i have an aluminum case powerglide with a vacuum modulator on it. the kickdown cable is missing. is it necessary in a light car? under 2000 lbs? lets say i'm getting fancy and running a million carbs and don't want to spoil the looks on top with a kickdown linkage or cable, anybody here hook it up to the pedal? didn't one year chevelle come that way? anybody have any photos to share of all this ingenuity?
lets say i'm getting fancy and running a million carbs and don't want to spoil the looks on top with a kickdown linkage or cable, [/QUOTE] You must be way to "im-po-tant" to have me park next to you....haven't I seen your car on a TeeVee commercial?
Should be fine without it. Most that I have seen have a bell crank mounted with the bell housing bolts.
Just drop it into low manually. ALL Glides had a series of bellcranks and adjustable rods connected to levers. Lokar makes a CABLE setup if you want to go that route. ALL the Glides I build for drag racing have had the kickdown linkage deleted; those transmissions have been modified however. I am Butch/56sedandelivery.
Mine does not have the kickdown installed, but I wish it did. With nothing installed, and allowing the trans to up shift automatically, it will upshift very early and bog the engine. That is fine if you're just loafing along, but bothersome if you're wanting more acceleration. You can manually shift it, but that get's bothersome as well. I've set mine to upshift automatically at right ~ 27 - 28 mph. It downshifts automatically coming to a stop at ~17 mph. Or I can always manually shift it as I please. But it never downshifts with application of the throttle, I have to reach down and grab low gear for that. Ultimately, a kickdown linkage would give the best performance and versatility. One of these days I'll work on that.
x 2 - my Firebird was built missing the linkage from the factory - so we came up with a solution - the piece on the firewall was there but the pieces from the carb to the firewall and from the firewall to the trany was missing - as said before the trany will upshift too soon and never downshift correctly - sucks BIG time. I ended up finding the missing parts from the dealership (wrong year car but they still worked) and had to add a spring on the carb - WOW did that make a difference - the car ran like a missile after that. As said before as light as the T is you can do this manually - but------ IMHO the powerglide is the greatest trany ever built.
A little Powerglide love is a rare thing around these parts, all I ever see is negativity about them. I like 'em, and they are traditional. In a light weight car they work very nicely. I grew up driving a PG equipped Impala wagon; and yeah, they can be dogs off the line (note a looser torque converter helps with that), but there is a sweet spot in the speed range when you hit low gear and nail the throttle it really responds well. Get the jump on a guy when you're in that sweet spot, and it's good-bye....
There's the "Powerglide based", Torque Drive transmission that Chevrolet only used for 2 years in some Nova's and Camaros (4 and 6 cylinder inline engines-they will bolt to the V-8's also). It is a FACTORY "racing" Powerglide. They are a full manual shift transmission. If you stop at a light, and forget to drop it down into low, you'll be leaving in high gear when the light changes. They don't have any kind of kickdown circuit or linkage. I've hunted/wanted one for years, and every time I respond to an ad and get close, someone else has already beaten me to it. If anyone has a Torque Drive, I'd be interested in buying one. They take all the same parts as the Powerglide. I am Butch/56sedandelivery
The term "kickdown" on a Powerglide is a misnomer! The rod is really a TV rod, that controls pressure in the transmission. Yes, it still accomplishes kickdown, but uses throttle valve pressure to do this! Just because this unit has a vacuum modulator, it does not use the modulator like a TH350 or TH400.
Modulator on P/G is for pressure reg just like a 350/400. If it shifts too early adjust modulator, each turn of adjuster raises shift point 4mph (approx).
Butch, you should try calling FB Performance Transmissions in Bayshore NY. I used to work there and broke-down a few Torque Drive units; they probably still have the valve bodies and cases ( modulator boss is not drilled and tapped) in stock. You could use a core and build a Torque Drive unit, with these parts. I don't remember if the governor support and output shaft are specific to a Torque Drive. FB Performance: (631) 242 0008
I do not believe this is accurate. On the PG the modulator valve affects the feel of the shift, or how hard the clutches engage, not the shift point, that is all controlled by the throttle valve. This is a difference between the PG and the TH.
It is true that the modulator controls pressure regulator. The throttle valve sends pressure to the shift valve and holds it until the govern pressure overcomes it. So the throttle valve will effect shift timing but not firmness. That is controlled by line pressure and shift overlap.
Saltflats explained it in one sentence. Same as TH350/400, throttle pressure against governor control. That is why cranking a turn into modulator raises shift point, gov has more pressure to overcome.
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