Hey guys, Being a noob, apparently from my mechanic I snapped the rear left axle because I had been running in overdrive all over town. I gues it was a combination of leaving the parking lot between 1-2 minutes aver coming off the highway, making a hard right turn and hitting the dip between the lot and the street. I guess the axle couldn't handle the torque??? Please instruct me on the proper use of overdrive and should the overdrive t-handle be out or in around town vs. highway? Thanks!
Having it in overdrive or not has nothing to do with snapping an axle. The overdrive is part of the transmission, not the rear differential.
Also - Pulling the handle out disengages the overdrive for when you want to utilize engine braking around town, down hills, at speeds below 28mph, etc. These transmissions are neat to drive when they are working correctly... kind of an "automatic" manual... especially in 2nd gear around town. Do some research on them, plenty of info here on this topic.
Agreed snapping your Axle has nothing at all to do with your overdrive. I am guessing that your overdrive isn't even working. Can you feel the car go into overdrive in second when you let off the gas? At slow speeds can you fee it freewheel?
You can drive around anywhere/everywhere with the Overdrive enabled. Your mechanic is either a fool or a thief.
X3 on firing your mechanic. the percentage of torque difference in overdrive and regular high would be of no consequence at city speeds. hell; it wouldn't be enough to snap an axle at any speed. your axle failed for any number of reasons unrelated to drivetrain speed. whatever you do from here on out; do NOT let anyone remove your overdrive as a "favor" to you....
Being a kid in the 50s, I remember they had axles made of gl*** LOL. They would snap be cause you sneezed. Used to carry a spare in the trunk. A friend once brought a 50 cp for me to road test for her and it snapped an axle on the road with no horsen around. Get used to it, one of the shoe boxs ailments. Iceman
The intended use of overdrive is to reduce engine rpm at cruise speeds and decrease fuel consumption. They have a Governor that prohibits engagement below about 28 to 30 miles an hour. Above that speed, the OD can be engaged. Normally, in around town driving, the "T" handle is pulled out, which locks out the OD unit. In that configuration it functions exactly as a regular 3 speed ******. If properly wired and fully functioning, when the OD is engaged at cruise speed, you should be able to floor the gas pedal and the OD will disengage, giving a boost in acceleration for p***ing, etc. That is accomplished with a combination of switches, relays and a solenoid. It grounds the coil momentarily to reduce engine torque, "unloading" the ****** gears, and permits the solenoid to disengage the OD. Letting up on the throttle briefly permits the OD to re-engage. Ray
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