates, it's not a big deal and you get used to it. On vintage cars that don't get used much or subjected to heavy duty use, such a transmission is probably fine (if in good condition) but if you have ideas of hauling an equally vintage Airstream trailer around with your old car...you may want to rethink your plans.

Our 62 Buick Special had the two speed Dynaflow and the drive ability and acceleration was impressive. I think it had a lock up torque converter. It also had needle bearing a-arm bushings. Was that an unusual feature?Thanks for talking about these forgotten cars.

In the last video you guys were commenting on the "T" logo , Oldsmobile used the Rocket logo for years and you can see it on the engine brochure flying across. I'm quite impressed with the exhaust manifolds..they look like little hedders. I had a rotomatic slim jim in my 64 Grand Prix, it was the worst part of the car. Keep up the excellent work👍👍👍

These very early '60s GM cars in some way had been ahead of its time. Experienced Pontiac Tempest of this kind around very early 2000s.

Thank you Adam and Mark for showcasing how a Roto Hydromatic drives. That 1-2 is odd but it foreshadowed how the TH200-C had a similar feel.

It would be interesting to hear more from Mark on what work he had done to recondition the Roto-Hydramatic on his F-85. Are parts still available, or has he stock-piled old transmissions!

Just found your channel love it, my kind of thing❤, thumbs up and a big fat 455 Rockette lol subscription!!! Earned !!! Sorry always did like that Kathy Mateo song. Old songs, well that one isn't that old, but, older songs you could really learn cars and did when I was a kid, GTO, Thunderbird, duce coupe, lol lots of cars had lots of songs, or parts of a cars, lol any how, love the classics, be it music and or cars❤! 👍

I had a '64 Olds Jetstar I. If you could find a suitable application, second gear was a lot of fun. That application for me was the coastal mountain roads south of San Francisco 😆. Loved that car! I got very good at swapping junk yard transmissions in and out of it with me on a creeper and the transmission on my chest. The engine (394) was a bit built and between that and me flailing the crap out of it the transmission longevity wasn't too good, but I had a blast!

My former 1962 Skylark two door hardtop was also very soft, but oh so butter smooth. It had the dual path 2 speed transmission. The shift from Low to High was rather abrupt.

Love that dashboard! ✅

When I was young & dumb I had one of these behind a 215 Buick, shoehorned into a MGB. Tire spin on every 1-2 shift,whether you wanted it or not. Eventually twisted the poor car to point I just welded the doors shut. I miss it.

"...create some kind of moment of menace or threat." Yup, I've definitely noticed this while driving old cars...the oldest cars I've driven were from the 60s. Operating an old car today, even if it can easily keep up with traffic, like a mid-60s V8 Mustang, seems to really enrage some people. I could understand if I were driving a Model T on the NJ Turnpike, but I had one guy lose his mind when he saw me driving a 1965 Ford Falcon V8. I was in right lane of a two lane road, doing the speed limit (45 mph) and was not in his way at all.

Everything about this car and transmission is great. Much better than the new CVT junk they sell nowadays. Also much better than any single clutch automated manual. I like the slushy torque converter feel of the shifts. This is what I miss in newer cars.

I’m glad I missed these at the Chevrolet- Cadillac- Oldsmobile dealership I was a mechanic at for 15 years ! I had enough problems in the 70s & 80s ! Good times though -

Looking at the suspension coil spring placement surely has helped with that soft ride.

You guys really beat this little car up I have a 63 convertible with the four barrel carburetor. I think it’s rated at 195 hp. I drove it regularly in the 80s for about three years. It sits in my garage now with 45,000 original miles on it. I never had any issues with the transmission sure it’s not as smooth as new ones, but it works very well.

I had '63 and '64 Grand Prixs with the Model 10 Roto. I was always very gentle with them, and I never had a speck of trouble, and I always liked the sound of the shift. ("The dramatic Hydra-Matic.") Maybe they would have given me trouble if I'd driven them harder, but they were beloved toys.

Well, I watched the Video to get more precise information about the roto hydramatic, but that was missing. But great video about a great car. 👍👌

I owned a '64 Grand Prix for a couple of years, and I wholeheartedly agree on the operation of the Model 10 "Slim Jim" Roto-Hydramatic. The 1-2 shift with its precipitous RPM drop with the attendant bog and burble , and the RPM rise on the 2-1 downshift, coming to a stop. On mine, the transmission seemed to operate as designed, even with 178,000 miles (I suspect it had been rebuilt at least once). That wasn't the major problem with the car; the rings in the 389 were shot, so it smoked like a chimney. But, the car was only $395, in 1980. If I were to own another one, I'd figure out a way to swap in a four-speed Hydramatic from a Bonneville or Star Chief, or a Turbo 400 (with the switch pitch converter) from a later car.

