Hi All, Every time I shift into Reverse or Drive the car jumps hard and tries to stall. I have turned the idle down and it still jumps going into gear, and it really does stall. Is this a kick down issue? Am i missing a simple fix? Do i have an internal issue with the trans? Any input would be appreciated. -Spence 55 fairlane (needing Love) 48 Dodge P'up (needing brakes and steering)
My solution was to check the compression. Is your engine strong? I had my tranny completely overhauled recently and it still seems to be kind of jerky feeling. This was before I had the compression check, cleaned the tank and new fuel line. Are you sure it's the trans?
Did you replace the torque converter? Sometimes the stators could lock in a low stall conditition and that could produce symtoms like you describe. Good luck
Is there a vacum line to that trans? Maybe an accuator with a bad diaphragm? It's been a while since I looked at one.
Are you starting the car in park and then trying to put it in drive or reverse? There's supposed to be switch on the end of the steering column that only allows the car to start in neutral. I know when I start my '55 Mercury in park (my switch is bad! ) and try to put it in any gear , there's a terrible "jump". If I start the car in neutral, I can shift into drive or reverse easly. It seems a little goofy by todays cars, but I geuss "park" was just that back in the 50's. Once you parked the car, you put the trans in park and set the parking brake. If you wanted to start the car, you put it in neutral just like a manual transmission.
Thanks to all who replied. I started out by replacing the carb gasket and any vacuum lines. The car ran a bit smoother at idle, but still jumped. I then read the last coment about starting in Neutral. After reading that i went to the car and it does not jump from Neutral to R or Drive. After this the car went for a nice drive to get some fresh gas in the tank. It ran even better with the fresh gas. I then adjusted the brakes, fixed the front wheel bearing slop and bled the brakes. The car is much more civilized to drive now, but there is still a ton of slop in the steering. That brings up the next question- who should I get manuals for this car from? I have seen many different options. I also guess I should try to get an owners manual as well. Thanks again----Spence
I believe the shop manual has been reprinted. I had an owners manaual around here somewhere but that might also have been reprinted.
Spence, Your problem sounds like what I was going through with my '60. If you haven't already dropped the tank then I would go ahead and do it now. My pickup tube at the tank looked like it had dirt dobbers living in it. My engine ran so smooth that we thought it was fine. These motors will idle awesome but as soon as you load it up with that Ford-o-matic they die. You can put a clear fuel filter on the engine and watch the level. Check or blow out your fuel lines. Adjust your valves - mine were way to tight. It sounds like I'm telling you to do a lot but I'm actually trying to save you frustration. If you don't know the condition of these things then you should find out. I thought that the switch was for park and neutral? That's how mine works. If you need manuals my girlfriends dad sells originals. Check out www.hilyard.com and send him an email to see what he has for you. He's got a lot of stuff.
There is a guy at the long beach swap meet that has the shop man. for the car. Pick up the y block rebuild book on amazon. it will help. OH YEAH WHERES THE PIX?
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