KathleenF

Hi All,

I have been impatiently waiting to get authorized to post here in order to ask this question! :-) Recently we purchased a lovely 1961 Dynamic 88 hardtop, in order to fix up and take to the local car shows with my dad who is 85 years old. This will hopefully be a fun little project to share with him.

The main problem (besides no interior) we were told would be that the transmission needed "a little work". Well, we figured that it couldn't be that much work...

The shift into second is very hard, a bit of a whiplash feeling, or someone just learning how to use a manual transmission. I explained this to the local mechanic who had said he had just worked on a 55 Holiday (my other baby) so I was fairly confident that he could diagnose the problem.

He drove it and said that it was "BAD" news and that it could be up to $3,000 to fix it, and he couldn't know until he had cracked it open. His mechanic drove it and came back saying that he thought he could just "turn it down and make the shift to second come later"...for about a hundred dollars.

Yikes...that is a big difference! So, I came home and looked it up on the internet, hoping to see one for sale in case that was a cheaper alternative. And I found this on Wikipedia:

The shifting sequence was very different and much rougher than the Hydra-Matics that preceded it, or the Super Turbines and Turbo Hydramatics that followed it. The shift from 1st to 2nd was long and drawn-out, ending with a bang.

Is it possible that there is nothing wrong with this transmission? I would hate to spend any serious amount of money on it if it is not even broken! This seems to describe it perfectly...and now I am very confused and concerned. Can't wait to hear any responses! Kathleen

Olds Dad

My experience is that they do shift hard into 2nd....including the 61 starfire in my signature photo (50,000 original miles )... never had any adjustments to it but would try for $100. My opinion is not to let anyone without specific experience on a slimjim touch it...nevermind tearing it down.

KathleenF

Interesting! Wow...I need to find myself someone who knows what they are doing, that is for sure! I also read a comment on a board that they "shift like they are broken, even when the aren't". The mechanic did say that it would be ok to drive it as it is, but it is hard to know now, in light of this information. It might be a matter of me learning how to drive it for the least "bang", maybe? I would like someone to look at it, just to know what is going on..or not going on! Anyone know a good mechanic in Ventura County, California? Or how to go about finding one?

KathleenF

BTW, thank you! And I love your photo of the kids! Your list of cars looks a lot like mine, I just don't have them all anymore! :-)

Kathleen

Don R.

The roto shifts differently than almost any other trans even if it's working correctly. I'm no expert but if it goes through all the gears and the fluid is clean with no burnt smell the first thing I would do is get the linkage adjusted. This is fairly complicated, get a shop manual if you can. That trans is very sensitive to linkage adjustment including the shift quality. Do not let anyone "crack it open" until you try the adjustment route.

Olds Dad

Thanks!....that's my little Starfire & Holiday....[QUOTE=KathleenF;280490]BTW, thank you! And I love your photo of the kids! Your list of cars looks a lot like mine, I just don't have them all anymore! :-)

Kathleen[/QUOTE]

B964

I also have the slim jim. Having never driven a car with one I was a bit worried about it before getting the car after reading the Wiki article.
My second gear is a bit drawn out but goes to third fairly smooth with just a slight nudge, no banging or harshness. Must be a large difference in ratio from second to third.

rocketraider

Sounds like all of y'all's are shifting about as normal as a Slim Jim will shift. There's a pretty steep ratio drop between the 2nd and 3rd speeds which is why that shift feels so weird, than the 3 to 4 shift is usually very smooth if not almost imperceptible. The 1st-to-2nd happens inside the trans fluid coupling within a few feet of the car getting moving and cannot be felt.

Agreed about not letting anyone unfamiliar with them mess with them. They may create more problems than they solve. The TV (throttle valve) rod from the carb to the trans is a critical adjustment on these. No disrespect to your mechanic, but a HydraMatic and a RotoHydramatic are two very different animals.

I have driven exactly one Slim Jim car that had anywhere close to a "normal" feeling shift. Most do that shudder-clunk-lurch thing. My blue Starfire would sometimes stall the engine on that first shift, the RPM drop was so great.

There's a couple guys on here who understand the Roto very well and can guide you thru adjustments- coldwar and d2willys come to mind as good Slim Jim guys.

And here I am getting ready to go look at a 61 D88 Holiday Sedan. One would think two Slim Jim equipped cars would be a gracious plenty.

Kathleen, where are you? There are a few ace Slim Jim mechanics scattered thruout the country. One of the best is in Chicago area.

