A Bellhousing may be a separate housing bolted to the gearbox, or it may be an integral portion of the transmission housing, particularly with front wheel drive transmissions. An integral bell has a front bolt pattern that matches the engine to which it will be paired, and a divorced bell additionally has a rear bolt pattern that matches the gearbox to which it will be paired. The use of different bellhousings on a transmission allows the same transmission to be used on multiple engines in multiple applications.
References
^Driver. Department of the Air Force, Hq. Air Force Inspection and Safety Center. November 1971. p. 20. Retrieved 19 February 2024.