Jeff, that crossmember question has come up before, and I’ve responded to it before, with these same pictures. I’ve got a 327 in mine with a 700-R4. The crossmember was in the way so I cut it out, but I wanted some degree of support in its absence. Nothing fancy: just a 1/8” thick steel tie plate and coupler nut spacers bolted into those eight horizontal holes that the factory has already pre punched for you. I’m sure some of the guys on the site again will find fault with my engineering, but fwiw, it’s held up for the last 20 years with no failure. You can maybe even come up with a beefed up version of the idea. Good luck, Dave
