Technical C4 upshift issue

A friend has a C4 transmission that when the gear shift lever is initially moved from PARK to Drive will only shift from 1st to 2nd gear as the car progresses forward gaining speed. No matter how fast you go or how high the rpm's go the car will not shift into Drive.

However, if the gear shift lever is initially moved from PARK to 2nd (allowing the transmission to shift from 1st to 2nd automatically) then manually move the gear shift lever to Drive, as the car progresses forward gaining speed and rpm's, the car will shift through all three gears automatically on all successive stop and goes with the gear shift lever in the Drive position.

The same thing happens if the shift lever is moved to REVERSE (from Park or Drive). The gear shift lever must initially be moved from REVERSE and placed in the 2nd gear position, and upon automatic shifting from 1st to 2nd, moved to the Drive position. The transmission will then automatically shift through all three gears on all successive stop and starts.

He changed the fluid and filter, with the correct Ford fluid. The pan was clean and free of any debris. The transmission came in the car when purchased and to the best of his knowledge only had 7,000 miles on it. The previous owner hid this quirk from him when buying the car. Not a deal breaker had he known about it anyway. The transmission now has over 10,000 miles and still does this little ritual.

Any ideas?

 

Sound like somebody has been at the valve body...

 

I think that is how the early C4's operated. In the first D position it is probably starting out in second and shifting to third... Not 1-2.

 

Sounds like the shift comb in the linkage is wrong for the transmission. I bet it is not really starting out in drive when you shift from park.

 

Is the vacuume modulator hooked up? Or it's in the valve body.

 

Yes, vacume modulator is hooked up.

 

Nope, it's first and second. When the rpm's indicate it is time to shift, it doesn't. The rpm's just keep climbing. You hear it and think "OK, I'm missing a gear here. When is it going to shift."

 

Then why would it automatically shift through all three gears after initially moving the shift lever to the D position manually and "starting" in D only gives first and second?

 

governor