GM trans questions

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offroadrolls

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Mar 20, 2012
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North side of Deer Mountain
One of my employees in Denver has a 1985 SS Monte Carlo. It's been rode hard and put away wet! He loves this car and I don't have the heart to tell him you can polish a turd all ya want and it'll still be a turd. So I've decided to help him out.
It's got a V8 and I'm assuming a 200r4. The problem he's having is the trans will not shift from 1st to 2nd and then to drive on it's own. You have to shift it manually. You can start off in Drive, it'll be in low but it won't up-shift until you do it manually by going from Drive to second with the shifter. Then when it's time for drive, you go up from second. Then when you come to a stop, shifter in Drive, it does drop down in to low. I never went fast enough to see if over drive worked. I did adjust the kick down cable. It was way too tight. He said that made a difference but it still won't up-shift on it's own. [S[S
 
Press the cable adjuster and let the cable go all the way to it's seated position then, get in the drivers seat and depress the accelerator pedal to the floor and it will set it's self.
This should get you really close to where it should be.
 
Press the cable adjuster and let the cable go all the way to it's seated position then, get in the drivers seat and depress the accelerator pedal to the floor and it will set it's self.
This should get you really close to where it should be.
Yes that's how I adjusted it except I did it by just going to full throttle by hand at the carb.
 
Well will need more info,how long as it sat, or start all of a sudden . but does the speed-o work? if it does the gov is turning. Then look to the valve body. Tobby
 
Press the cable adjuster and let the cable go all the way to it's seated position then, get in the drivers seat and depress the accelerator pedal to the floor and it will set it's self.
This should get you really close to where it should be.

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Another thing, the TV valve has an upgrade, the valve is known to stick in the valve body and they have an anti stick spring that all the re-builders use to stop this from happening.
Ya have to pull the pan to install it. They are $.36
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You have to pull the valve body to install the spring. Again if the speed-o is working the gov is most likely also.The speed-o cable is turned by the gov,and it is a simple ball-in-seat. I've never seen one stuck, But if your pulling the pan easy to ck. Tobby
 
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saw this on another forum. i couldnt find what I was looking for. I remember somethign about shifting problems in a 200 metric before they go bad but that's with the non overdrive 3 speed lockup 200

200r4 has a problem where it supposedly chucks the govenor spring out of the govenor if you back off the throttle too fast during a burnout.

"Dumping the governor spring is very common especially if you get off the throttle at a high rpm and the transmission slows very quickly or upshifts quickly. That'll pitch the spring. The spring looks much like a spring out of a ball point pen only stiffer. I have a spare in my tool box in case I munch mine. They often come out of the tranny in pieces after getting pitched.

I doubt that they are hard to come by. I've never had to buy one but I can't imagine that a GM dealer wouldn't have them in stock. "
 
You have a primary weight and spring And a secondary weight and spring. Some gov's do not have a primary spring. If it is suppose to have one but not there it will shift. but have a very harsh 2-1 coast-down shift. Primary is smaller weight and spring of the two. Tobby
 

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