There is a running and driving ( but sat a long time ) Olds Fiesta Dynamic 88 394ci , export model, for sale in a shop 5 kilometers from my house here in France, for only 6000€ , and I reaaaaaaally want it. It's all original ( still original air filter box ^^, also has some brackets for some metal oil cans under the hood ) except the exhaust line. So cheap, so rare, sounds so good, looks so good, has a big V8. And I gathered some informations on it, I guess it has a roto hydramatic 375 (Model 10), and it's not that easy to find informations on this transmission, or shops selling parts for them. So thanks for sharing this experience video.

I have the next generation, a '66 F85, with the venerable GM 2 speed and the unfortunately uncommon 330 ci V8, it's a surprisingly good car for its age that I've daily driven in the past and currently shares a daily role with an 04 Suburban. I've driven many modern cars and I can honestly say it rides better than some of them despite having multiple 60 year old components still in place. Has plenty of pep, and thanks to not being the roto-hydramatic it isn't bad in town. Unfortunately the lack of gears means it DRINKS fuel. Measured my combined fuel economy at a staggering 9 miles per gallon!

I have pictures of a 1961 F-85 wagon that I found at a car show at the MN. State fair this past summer. It was exactly the same as the one we had, even the same green color. This one had a slim jim transmission, ours was a manual three speed. First one I have ever seen, let alone a almost exact copy of ours. I couldn't find the owner.

Horrible transmission. It died on my grandfather's great '62 Dynamic 88. This f-85 is very nice looking car. It's a shame GM had to screw-up the trans.

Though slow and unreliable, I gotta say the small whine sound it makes is pretty cool.

I've heard a lot about these. Keeps me from buying a 62 Starfire but I sure LOVE my 60 Bonneville with it's wonderfully performing Hydromatic!! I also enjoy the quick take off of the Powerglides. Would like to try the 41 Cadillac version of the Hydromatic though!!

I remember building 2 of the station wagon models and you could build it as a station wagon or a pickup truck or like a ranchero I thought that they were a really good looking car the 61 olds that is what I had wish I could find a wagon to day I would put a 265 or a 327 in it and drive it every wear great video thanks for sharing this with us

the fantastic, dramatic, dynamic, roto-hydra-matic

Very nice video! I always enjoy seeing the brochures. Did the Buick Special use the Roto-Hydramatic too?

So much "Action!" in that power train.

I learned to drive in a 1962 F-85 that looks just like this. I think it had vacuum windshield wipers, because they would slow down at heavy throttle. Other than the throttle cable sticking once i liked it. I was driving it in the early 70s.

A gentleman on Eluethra owns 1 of these.1961 red with white vinyl interior.

Is this video in Northbrook Illinois?

My grandmother bought on of these new in 61. She had it till the day she passed away in 1980. White with a 215 with like 35,000 miles on it when we sold it in 1980.

In 85 I bought a 63 Chevy Nova SS convertible with a 194 6 inline and a powerglide 2 speed automatic. The powergilde was a pretty good trany.

Adam not to get off subject but that blue sky and clouds with the trees (6:57) is really a sight to see. Now back to the car.....

Does it shift better in the Super range?

I haven't read every single comment that precedes me but so far, I haven't run across the following facts about this transmission; the Rotohydromatic design allowed the car to be push started analogous to a manual transmission car. I had taken auto mechanic college courses at Oakland Community College back in the early 1980s at their Auburn Hills campus (extremely close to the now-extinct Pontiac Silverdome). There was a Rotohydromatic transmission core available to practice tear-down/reassembly on in that class. The trippy design factor on this transmission is that it had what looked like two torque converters; a conventional variation at the front and a smaller one at the rear. The front torque converter was a bolted-together assembly so you could take it apart to thoroughly clean it out during service/rebuild. The rear converter was much smaller and a sealed unit like later torque converters found on Chrysler Torqueflite 727 and 904, Ford C-4, C-6 and FMX and GM TH-200, TH-350, TH-400 and TH-425 transmissions.

My sister had a Pontiac Tempest that reverse was out. She could drive forward but when it came to back up she had to have help or park where she could drive forward. It had the 4 cylinder engine in it.

My first car was a '61 Super 88 and I lived through this problem in hilly Seattle. I only found out a year ago that it was a bad design, if only we had RU-vid in 1994!

Very nice and well maintained car, congratulations to the owner👍