BenJammin

If you guys have followed my project thread, you know i have figured out i have a '56 324 engine in my '55 olds. I also verified that i have a '55 slant pan Hydra Matic.

I JUST got the car running after rebuilding the carburetor. I let it run for 5 minutes or so to let the fluids start to move around a bit.

Here are the issues with the transmission
--Without the car running, the wheels are stuck. Even when shifting into N, the car will not move. We had to pull the driveshaft to get it onto the trailer
--With the engine running and the shifter in N, the car idles normally. When i pull the shifter down into any range, the engine bogs down as expected. The rear wheels will not move, forward or reverse.
--My shift indicator (and maybe the neutral safety switch) is not hooked up at all...there is no linkage attached to it
--The car has been sitting for a few years
--when i got it, there was no fluid at all in the trans. I added a quart at a time, started the engine for a few seconds, shut it off, added more fluid until it was up to the 'full' indicator with the engine off. it was about 5 quarts
--I can definitely feel the N DR S Lo and R indents in the shifter. I also had someone sit inside and go through the gears while i watched the linkage on the transmission move. It seems to be hooked up.


My guess is that the parking pawl is rusted or somehow jammed in place. I thought that after i rebuilt the carb and got the engine up to temp and got the transmission fluid moving it would pop the parking pin loose, but it doesn't seem to be the case.

Any ideas on steps i can take to troubleshoot this?

I am going to upload a youtube video of it tonight and post it here so you can see/hear it.

Thanks again everyone.

transmission pics: https://plus.google.com/photos/10076...497?banner=pwa

BenJammin

Here is the youtube video of it

BenJammin

I have done a lot of reading and thinking about it. If anyone with a 55 could help me out, i'm thinking there HAS to be some sort of mechanical lever attached to the parking pawl. If you have a 55, with the car off, can you shift from Revers (park) to neutral and roll the car? I assume you can, which would imply that there is a mechanical linkage to pull the parking pin when the car isn't running (and there isn't any trans oil pressure)

My linkages are a mess! i have a hodgepodge of linkages and i even had one fall out onto the ground, so i'm going to go through them all and figure out what's what. It is a challenge with a 55 tranny and car with a 56 engine and linkages

m371961

This is probably a dumb question. I am not familiar with the 50s cars. Is the emergency brake on these in the drums, or is it a band type on the transmission?

redoldsman

It is in the drums. I think Chrysler Corp used the band on the rear of the transmission.

Olds Scott

Early 56 had the slant pan and later had the Jetaway transmission. Idle drop is normal going into gear. Have you tried to accelerate with transmission in gear and watched if wheels spin. Are rear drums bound up? Wheels would not move at all if parking brake pawl is engaged.

BenJammin

I have verified that the emergency brake is not on

with the car jacked up and not running, i can freely spin one wheel and the other spins the opposite direction (as if it were in gear/park on)

This is a slant pan 55, not a jetaway
I have tried to accelerate in gear and no, the wheels will not spin

Olds Dad

The answer to this is yes...I do it a lot since you can't reach the entire back tire while washing it I routinely wash the lower half, reach in the car (with it off) and toss into neutral and push it a few feet to wash the other half of the rear wheels (55 with hydramatic)

Olds Dad

I think your transmission is seized...given it was empty when you got it.

Hopefully someone more knowledgable with these will chime in.

BenJammin

Thanks Mr. OldsDad! ok, so there has to be a mechanical linkage that pulls the parking pawl.

i found a couple hydramatic shop manuals online. there is a spring that holds the parking pawl and i wonder if it has broken. I'll need to pull the side pan off and look for it.

i can't find a side pan gasket for sale anywhere...does this car use one? should i just make my own out of permatex?

BenJammin

Trying to figure out my linkages...does anyone have the '56 shop manual with the carb and shifter linkages? can you scan it and post it or email it? i am pretty sure i will need to modify/fab some up for my current situation

redoldsman

Since there is no Park on these transmissions, how is there a parking pawl. I always heard you were supposed to park these old hydros in reverse and set the parking brake.

BenJammin

According to the shop manual, reverse is reverse when the car is running. When the car is off, putting it in reverse pushes in the pawl

redoldsman

I did not know that but it makes sense. I need to spend more time reading my shop manual.

Thanks.

BenJammin

Trust me...I have a lot to learn myself. :-)

BenJammin

So here is a little update. After rebuilding the carb and adjusting the linkages, choke, and idle adjusters, i got the car to idle for 5 minutes. as soon as i did, oil POURED out of the passenger valve cover. The cork gaskets were shot. So i had to order some new valve cover gaskets, wait, pull the valve covers, clean them up, put them back on. Then i started the car, got it to idle for 5 minutes or so with no oil leak and she shot coolant everywhere. replaced the hoses and now i was finally able to get her to run for a good 15-20 minutes.

After letting it run for 15 minutes in neutral, pulled it down into reverse, let it idle there for a few minutes, then dr, back and forth a few times. Put it in neutral and checked the fluid level and found it was about a quart low! That's good news, as it seems to be taking the fluid and circulating it.

I topped it off in N while running, right up to the F mark.

With the car idling still, good operating temp, i started working the transmission from N to Dr to N. Repeated that over and over and over until it finally started to gently torque the car a bit. Progress!

Got out, checked the fluid again, still up to F. Got back in, ran it in R for a good 2 minutes, then Lo, then S, then Dr, then back to N Dr N Dr N Dr.
At least it torqued up the car!

Then i performed the troubleshooting part of the 55 shop manual on page 3-107
I did this at part throttle. I didn't have the ***** to do it at wide open. I think it may have helped, because the car would barely nudge forward after that.

Then the good part...wound it up a couple hundred RPM in neutral and pulled it into DR and she moved! a few screeches and scary sounds later, she drove 10 feet!

I shut it off, let it all cool back down and basked in the glory of driving her 10 feet.

With the car off, i put it in neutral and was able to actually roll the car forward but not backward.

I started it up, put it in dr, and i had to crank on the brakes to stop her! (by the way...brakes work!) I decided to give it a shot. Put it in DR and pulled out of my driveway and drove it all the way down the street...a good 50 yards, turned around, and drove it back to the driveway.

Reverse is not catching quite right, but i'm pretty confident now that
--It is not a parking pawl problem
--my linkages are correct

My new hydramatic pan gasket arrived today too, so i'll get the temporary fluid all drained, clean the screen if i can figure it out, fill it up with good tranny juice, and post back up here.

What a huge relief!

redoldsman

That sounds very encouraging Ben. This old gal is making it hard to love her isn't she? Stay after her.

BenJammin

Nahh, it is easy to love her! I named her Barney since she smells like a damn barn! This old car has a lot of heart and she really wants to go cruising!

BenJammin

I wanted to follow up with this. My job has been bonkers lately so I have had very little time to work on the car. I did get this video uploaded the day i drove it around the block:

Notice at 0:40 i put it in reverse and nothing happens? Well, i found out why. A couple days later i pulled the pan and found the remains of an entire planetary gear in pieces. Looks like the reverse carrier was completely stuck and either I or the previous owner shredded a gear and maybe some of the clutch disk material:






So it is time to find another '55 or '56 slant pan transmission. I'm going to post up in the wanted section, but i thought i would share what has gone on. If anyone reading this knows of a 55 slant pan hydra or a parts car in the NC area, please let me know.

thanks guys!

Williamaronson

I just picked up my first 1955 Oldsmobile Holiday Ninety Eight Coupe. I am learning a great deal by reading these forums. I just learned something new by reading this post, now I know how to properly park. That transmission definitely takes some getting accustomed to...