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TR2/3/3A Something is really wrong? Overdrive Tranny

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Got_All_4

Got_All_4

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While completing my radio installation something happened and the wires shorted out and burnt all the way to the kill switch. This isn't the reason I'm writing. After putting everything out and pushing the car out of the garage I dried everything out started the car and tried to back up to my other garage where I'm closer to everything. As I was backing up the car it was acting like the E brake was on but it wasn't. Parked the car in 3rd gear and continued to work on the car.
There is a slight grade there and as I was working the car broke loose and started down the grade in third gear with the clutch out! Jumped in and tried it in every gear and it was like the clutch was not engaged. Decided to start the car and see if it would pull forward and it did and felt proper. Tried reverse again and the same sensation. I noticed that the overdrive switch was on and I turned it off. Backing up was a lot better. Still didn't feel 100% correct. Put the overdrive switch back to the on position and getting that same sensation. What can be going on here?
 
Sounds like it got stuck in OD somehow, but backing ujp in OD tore up the OD clutch instead of the sprag clutch.

At any rate, I would not attempt to drive any further before having the OD out for inspection and repair. If you absolutely have to move it with the rear wheels on the ground, disconnect the driveshaft.
 
First, your gear interconnects are bypassed or broken, as you should never be able to select OD in reverse...under any condition!

If you attempt to back up with the OD engaged, which it sounds like you did several times, you are attempting to turn the wheels through the OD AND the non reversing spray clutch. If the car never moves in reverse, then you may have gotten away with it. If it "popped", as you described, and you actually moved the car backwards with the OD engaged, then you almost assuredly broke the sprag clutch or the OD gears. Either is not good.

The smart thing is to not move it as Randall stated. Not so smart option 2 is to raise the rear wheels and slowly test the gears in forward, the OD, and finally reverse gear only with OD off. Any noise or grinding shut down and rebuild the OD. In any case...fix your interlocks, they are extremely important to these OD's!!
 
Any idea how this could have happened? Took it for a drive 2 nights ago but never engaged the OD and the car drove fine. No switch on the reverse gear so the solenoid would not even be able to engage. The wires for the radio were run in conduit and they are on the passenger side where all the OD stuff is on the driver side.
 
Impossible to say. Remember that, although the switch side of the OD is switched and interlocked, the solenoid side is always hot to the generator. Shorts can have odd affects on electrical systems. It's always possible the "pop" was the pressure bleeding down and releasing the OD clutch...which gives the OD at least the remote chance of not being damaged.
 
If there is no switch but the wires are run, where does the wire that should go to the lockout switches end at? If it touched ground, and the operating switch was on, that would engage OD. Or maybe the insulation melted as part of your fire?
 
Hard to believe. I took Johns not so smart option #2. Put it on stands, turned the wheels forward and back no noises. Started the car with every wire pulled from the relay. 1st gear no noise, 2nd no noise, 3rd 4th and reverse no noise. Re plugged the relay in and did the same thing with no noises between all the gears in and out of OD. Put the car down went back and forth a bit no noises or strange movements. Went for a 12 mile drive ran and shifted perfectly in and out of OD. Go figure. Anyway now I really don't under stand why did it would not stay engaged on that grade in gear with the clutch out?
 
I bet it bled down the accumulator with the OD engaged, and then released when the pressure wouldn't hold the clutch engaged, but had enough pressure to hold it off direct drive. Anyway...very glad to hear it was not damaged!
 
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