Cannot select reverse gear

John in SATX

John in SATX

Member
When shifting into reverse gear I get no connection, just a "whirring" noise. Selecting first, second, third works just fine. There has been no unusual noise in the transmission.


I am running a Borg Warner overdrive and don't know if that enters in??


Appreciate any suggestions - Thank You!
 
The overdrive does affect reverse, there is a one way roller clutch in it. Do you have a cable to engage the OD? If I remember right (always a challenge) when you are in OD you can't back up.
 
John in SATX said:
When shifting into reverse gear I get no connection, just a "whirring" noise. Selecting first, second, third works just fine. There has been no unusual noise in the transmission.


I am running a Borg Warner overdrive and don't know if that enters in??


Appreciate any suggestions - Thank You!
Click to expand...

Flathead said:
The overdrive does affect reverse, there is a one way roller clutch in it. Do you have a cable to engage the OD? If I remember right (always a challenge) when you are in OD you can't back up.
Click to expand...


Yes, as mentioned above, the Sprag in the B/W Overdrive unit is likely the culprit.
 
The first thing to check is the lever on the side of the Borg Warner housing. Make sure that the control cable is allowing it to travel to against both stops. The lever must be completely up against the "out of overdrive" stop or you will not be able to go into reverse as the overdrive is still in free wheeling with the overrun clutch is engaged. Quite often the set screw holding the cable allows it to slip. Hopefully this is the case as it is an easy fix.


However, also quite often the oil deflector inside the overdrive has somehow become distorted and is not allowing the overdrive to come out of reverse. The old motor manuals of yesteryear spoke of this. I have also observed it a number of times.


This phenomenon can happen while the car is in service. I had it happen to me a number of years ago. The car was running fine, then one day I could not back up. I had to remove the overdrive and take it apart and bend the oil deflector back into place.


Attached is a lengthy article about Borg Warner repair. Look at photo #27 to see what I am referring to.


Tom Endy
 

Attachments

Thanks Brent and Tom, good stuff and as I think of it the OD may be the culprit. The cable to the OD has a big know under the dash and I noticed it was "out" a bit which likely moved the arm on the unit. I should have suspected this immediately but being 85 and stupid it did not compute. Tomorrow I will take a good look at the movement of the lever and make sure it is up against the stop(s) when I move the knob/cable.


I will post what happens. Sure do appreciate it!! Hope you had a great Memorial Weekend.


John
 
FIXED!! The reverse gear seems to be working now that I freed up the OD actuating cable. Many years ago I had put a clamp on the actuating knob assembly because it kept vibrating in and moving the OD actuating lever away from contact. I will test it with some distance driving Saturday but it is working fine in the shop and drive.


Thank you Brent and Tom Endy. Tom's PDF link brought my memory back a bit as to what I had dealt with many years ago - thank you Tom - as always!!
 
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