Anybody local-ish to Savannah Georgia that knows a thing or two about 1954 Chevy pickups? I am trying to get mine to daily driver status and its close, but I'm having a heck of a time with my transmission. Its a muncie 318. It pops out of third at 30 mph under acceleration. Not when I let up on the pedal, just pops out at 30 no matter what. Now its making tons of bad noises. Grinding, whining, the whole shebang. On our last test drive she started bogging down randomly in 2nd and 3rd. I had my foot to the floor to no avail. Could this be related? Maybe this is brake related, because in neutral with the clutch in the truck barely budged after that. Then again I haven't had issues with the brakes since I rebuilt them and installed power discs in the front. I am pulling my hair out with this tranny and unsure how to proceed. I have adjusted the gates and it goes into gear smoothly (at least on the way up). But I really am at the limits of my knowledge here. Is there more adjustment or is it time for rebuild/replace? I took the side cover off to check the forks and honestly there is barely any wear. The truck supposedly had 42k orig miles when I bought it and so far the signs of wear reflect that. I would love to be able to have somebody take a look. Anybody recommend a local Savannah resource? Any non-local feedback is always appreciated as well! I'm on a tight budget and I'd like to keep plugging away at it, but if I can't drive it soon I'm thinking about selling. Thanks guys, I don't post much but I'm always trolling around here. Great site.
I think that is pretty common with those transmissions when the syncros are worn out. The one that was in my 48 popped out of gear about the same way when I bought it but I changed it to open drive not that long after buying it. I think rebuild kits are available through the GM truck parts vendors. Small parts kit http://www.chevsofthe40s.com/detail...Parts_Kit_Thrust_Washers_Needle_Bearings.html Gaskets http://www.chevsofthe40s.com/detail/6244/Chevrolet_Transmission_Gasket_Set_3Speed.html They didn't show the syncros though and you would have to do more checking to make sure the above pieces are correct. If you want to maintain the stock rims a 55/57 Half ton rear axle and a full syncro three speed out of a later model Chev pickup makes for a real nice driving truck.
If you can verify that the trans is really going all the way into 3rd, then the trans needs work if jumping under load. Most likely has angled wear on the sides of the small internal teeth on the input gear and the mating teeth on the syncro hub. Once the sides get angle wear, it can't stay in gear under a load. Figure out the brakes while waiting for help with the trans rebuild. After a short normal ride, feel for excessive heat from any of the brakes. That will tell if they are dragging, if you can't jack it up to test. have you checked the trans oil level? It's too late now, but could explain the damage.
What he said and probably less than you'd have into fixing the 318, plus you'll get a better rear end ratio (maybe..) and the nice synchro 1st gear AND a rear brake upgrade. Bob
Thanks for the tips guys. Oh yeah the tranny was run with almost no oil for the first test drive around the block. Probably should've checked that first! Rookie mistake I know. I didn't drive it very far at all, but my assumption is it might have been run low for a while before I got her. I keep it topped of now, but yeah prob a bit late. I'll look into the 55/57 rear swap. I could be convinced to try that. I would like to keep it simple (read affordable) for now. Trying to work out the kinks one by one, so it can be a fun daily driver. Maybe hop it up in the future. One thing I found on the drums in the rear - the right side star wheel adjuster was backwards. It does not have self adjust, so don't know if that would matter. The brake booster/prop valve and lines are above the exhaust pipe but prob have 3" clearance. The exhaust gets hot, but is that close enough to overheat the fluid? And wouldn't that show as brake fade?
I had the same gear box in my '65 Belair, more than 42k miles on it, but the countershaft was blown to bits and I didn't even do the test drive thing, not the most robust unit in the world. Opening brakes... always a surprise. Those trucks didn't come with self adjusters and they will go in both ways, just can't adjust them. 3" should be good clearance, but probably not the brake fade, most likely glazed linings. Those tall skinny shoes weren't known for their good stopping ability even when new. A real overheated brake line will actually allow the brake fluid to seep out of it and the pedal goes to the floor. Many years I had a car in with what someone diagnosed as a master problem in another shop, they replaced the master and the pedal still dropped. Winds up being a small hole in the muffler that was jetting a stream of hot exhaust onto the brake line... would never have believed that unless I witnessed it up on the lift. Bob
That's wild Bob. I woudln't expect a hole in the exhaust to cause that kind of problem. I've heard these gearboxes were less than ideal, even from the factory. I've spoken with a couple guys in my neighborhood that had these trucks when they were new and said they popped out of third from the factory. They both said the fix was to whittle a stick the right length to jam between the shift lever and the dash to hold it in gear! I'm not experiencing brake fade though. Stopping's not an issue. It's moving that's the problem. Like I said earlier I can have the pedal down and the truck slows to a crawl. Could be all tranny issues? Gears binding or something? But when in neutral and even with the clutch pedal in, it feels like the trucks brake are applied. Might be the rears, I think if the front discs were grabbing, it wouldn't move at all even under power. It doesn't do it all the time which makes the diagnosis elusive. Sometimes I can get up to 30 mph no problem til the tranny pops. Thinking about disconnecting the rear brakes and taking it for a test drive...start the process of elimination...
I no longer give out brake advice here, sounds like the front or back is dragging or staying applied. Bob
First you have serious issues with the trans ,pull it and open it up. Bad snycro,bad short teeth the syncor engages with,bad bearings etc. Those trans were less than durable ,probably blew up 20 or more back in the day. Re the brakes, when they bind up crack a bleeder on one end or the other see if that releases them. If not then crack a bleeder on the other end that should tell you which end is the prob. Next a return spring on the pedal you got one? If so got some free play on the pushrod?
I will attempt to test the brakes this weekend assuming the tranny holds up long enough. The return spring is there on the pedal and appears to be functioning. No play on the pushrod. Its an aftermarket power brake setup, pretty simple to install, but could I have messed something up there? New lines. I'll post a pic. Maybe something obvious I'm missing....
I'm not there looking at it, but my first thought is that the trans is about shot. That bad trans could be what's giving you the resistance that you think is brakes. Put it up on stands and check it out. Driving it without gear oil is bound to really mess some stuff up. All that noise is a major source of trouble , trouble that can show up anywhere in driveability.
Yeah I agree. I hope it is all trans really. Maybe the best bet is to swap it out since its gotta go anyways and see if there's still driveability issues. Anyone out there have a tranny they want to donate to the cause? Thanks for all the feedback guys.
Well, I put it up on stands this weekend and ran it through the gears. Lots of noise, but the brakes did not seem to lock up. Good news since I think that means all my driveability issues are prob transmission related. It was weird, in one of the gears, it looked like the wheels wanted to turn backwards at first. Now I just need to decide what tranny to swap in? Bob - oddly enough I felt around the muffler and found a hot jet of exhaust pointed pretty much right at my master cylinder...
The transmission is essential to checking out the rest of the truck. Maybe the cause of many problems. I would have never believed the hot exhaust on a brake line if I didn't see it myself. I don't think this is a major problem affecting your brakes, but always good to have a tight exhaust to keep out CO2 gases. Bob
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