Electric shifter motors, has anyone else used them? Edsel teletouch

I rebuild the edsel teletouch shifter motors and system, so I know how they work in and out. I have installed the on later fords, and have made kits for people to use on chryslers to replace the cable operated, and many other cars and even motorcycles.
Has anyone else done this? What did you use? Has anyone seen it anywhere?


Please do not respond if you just want to complain, I only want responses from people who are interested in the subject and have an experience with it or have seen something. I also welcome questions on how to do it, etc. I opened this thread once and had it closed as a guy started fighting with members saying no one uses this and that it is not traditional rodding since it isn't used and not from pre 65 cars, but as anyone knows, 58 Edsel is definitely pre 65. So I ask this member to please post elsewhere, but not here.

I have installed these on later transmissions for daily driver street rods from the 50's, 1956 Packards to replace the weak electric shifter they had, and many other vehicles.

 

Jeez, PTO...no arguing allowed? You're no fun at all.

Could you maybe share more info for those of us who aren't familiar with this system? I'd be interested in seeing some pics and some info on how they work and how you adapt them to other cars. Thanks.

 

Yeah, I'd be curious to know too... It was an interesting idea, but Ford had so much trouble with the Teletouch it was gone after the first year.

Are you using the OEM Teletouch column/wheel? Or are you moving the buttons elsewhere? I bought a '58 Edsel steering wheel for my coupe, I'm thinking about looking into retasking the buttons to operate a cruise control.

 

That might be a problem solver for some of the guys who have the "no room to run linkage in the tight confines of this chassis and body setup" issue going that seems to happen on a regular basis.

 

PTO, I apologize for getting sucked into the BS that got the other thread closed. I too, would like as much knowledge as you can help us with.
My project is using an off topic transmission, (6 speed Allison) but I would like to use the concept to shift it.
From what I could gather off the net, exhaust heat and road dirt was a problem for the Edsel system, this could be remedied in a custom application.
I've toyed with the idea of using a small linear actuator, limit switches and relays to control shift motion.

 

I have not used one, but am very interested.

 

I'm interested as well.
My advice is ignore any drama if it starts...and IF it starts hopefully the Mods will chastise the drama starters instead of closing an interesting thread on a reasonable topic that hasn't been explored before.Thats something almost impossible to find on the HAMB!

Give us some info on your version PTO!

 

Once again, it was not one of my finer moments!

 

Sure. The system uses a relay and an electric motor to shift. It doesn't use a solenoid as some have tried to do. The motor turns like a wiper or power window motor would, but it connects to a part that perfectly make it stop and go on the right time for each gear.

I don't think it was trouble that removed it, but more of a lack of interest and extra expense that took it off. The car was released at the wrong time, so it wasn't very popular.
I have used the original steering wheel, but you have to keep the column, and made new buttons to do it. That and built it into the chrysler push buttons that already exist on the cable operated cars. Thinking or more ways to do it. The more kits people buy from me, the more I can experiment and see what I can make it work with.

No worries, the main issue was the member "Carl La Fong" He seemed as though he just wanted to cause issues. No idea why. I am assuming he is the type that has no car, but just wants to complain about what others do.

For your trans, this motor is limited to the typical PRNDL, and nothing more. So if your trans has PRND21, the last gear,1, will be left out. The others will shift fine though.


Here is a picture of the motor. Usually mounted on the trans bellhosung and has a shifter rod going to the trans.

 

Late model button shifted transfer cases use a similar version to switch between at least 3 points.
2x4, 4x4 and 4 low.
I don't think limit switches are used at the motor, but instead they use a computer and other confusing bits.
Some sort of mechanical limit switch may be workable with those as well.
That is assuming they have the required range of motion or the power to enable a longer lever of course.

 

Neat!
So, the motor basically is acting as a "synchronous " motor, as on many C N C driven machines, and many indicating instruments of late?

 

My guess, because of its looks and age, that it may be very similar to a wiper motor, with a brake to stop it quickly when limit switches are made.

My application is P,R,N,D,D1,2,1+ 2 electric shifts. 6 forward gears + neutral, reverse and park. So I'm definitely out in the cold with this set-up.

 

Interesting.

So let me get this straight. The motor rotates one way or the other, and stops at a particular point in its rotation, simply depending on which button is pushed...or in other words, which electrical circuit is completed? And of course, the switching mechanism has to be configured to cancel out all the other electrical circuits except for the one being used at the time.

Thanks, PTO.

 

That right there being the tricky part! LoL
With what looks to be a wormdrive system to operate the arm, it should be tight and consistant in stopping...IF the motor is switched off at the correct moment.
THAT being the complicated trick...in my mind anyway.

