Tranny Not Shifting Unless Getting Off Accelerator

wilkinsde

Member
Joined
Oct 23, 2008
I have owned an '87 GN for about 3 years now and not had any problems with the B. Hofer built transmission. Went to the track a couple of weeks ago for test n' tune. Only two passes were made. Hit the street to come home and the tranny will not upshift unless getting off the accelerator, and at an increased RPM engine speed. I adjusted the TV cable per procdure with no results. I've read there may be some trash in the valve body. Can anyone suggest other things for me to check before I take the car to someone to pull the transmission? I would most likely have it sent to Vince Janis. Thank you for any suggestions you may give.
 
Good bet that your governor pitched the spring. Fairly easy to check and fix by only dropping the pan. Definitely check that first before pulling the valve body or the entire transmission.
 
Good bet that your governor pitched the spring. Fairly easy to check and fix by only dropping the pan. Definitely check that first before pulling the valve body or the entire transmission.

Agreed. I'd bet on this as well. Make sure you find the spring. It can get lodged in weird places.
 
Sounds encouraging indeed, thank you. Would anyone happen to have a picture of this spring installed, and would you just replace this spring if found, or replace it with a new one?
 
Just do a search on the board here as it's been covered numerous times photos and all. If the spring escaped unharmed it can be reused but if it got kinked and bent, there are a couple vendors that can replace it. There's also an easy modification that you'll no doubt find while searching that helps pin the spring in place to prevent a recurrence.
 
I hope this PDF of 200-4R Case and External Parts will help you out and if not let us know
 

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  • 200-4R CASE AND EXTERNAL PARTS .pdf
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TPDunno.jpg
TPSide.jpg
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TPDunno.jpg
 
I dropped the pan yesterday but didn't have time to pull the governor yet. I did find something in the bottom of the pan (see picture). Can anyone tell me what this is and if it might cause the problem I'm experiencing? A couple of other questions: How many quarts of trans. fluid for this type pan, and if the pan gasket is still in good shape, would you reccommend to reuse it? Thank you again for your comments and help.
 
The only thing I can come up with on the clip is that before the deep pan there were attempts to control fluid and the clip goes in the place in the case where fluid would slosh to the back. This clip was installed to try to keep fluid in the big pan area . Who else has an idea.

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You guys were absolutely correct about the spring. It had kicked out of its position. Two questions: 1) Would you reuse the pan gasket if it is still in good shape 2) How many quarts of fluid are used for a pan like this one. Thank you!
 
Shoot um so cheap, if the fluid looks/smells ok I'd dump it back in if you used a clean catch pan.
Did you "pin" the spring? If not it isn't hard. There is a sticky in the how to section.

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Problem is solved, although the shift points may need adjusting. Seems to be a little high on the RPM for shifting and at 65 mph it still didn't go into overdrive. TV cable adjustment ????
 
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