So I have this 64 comet, 202 sedan with 144 and 3 speed column. 20,000 miles, good shape, little rust. Got it from someone who sold it as it wouldn't p*** emissions. Emissions got cancelled in my province and now there are no more inspections Owner said it hadn't run in 5 years .and they werent technical. When I got it, the coil spark wire to distributor was melty inside. A new set of wires, and a carb kit later and bam she was running. I set dwell at 39, timing at 7 degrees, idle at 600 rpm and mixture a smooth as possible. Now that I have driven the car for a week I have come across a few issues that have me stumped. 1.The engine has a miss or stutter when at cruise. It is more pronounced when accelerating to cruise. I checked all plugs and there are no cracks, they are clean and the gap is correct. The timing is advancing as I checked. The miss is only heard and felt about once every 10 seconds. Cap and rotor look clean, and points are mirror finish. I wonder if the old owner fried the coil and that is my issue. Float height is now at 1" from carb base to top of float when top is upside down. When I first took the carb apart it was at 1 and 3/8. Not sure why it was so low. 2. After i checked and filled the ******, it was leaking out the output shaft at the back. I changed the seal, and its still leaking. Is there a bearing or bushing back there that shouldn't be letting oil to the rear of the long output shaft? Also, when I grab the driveshaft, I can shake it enough so that it is clacking inside the output shaft. Is this also the cause of my leak? What is the fix for this? 3. Vibration, at 60mph its go a real low pitched vibration that shakes the rear view mirror. With engine off and coasting vibration is still there. U joints have no play in them. Transmission mount/leaf spring attachment had no rubber left. I replaced rubber and now vibration is worse. If I loosen the mount so that the angle of the transmission is pointed down more towards the differential, the vibration goes away, but I dont think this is the right way of correcting it. 4. Transmission grinds badly going into 3rd. There was lots of br*** in the old ****** fluid. Not sure if I want to change this ******, but if I do, what model number am I looking for? Would it be easier to put in an auto? Sorry if this seems like a run on paragraph. Hopefully someone here can point me in the right direction. Regards, Chris
Items 2 and 3 are likely related. The rear bushing that the driveshaft yoke rides on, and likely the driveshaft yoke, are worn. The excessive movement of the yoke in that bushing are probably causing the vibration, and also beating the seal up. Item #4, the br*** is from worn synchronizers, which will cause the transmission to shift hard. Sounds like you should just rebuild the trans, and get a new driveshaft yoke. Item #1 might be a fuel delivery issue, pump not keeping up when the demand is highest (accelerating to cruise)?
Yep, 2, 3, and 4 all point to a ****** rebuild. Sounds like someone ran it while low on gear oil, so it may be trashed along with the output yoke. Replacement trans can be sourced from Comets, Falcons, Fairlanes, and Mustangs, but check the trans length as they're not all the same. One bummer will be that '64 was the last year for the 'narrow pattern' Ford trans so you'll be limited to '62-64 units unless you swap to a '65-up bellhousing, then the later 'wide pattern' trans will fit. Also check the trans tailshaft housing as there's at least two different trans mount configurations. The tailshaft housings will swap if they're the same length to fix this. Don't drive the car until you get this fixed, as that vibration can also take out the rear axle pinion bearings and you'll be looking to replace the rear end too. Those four-lug rear axles aren't easy to find anymore... A GF 'back in the day' ran her '62 Falcon with a leaky trans until it sounded like a fire truck going down the road. I had to replace everything from the flywheel back... I'll add that a narrow pattern 4-speed will bolt up to your six. I see early ('63-64) Falcon/Comet 4-speeds for sale fairly regularly, one of those may be easier to find. Stay away from the 'Dagenham' 4-speed Ford used in the early six cylinder Mustangs, parts are all-but-impossible to find and expensive. Some are swapping later T5 five-speeds in, but that will require some mods.
Thanks Guys, I believe you are right. For the transmission, When I changed the output shaft seal I dont remember seeing a bushing in there. I wonder if it was ***embled without or if it was broken and now there is no output shaft support. Id like to change that bushing but I am not quite sure how. The comet shop manual details a special tool to remove and install the bushing. Has anyone done this before?
so after pulling the driveshaft again I noted a 6 inch long groove that is 1mm lower than the rest of the slip yoke surface. Looks like tis for a new slip yoke, bushing and seal. Any idea where to get said things? Ebay is not giving me much luck. Regards,
There's more to life than ebay. Welcome to the world of old Fords. There's a bunch of specialty vendors with Ford replacement parts (Macs Auto Parts, Dearborn Cl***ics, Scott Drake, etc.) and even typical corporate auto parts stores can get you a lot, not to mention all the ones that specialize in Mustangs. For a yoke, seal, and bushing you might want to try www.Falconparts.com.
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