As you say Rickybop...easy enough to have it move one point to a limit switch, but how do you make it go from, say, Drive right up to park with the press of one button, without stopping at neutral and reverse along the way?
It must be able to "select" which limit switch it reacts to while bypassing the others along the path of movement.

I'm not electricly smart enough to figure this out, but I wonder if it even is an electrical problem. I wonder could the bypass be made by mechanical means!

 

Waaaait a sec! I just realized something!

The motor can be fully powered at all times ("key on" power or even a safety button as well) and the Mopar pushbutton cable(s) can be hooked to a single arm with a single limit switch!
Pressing the buttons will move the arm and limit switch...the motor will rotate automaticly to find the limit switch and then stop at the proper point for the button pressed.
Thats simple...but now we have to make the motor rotate in the proper direction for a particular button push...depending on where it is now and where it needs to go.
Or am I over thinking that???

 

There is a thing called "relay logic" that I think will help us out here. I'm starting from scratch, not using mopar stuff. If you are in park and want to go to drive, you push the drive button, this locks in a relay which powers the motor until until it gets to drive position on the trans, at this point a limit switch de-energizes the relay which stops the motor, you are now in drive. If you want to go to 2nd, you push the 2 button, this energizes a different relay, and when the motor rotates the shift lever to the 2 position a limit switch at that position de-energizes the relay and you are in 2nd
Each shifter position requires a separate button, relay and limit switch. The part I don't know how to use the relay logic to back the motor up from drive to park. It looks like the system you describe and mine both run into the same problem of how to make it back up going either direction is easy, going both directions randomly gets complicated

 

Glad this post is back, interesting to see if there is a way to make this work. I the heating industry they use modulating electric motors for dampers and controlling combustion on industrial boilers. Honeywell makes a series 71 modutrol IV motor. It is about 5" square and designed for 1.5million cycles, pretty beefy. New units are about $200. They have a low voltage DC model. It is very accurate, some models have up to 6 internal limit switches. Others will take a infinate input from a rotating cam switch similar to a dome
light dimmer switch. You can search the model above for the specifics. Any electrical types figure out how to use it?

 

You are all close and far from figuring it out. That is why the system was considered problematic, it was so simple yet horribly complicated that no mechanic could work on it. The procedure for any bad system was to replace the motor, relays, etc. instead of taking them off and trying to fix them.


The motor is pretty much mechanical in every aspect. The wiring loom going into the motor has a wire for every gear(PRNDL), wires for the back up lights and start(only available in P and N), and a couple other wiries for directional purposes(forward or backwards for the motor).
The system has permanent power in one direction(Low to Park) and only power in the other direction when the ignition is turned on which in turn actuates a relay allowing power through for the other direction(Park to Low).
When pressing a button, the power goes from the button to the motor which will turn on a relay which gives power to the motor to turn one direction till it hits it's selected gear. The motor will then stop, and ground will be sent to the power wire forcing the motor to stop. If the motor goes too far(it can as it is a pretty strong motor), it will automatically go back and stop in the correct position. To go backwards, it is the same procedure. Press the button for park, power will go through the motor which turns on a separate relay which moves the motor in the other direction, and then stops it in the same way.
Everything but the relays is located inside the motor.
They also used a safety inhibitor switch which while in motion, didn't allow you to change gears to park or reverse. That was located on the back of the trans. This was so that people couldn't accidentally press the button while driving and potentially screw up the trans or crash.

The system has a few other things to keep it going and keep it in the right gear.


To take another motor and make it work, many have tried and failed. The system needs more than what the typical person can make for it to work for all gears. Maybe it can be done with a computer, but I have no experience with that, so I honestly can't say.

For a wiper motor. Even if the looks as if it is going back and forth, they mainly all go in one direction and a mechanical arm circling the main gear is what makes it move back and forth.

 

Sorry for the long reply. But I hope it answers your questions.

Just to add a little more. I have thought about using a long screw motor, and have a rod that moved with it so that it passed by an electrified card reader giving it power till it stopped, but then to have it go back when needed etc. seemed not really possible in a realistic way.

 

Thanks for getting more "in depth" about the system. It looks pretty simple until you have to reverse the system to move the opposite direction. I have seen a mechanism somewhere that used 2 motors, one powered in each direction to reverse motion

 

I have seen something similar on airport baggage cars, they used solenoids so it could only go one space in each direction.
So the only possible gears were RND, neutral possible to return springs.

 

Do u have a shift motor for a 58 edsel.

 

Good luck. I sent him a motor in July and still waiting.

 

Reviving a 10 year old Zombie thread?