KathleenF

Well, this is fascinating! I am surprised to find out that this "odd" transmission was even created, or used for a number of years on several kinds of cars!
Yet, I shudder to think the money I could have spent (or not been able to spend....) on 'fixing' something that was not broken, if I had not found my way here! I am not going to touch this transmission until I happen upon someone who really know if there is anything wrong with it! Thank you all!
BTW, Rocketraider, I am in Southern California, in Ventura County, above Los Angeles. I would love to find the right person, but I might have to ask around at the local car shows.

rocketraider

Sounds like a plan. There are still enough nice older cars in daily service in SoCal that finding someone to service it should be no problem. You can check the H.A.M.B. site too; all kinds of HydraMatic guys on there. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/

Vern H

Who is the ace slim jim mechanic in Chicago?

rocketraider

Tom Kasper and his son in South Elgin, at A-1 Automatic Transmissions. 847-888-4200.

d2_willys

Kathleen: Everyone that has posted is correct. The Slim Jim is a very different hydramatic. Without getting into the details I agree that the TV rod adjustment is VERY critical and if misadjusted will lead to transmission failure.

I do not have any names to share with you as far as slim jim technicians in the Ventura area. You mentioned trying to find someone at shows. That might be a good approach. Checking with HAMB website, or possibly getting a copy of Hemmings Motor news and looking in the Services and Oldsmobile sections is another suggestion. Good luck.

KathleenF

Hi Guys,

As of tonight I am elated. I think I have met my dream mechanic. Two years ago, while going to garage sales, my dad and I went to a house of a car guy that had some great cars and an old restored motor home in his yard. We talked about cars and he knew my '55 from seeing it driving around when my kids were still in school. He was really nice, and suddenly I remembered him this morning.

We drove out to his house, caught him eating his breakfast cereal, and he was great. He came out to my house today and spent two hours (free!) going over both my old cars, and to make a long story short, he is going to rebuild the carb (badly leaking) and tune up the '61 (as early as tomorrow if the kit comes in!), then take it back to his house and check out the transmission. And after that he is going to tackle getting my beloved, and neglected, '55 (Cuddles) back on the road. He said "This will be fun!". Nothing scares him or daunts him and there doesn't seem to be anything he can't do. He bonded with my husband discussing guitars, and made fast friends with my dad because he is incredibly inexpensive, as this is just his life long hobby.

I am pretty excited to have found someone who not only knows these cars, but loves to work on them. My constant problem with the two '50s Olds that I have and had is that I spent so much money that I didn't have... to get almost zero results over the years. So, I am keeping my fingers crossed that he is THE ONE!

Kathleen

rare6288

Kathleen, all the posts on here are correct- i would like to offer my 2 cents worth, though. My '62 has 96,000 miles on the original slim jim trans and i leave it ALONE!! It shifts like yours and i have found if you are easy on the throttle during 1-2 shift it does not bang hard like they always seem to do. Rocketraider is right on about these transmissions, check out his posts on this subject- there is quite a bit more you can learn about slim jims on all of CO.

KQQLCAT

This is a three speed transmission not 4

rocketraider

I always thought it was 3 too, till I got hold of a 1962 RHM troubleshooting guide published by HydraMatic Division. That Accel-A-Rotor thing changes ratio just enough that HM Division considered it a change in speed.

Yah, I know, makes no sense, but what about a Roto does?

Monkeymeat

Yeah, everyone above is correct on the funky nature of these trannys.
I had a '64 Super 88 years ago, and it was kind of a running gag among my
buddies about the way the old tank just sort of "slithered and dropped" into 2nd gear.
Never been in anything like it.

Until two weeks ago.

Found another old '64 Dynamic 88 with the same drive train.
It had been stored in a barn for the last 30 years. Somehow I just knew I
was the poor schmuck destined to bring it back from oblivion.
Sure enough, it shifts exactly the same way. LOL.....memories, memories.....

joe_padavano

Despite what the 1962 CSM says, there are only two gear changes (three speeds) in these transmissions. The Accel-A-Rotor is really more like the variable pitch torque converter used from 64-67. As an example, for the Rotohydramatic 5 in my 62, the 1961 CSM calls it a three speed and the 62 CSM calls it a four speed, despite the fact that the internals are the same. The only difference is the use of the Accel-A-Rotor to effectively create another "gear".

lilabner

I had a 61 Ventura and 62 Ventura from 1962 till 1966, and now have a 61 Catalina..Never had a problem with any of them..They shift very smooth, but ratios are spread out..A friend of mine that rebuilds trannys said the best rebuilders for the Roto 10 are up north, Ohio, Chicago, Michigan, that up north.. Mine was rebuilt in Mich in 2000 before I got the car. I keep thinking about changing it to something else, but if it ain't broke.........besides, I'm about 2 days older than dirt, having been a mechanc all my life, and I'm tired of bull work..

Monkeymeat

After having such a long hiatus from that last old roto until the one I bought just a few weeks ago, I had evidently lost the delicate technique needed in the ankle muscles of my right foot. The Dynamic I brought home a few weeks ago shifts a lot better now that I've got my old rhythm back. Just gotta back off the gas a touch when she's ready to go into 2nd, and then she's smooth as jelly. Well, not that smooth. No roto is. But it's certainly tolerable.