Hello Howard - I was able to get the contacts back as they should be. They were sprung a little but everything seems to work now. The reason they ended up like that - someone had pushed the shaft backwards I guess. So, one step forward. I will need to find a relay and start sorting out the wires and kickdown switch, etc. Anyways, thanks for your guidance

Yep - Someone must have messed it up. My bronze # 7 is on top , bent upwards and black # 6 is under it. i too am afraid even if I could get them back in the right position, they may not make contact. Dont know how I would do it unless I bent them both outwards again. Its a shame, since the pull in - hold in seems to be ok Does the entire top plate come off for replacement ?

What Ive got in the relaxed position : # 7 contact is first ( next to the cap end ) not contacting anything. Directly under it is contact # 6 touching the center shaft with the ground out contact closed. Both are still attached with rivets to the top plate. Could it be someone bent both outwards and ended up with # 7 on top of # 6 . Just looking at the Econo Drive diagram - thats how it looks to me. Your comments

I discovered that I may have another problem with the solenoid. Even though the # 4 and # 3 ( pull in and hold in contacts seem to work fine, the other two ( #6 contact and # 7 contact look like they are in the wrong position. I mean # 7 is on top of # 6 -It should be the other way around , right ? Therefore the ground out contact will not disengage Am I right and if so, how do I correct this ? Thanks

I have already looked at the inside -I will look again and post the position of the contacts ( open or closed ) What is a good way to clean them ?

HH56 - I went and tried my solenoid with jumper cables to the battery . It seem to work fine (did get a few sparks ). I tried with both 3 and 4 connected to power- worked, Then I tried with just the pull in # 4 connected and got the machine gun effect. So. guess that part is OK. Should I be concerned about the other two contacts ( The "Ground Out" contacts and the "Indicator Light " contacts.? Should I try to clean them or assume they are ok too. Thanks

Thank you HH56 - I have the solenoid in my hand , but there is no spacer attached. The spacer may still be on the car. The former owner supposedly removed the solenoid for testing and put a plate over the hole. I have not been under the car - can oil leak out of the hole where he removed the solenoid ? Do you have a picture of the spacer ? I tried to test the solenoid as you described, but I used a small guage wire to test - nothing. I can try again using a battery jumper cable. This is just one of the problems with the overdrive, the relay is gone and everything is disconnected. But , making progress - Thanks for your help .

I have another question - The cable goes down the right side , so I guess I have the R 9 overdrive. Trying to determine if the solenoid I received with the car is correct. It supposedly was taken off the car for some reason. I do not know if it works, but need to know if is the right one for my car. It is a Delco- Remy . The number on the case is 1118005. The shaft is 2.25 in in length , and it has four contacts marked 3-4-6 and 7 . The reason I mention the shaft length,is some threads say it should be about 1 inch long. Also need to determine if it works or get it repaired or replaced. Thanks for your help - My car is a 1948 2262.

Thank you so much - Pictures ARE worth 1000 words. I think I have a R9 , but need to go look. The cable would go down the right side of the engine if it is R 9 - right ? Thanks for your patience

I guess my relay is missing - All I see is the voltage regulator and the accelerator switch. Where exactly would the relay be mounted ? Thanks