After 15 years of producing a multitude of semi-automatic transmissions, in 1954 Chrysler introduced its first truly automatic transmission: the PowerFlite.

The Chrysler Corporation was a pioneer in semi-automatic transmissions in 1939 with Fluid Drive (see our feature here) and continued to develop the technology through the ’40s and early ’50s with its Vacamatic, Presto-Matic, Gyro-Matic, Hy-Drive, and more semi-automatics. But strangely enough, the automaker didn’t introduce its first fully automatic transmission until 1954, some years after General Motors, Ford, Packard, and Studebaker. With the PowerFlite, it seems the Chrysler engineers were taking their time to get it right.

Like the Plymouth Hy-Drive, the PowerFlite used a torque converter rather than a simple fluid coupling with 1:1 torque transfer, but unlike the Hy-Drive’s torque converter, which shared its oil with the engine (a peculiar setup) the PowerFlite had its own lubrication system. The basic assembly consisted of a cast-iron main case, a cast-aluminum bell housing, and an aluminum extension housing (above).

Plymouth and Dodge PowerFlites were air-cooled while the DeSoto and Chrysler versions were water-cooled via a heat exchanger on the lower radiator hose. Chrysler Corporation boasted that the new transmission had 110 fewer components and weighed 100 lbs less than an unnamed Detroit competitor (the GM Hydra-Matic, we presume).

Inside the main case was a hydraulically operated, multiple-plate clutch, two bands, and a planetary gearbox to provide two forward gears and reverse. The torque converter’s 2.6 multiplication factor, coupled to the planetary’s first-gear ratio of 1.72:1, provided the quickest low-gear getaways of any automatic in the industry, Chrysler boasted. Unlike many automatics back then, the PowerFlite started in first gear. For 1954, PowerFlite was standard on all Chryslers except the Windsor and a $185 option on Windsor, DeSoto, Dodge, and later in the year, Plymouth.

For ’54, the Powerflite was operated via a conventional column-mounted lever (above). However, there was no Park position nor an internal provision for it, but rather a drum brake was mounted on the extension housing, controlled by a separate lever. In ’55 the selector was moved to the instrument panel (below) for a single year, while in ’56 the familiar push-button control was introduced, a Chrysler signature feature for years to come.

Also in 1956, Chrysler took the lessons learned from the two-speed PowerFlite and introduced the three-speed TorqueFlite, a Motor City automatic that doesn’t require much in the way of introduction. (The original A488 cast-iron TorqueFlite was later replaced by the A904 and A727 transmissions, but the name remained.) However, the original PowerFlite remained available on Plymouth, Dodge, and some DeSoto passenger cars all the way through 1961.

1954 Chrysler New Yorker DeLuxe