Posting this on behalf of Don Haddock, who submitted this question to the Forward Look Mopar Discussion List:
Don wrote:Hi all, my name is Don Haddock and I’ve followed the list for years. I have a problem with rebuilding my powerflite transmission. It started a couple years ago when I went to the 2013 Michigan National Plymouth Owners Club meet. When I would start off from a stop I would get a shudder as if a brake was grabbing. It gradually kept getting worse and I eliminated all but the trans. I finally pulled the trans and tore it down and other than being dirty I found no problem. My problem now is after installing it ,I lost pressure causing a delay going in gear. I found the front pump gear had worn into the front valve body which is just behind it. I figured I must have assembled that front pump area incorrectly. I got a new front pump and valve body and re-assembled the trans again. I was very careful to make sure the pump drive sleeve was aligned properly with the torque converter when installing it. After a few minutes of running the engine and filling the trans and a short ride, it is now doing the same thing again. My question is “What is causing this to happen ?” Am I doing something wrong? Can the torque converter be at fault? Any help will be greatly appreciated. I am in New Hampshire and I’m sure I’ll need another Valve body and possibly the front pump.
My best advice is to run some pressure tests at the ports specified in the factory service manual. There is also a troubleshooting chart that is helpful. Aside from front pump being worn, other common causes of low pressure are the governor, or misadjusted TV rod.
This is Don and after destroying three valve bodies and two inner front pump gears I think my problem is in the torque converter. The inner stator drops down about an eighth of an inch in the converter housing when the trans is out. When re-installing the trans, I think the drive sleeve does not go into the hole in the stator quite far enough because of the drop thus putting pressure on the other end that drives the front pump. This in turn presses the pump center gear against the valve body. I will have this verified next week when I take it to a trans specialist. Thanks for the input. Don
Don Haddock wrote:Hi all, Thanks for feedback on my problem. I found out that the drive tube/sleeve between the T/Q and front pump only goes one way. If installed backwards it doesn’t go in the T/Q deep enough and sticks back 3/16” causing pressure on the pump gear and forcing it back into the valve body. Lesson learned “Pay close attention to parts orientation on dis-assembly” will prevent costly mistakes.
Don, I have been able to save the power flite front valve bodies by resurfacing the pump face in a three jaw lathe, if the damage is not too excessive.
