TR2/3/3A my OD stopped working after it was working

[sp53]

I was not sure if I should post a new thread or not, but my OD stopped working after it was working, and I wanted people to see an undated post . I was going in and out of OD in 2nd to get a feeling for how things operate. I might have shifted into 3rd with the OD in the working position. I doubt if the OD are that sensitive, but I do not know. Today I will see if I blew a fuse. If not, hopefully I did not hurt anything by putting the car in reverse. Moreover, having the OD working should be good sign for the transmission part of the system, RIGHT- MAYBE, and the problem is something with the controls? Would there be nasty noses associated with going into reverse if I did the dreaded reverse thing with the OD when the system is not working correctly.

thank you steve

 

[Sarastro]

When you switch from second to third with the OD switch on, the OD will disengage momentarily and then, when you shift into 3rd, reengage. This should not be a problem.

If your lockout switches are operating correctly, shifting into reverse should not cause problems, because the lockout switches disengage the overdrive. If the switches are not right, that's when you have a problem. And, yes, I suspect that if you shited into reverse with the OD engaged, you would get lots of ugly noises and lock up the drivetrain. I don't think you could do that without knowing about it.

Probably you just blew a fuse or a wire came loose.

 

[Stevenry]

When I was troubleshooting my overdrive’s intermittent stubbornness, mostly me shorting out the relay(s) with tester leads while in an advanced yoga position under the dash, I found the original Triumph overdrive manual a great help. My problem turned out to be a bad connection inside the solenoid itself. Once the solenoid was replaced and I stopped shorting relays, it has worked ever since.

Steve

 

[CJD]

You would know immediately if you reversed in OD. The car would not move in reverse, and if revved to make it move, you would feel/hear the bang as the one way clutch explodes.

A little detail about how the OD works:

There is a piston which only pumps one stroke per full turn of the drive shaft. It takes several hundred strokes of the pump to fully charge the accumulator with pressurized oil. When you engage the OD, the accumulator looses at least 1/3 of its pressure, which must be made up with 50 or so more turns of the drive shaft.

What this means...is that if you rapidly go in and out of OD over a short period of time, the OD will loose all pressure and not engage. I don't know the exact numbers, and they would vary from car to car, but, in general, if you engage the OD, you need to drive about 1/2 mile before pressure will be back up to get full pressure for a subsequent engagement.

 

[sp53]

Thanks guys--- the learning curve gets more interesting all the time inside my head. I checked the fuse and that is fine. Next, I put the car in gear and turned the key on and then pulled the over drive switch, the relay clicked, and I am pretty sure the solenoid moved also. I would need to take the cover off and feel the side of the solenoid to know more.

I took the car out for a drive and tried to engage the OD, but nothing, no jerk or engine RPM rise. I guess something is going with the solenoid? The relay is new and the solenoid looks original.

Steve

 

[Stevenry]

I think I also did a bit of driving up and down a quiet road with the transmission tunnel off to make sure the problem was not internal. If I am remembering correctly, I made sure the overdrive engaged by moving the lever opposite the overdrive forward (or backwards) before delving into the electrical.

If you try this, don’t wear loose clothing, especially drawstring pants or sweats. No real experience of the danger, but I do have an imagination.

Steve

 

[poolboy]

When you engaged the OD did the rpms drop ?...

 

[Stevenry]

Clarification. The lever opposite the solenoid.

Steve, I think I sent a pm regarding the manual.

Steve

 

[NutmegCT]

I took the car out for a drive and tried to engage the OD, but nothing, no jerk or engine RPM rise.

Steve - shouldn't the rpm *drop* when OD is engaged? (not rise)

Tom M.

 

[poolboy]

Yeah and that's why I asked, Tom..

 

[sp53]

Anyway, now there is nothing with the RPM. The relay does click. There is a noise that I think is new. It is like sheet metal rattling. I thought it was the tunnel bolts or something, but not sure. Today I will take the cover off and see if I can find anything. I may pull the solenoid off and have a look at that also.

Thanks you guys, Steve

 

[sp53]

I took the cover off and put the car in 2nd with the key on and the relay clicks and something happens inside the solenoid--- I can feel that move. I see there is the lever deal by solenoid and on the other side a shaft goes through the transmission which is on the other side of that lever. There are some adjustments in these areas around the lever and that looks like my problem. Stevery mentioning a lever in his post, so I figure he has had a problem there also. Another guy from Washington, I can see by his sense of humor, we have too much rain.

I have a PDF of an OD manual, but when I tried to open it the file locked up. Probably my fault because there was this Adobe reader thing that I did not do correct. This was something Randal posted years ago. Does anyone have that copy for a repost because mine is stuck in some computer world of not closing or opening----- just going round and round?

I will google and see if there is a quick and easy adjustment for that shaft. There is sheet metal bracket and pinch bolt there also that I see needs adjustment which could be my rattle.

Thanks Steve

 

[sp53]

I googled the adjustment of the solenoid and did it this way with the pressure holding the deal up. My tranny is a little different than his in the video. I am thinking the bolt on the bottom of my solenoid is a check bolt thing to stop the solenoid rod from flying out if something happens and the built in play on the hook bolt deal on the shaft is engineered. IS the idea none or little play in the shaft? I guess find some way of staying clear of the U joint and drive with cover all the way off. I like the pants with ties Stevery. I should be able to come up with something.

How to adjust the solenoid on a tr3 A type Over Drive - Google Search

www.google.com

 

[sp53]

Swweet, that fixed it. It shifts nice now. I will alert the media.



steve

 

[CJD]

Awright! Just to clarify the adjustment:

In your first picture you see the actuator lever, and when actuated it should line up with the hole in the OD case. The idea is that you can pin the lever to the hole, and then actuate your solenoid and lock the lever in this position. The lever you adjust is on the solenoid side of the tranny in your second picture.

I am sure the procedure above worked great 65 years ago, when the OD was new. Often there is too much play, though, so the lever must go past the pin location by a few degrees to get consistent engagement. The easiest way to set the solenoid, of you are having trouble, is to block the rear axle, remove the tunnel cover, and adjust the solenoid lever gradually with the drive train running, until you get rock solid OD engagement and dis-engagement. It can be fiddly if there is a lot of wear, like on my TR2. But, once adjusted, it should not change for many, many years.

 

[Hamish Racing]

Just done a sprint competition and my od didn’t work ggrrrr

so I will be following all your valuable advice too.
But I’m totally rubbish with elecs. Relay clicks but that’s it
Thanks for sharing advice it’s of use to many that follow

 

[sp53]

Thanks you guys for your support. When the OD engages now, there is no impact that feels hard, the engagement is smooth, and hardly noticeable, with no clutch. I have only tried 2rd gear with the OD, later this week I will try 3rd and 4th.

Hamish kinda of a bummer your OD is acting up. From my limited experience, the solenoid adjustment has slipped at the pinch bolt. Follow that video and I think you will fix it. The electrical is straight forward once you can see the wirers and it sounds like your electrical is working. Heck you are getting power to the system when the relay clicks.

Steve

 

[Hamish Racing]

Turned out to be the power feed wire to the solenoid. Bullet connector de-soldered in the spaghetti wiring behind the dash.

 

[Jim_Stevens]

I was gonna say See, you need to baby it! But it was electrical…. And wouldn’t have been nice, either!
Glad it works now.! Jim

 

[Hamish Racing]

You may have been right. I have never been big on mechanical sympathy.
perhaps it was OD witch craft preventing my 2nd OD use in competition!!!