Quote:
Steve203 wrote:
As I read the notes at the bottom of the scan I posted, the DG works exactly like the original Ultramatic prior to the "Gear Start" of 54 and the TU of 55.
Yeh, that's the way I read it, too. So I must have been living under a delusion that the direct-drive clutch automatic was a Packard exclusive. Did the design fall out of favor on other transmissions in the ensuing years, or did it continue to be available? I don't remember hearing anything about "locking torque converters" until they started to be publicized in the late '70s. At that time there were increased concerns about gas mileage, and it could be touted as a fuel economy feature.
Quote:
Tim Cole wrote:
However on Ford, selecting D2 provided a second gear breakaway for reduced wheel spin. This feature gave Fords a takeoff much like the TU in Drive range - slush box effect.
As I recall, the "Twin" Ultramatic (TU) gave you two Drive positions, with an arrow on either side of the "D". On one of the arrows, you started out in 2nd (like the Ford mentioned) on the other arrow (the one on the right, next to the "L") you dropped into the "gear start" mode for a quicker takeoff. Also, it is my recollection that either position ultimately shifted into lockup. I always used the right-hand arrow position to avoid the "slush box" starts, and if the wheels spun--all right!
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