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EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / Why is our Fordomatic not shifting well ?

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Discussion Topic: Why is our Fordomatic not shifting well ? -- page: 1 2

Grant

10-22-2009 @ 12:16 PM

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Gentlemen,

We have owned and driven a '52 Ranch Wagon since 1988. The Fordomatic in it used to shift into high gear quite happily. Suddenly it has decided not to do that most of the time.

With the shifter in the Dr position, it would change into high gear with a nice firm shift somewhere around 18 to 20 miles per hour. Now, unless I let up on the gas pedal at just the right rpm, it stays in the lower gear and keeps revving up too high. I then have to let up on the gas, allow the car to slow down to about 15 mph, and then accelerate again ...... sometimes it takes three or four tries to get the transmission to shift into high.

I tried adding a 24 ounce bottle of gooey red Lucas Transmission Fix. That helped somewhat, but the problem is still occurring most of the time.

Could there be some kind of reasonably straightforward manual linkage adjustment that might resolve this issue ? The Ford shop manual seems to indicate that partial disassembly of the transmission and testing with a pressure gauge, as well as a special protractor tool on the throttle lever, could be necessary.

Have any of you 51/52/53 Fordomatic guys out there had to deal with a similar problem ?

Any assistance which you might be able to provide would be very much appreciated.

Regards, Grant

Chevguy49Ford

10-22-2009 @ 4:36 PM

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I don't know much about those transmissions but I have seen a lot of GM Hydramatics that did the same thing and it was the Modulator Valve. I don't know if your transmission even has one. It was a quick and easy fix for the GM's anyway.

Cheers, Scott.

1949 Custom Tudor.
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Grant

10-23-2009 @ 7:12 AM

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Thanks, Scott. I will check that.

supereal

10-23-2009 @ 7:56 AM

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There are several reason why shifting is off. I checked my Ford-O-Matic manual "troubleshooting", and it mentions freeplay and/or misalignment of the shifting linkage, the governor, which is located on the output shaft, and a dirty valve body. The throttle to transmission linkage is also suspect. Of all of these possibilities, I'd suspect the governor, but you can check the linkage without any disassembly. A hard shift is usually throttle linkage, although the pressure regulator can cause it, as well. Be very cautious about putting anything but the proper fluid in the transmission, as they commonly affect the operation of the bands and are not advised. If you can't find an obvious problem, such as the linkage, it is time to hand the job over to an expert before irreversable damage is caused.

ford38v8

10-23-2009 @ 8:02 AM

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Grant, by "Expert", I'm sure Supereal doesn't mean a franchise
transmission shop. Find a reputable shop in which the mechanics are old
enough to have worked on '53's in their past.

Alan

Grant

10-23-2009 @ 10:44 AM

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Thanks to one and all for the replies.

I did suspect that something other than linkage could be the problem.

There is one old-time transmission shop left in our area. If necessary, I'll take the car there.

Can anyone recommend a correct procedure for adjusting the linkage ? Is it possible that there are worn-out grommets involved ?

Grant

supereal

10-23-2009 @ 11:09 AM

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Grant: I am at the shop today, but when I get home, I'll see if I can find the linkage protocol. Anything that allows "slop" in the system can throw the control off. As my friend, Alan, says, be sure that anyone or shop actually has seen the inside of a Ford-O-Matic. The franchised repair shops, at least around here, send plenty of mistakes to us to fix. Recently, we had a Toyota where they had tried to replace the belt tensioner, but twisted off the mounting bolt in the aluminum block, then compounded the error by breaking off a hardened bit in the stub when they drilled it to use an "easy out". We extracted the stub, but the tab was a bit over $200. Not cheap, but better than a $4,000 engine block replacement! Independent shops are not always pretty, or well advertised, but those who have survived usually do so on years of experience. A good place to ask about them is most NAPA and other "old line" parts places.

supereal

10-23-2009 @ 1:56 PM

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Grant: I did dig out the Ford-O-Matic manual and see that the linkage check and adjustment is a quite complicated eight step process requiring at least two special tools and a pressure gauge. If you like, I can copy that section and snail mail it to you. The adjustments are made with a tachometer, a degree measuring device (protractor scale), and a pressure gauge attached to a port that is sealed with a pipe plug. The linkage is in two sections: one is set by the shift lever on the steering column (P-R-N-Dr-Lo), while the actual control of the shift points is delegated to the throttle position link in relation to the governor. If you can't see any obvious problems with either end of the throttle link, any further investigation is probably best left to an expert. We don't do more than remove and replace automatics, as we have an excellent local independent shop that does all types of this work. I wish I could be more helpful.

Grant

10-24-2009 @ 5:09 PM

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Thanks, Supereal.

As per my original inquiry on this Forum, I have the Ford factory manual and did see the rather complicated procedure recommendations and the Ford tools required ..... as well as the photos ..... obviously these procedures are intended for a trained transmission service techician rather than a backyard hobbyist like me.

If careful tinkering with the linkage doesn't improve matters, I think the car will go into storage for the winter as it is, and next spring we will visit the old-time-transmission-guys.

Regards, Grant

Dale Fairfax

10-24-2009 @ 5:38 PM

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Grant: You don't say where you are. Location can be quite relevant to finding the "expert". I might recommend one only to find he's 1000 miles from you.

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