No Reverse

[milesengineer2]

alright, got the TTA back on the road, everything was almost fine, a few bugs but nothing too serious. pulled out the t-tops started it up and threw it into reverse, NOTHING!! wont go backwards. all the forward gears work, but no reverse. i did change the fluid and filter before i put it back in and found a piece of flimbsy, almost gasket material in the pan, but that was all. the fluid levels are fine, but I did notice some air bubbles on the dipstick, if that matters at all. I know the whole tranny isnt bad but what should i do?? any suggestions???

 

[MeanBuicks]

While it may be true that the whole transmission isn't bad, unfortunately, to address your problem, it'll need to be completely disassembled. That's because the problem most likely lies in the low-reverse clutch which is all the way in the back of the case.

That piece of material you found in the pan may have been a section of clutch lining from a low-reverse plate. What is the history on this transmission? Was it just working OK? Was it recently overhauled?

 

[milesengineer2]

to be honest, the car is a 42000 mile original, i have all the receipts for it, nothing was ever done to it, except drain and filter once prior. i only had the car running for two days and honestly i dont know much about the tranny, except that those two days it ran and shifted great, and really hard, never any problems with reverse. the fluid is not black or sooty, nor does it smell burnt.

two days ago i tried to move the car in reverse and it didnt do anything, so i revved the car up and it finally caught, HARD. does that help with any diagnosis??

also if i lose reverse does it not affect any of the other gears??

 

[machinegun]

I had this same issue. Turns out the low reverse clutch pack was toast. This is usually the issue here. As stated above, the trans needs to be pulled apart to do anything with it. Material in the pan is a good sign this is th problem.

 

[Nordbert]

Maybe you blew out a section of gasket under the 2nd
accumulator cover. It seals in the fluid to the low/reverse housing, and if it leaked you would have poor or no reverse engagement. Also, did you check out your clutches while the pan was off? The red arrow in my picture shows where the fluid enters the low/reverse housing. You can air test the unit at this point.

 

[Nordbert]

Well, I can't figure out how to post that FINE picture, but if you have a picture of the 200-4r with the pan off, it is easy see where
the reverse clutch pack and its piston assembly is. Maybe someone else can post a picture??