Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

Hi all, 6 months ago I bought a 1956 400 and have begun the long, slow journey.
I'm having difficulty with my transmission shift relay. I purchased a new one and have the same problem as before:
When I ground the ground wire the resistor turns red hot. When I allow it to dangle the resistor does not glow and the starter engages but the motor runs extremely rough. It ran fine before.
Any help would be much appreciated.
Thank you,
Nazareno Rossi Santa Cruz, CA

G'day Nazareno,
to PackardInfo. Sorry I can't answer your question but 'Mr Pushbutton', a member here, is the man who can, although I'm sure the other V8 guys will be able to help too.

I extend an invitation however for you to include your '56 400 in the Packard Owner's Registry here on PackardInfo.

Until MrPushbutton has a chance to chime in, perhaps I can speculate.

If you're speaking of the damping resistor inside the shift relay, then that suggests a short. Could be in the field windings of the actuator motor, but check the related wiring carefully.

WHy did u change the shift relay in the first place????

OR put the OLD relay back on to see if the NEW problem goes away.

At this point we only know what the new problem is and do not know what the old problem was that promted u to install a new relay.

Dear nazrossi:

Stop what you are doing before you fry the whole system.

It sounds like the motor is stuck.

Here is Mr Pushbutton's email Jlauter@TWMI.RR.com.

You know you have a real problem when the car smells like a barbeque.

Good luck with you car.

Mr.Pushbutton here: When you say "ground wire" what do you mean? The Brown, Gray and Red wires (heavy gauge) coming off of the motor (that hook to terminals 1-3 on the shift relay)are the grounds, the heavy gauge green wire is the "hot" wire that connects to the circuit breaker and feeds +12VDC to the motor at all times. If leaving that off makes the problems stop, then most likely there is a problem in the motor or (most likely) the motor has over-traveled in one direction and is gear-stuck there, causing an inordinate amount of current to try to go into the motor. Either way, the problem is in the actuator (that's where 99% of the problems are) and ou need to get to it and see what's up.

Nazareno,
for including your '56 Four Hundred Hardtop Coupe in the Packard Owner's Registry.