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I was pleased to get my car running, and that the overdrive seemed to be functioning well. That is up until now.

There is a glitch that may have a simple fix, that some of you have encountered before.

When I'm in second, and the green light is on, I will shift into third and the light will go out and the OD will engage. I can still kick down, to cut out the OD, but sometimes then it won't go back into OD (the light doesn't come on). It is intermittent- seems to get better after driving a bit.

Does this sound like a relay issue, or do I need to check the oil level on the unit- it does leak.

Thanks!

Others can speak to the oil or mechanical reasons but it might be worth checking some electrical contacts. Heat or vibration could be affecting them. Since the light doesn't come on I would check the governor and lockout switch circuit. If the car has the two piece loom, also the Wade connector between the two sections. An issue in that string would prevent the relay from energizing.

The lockout switch plunger can wear at the bakelite end or if the cable is misadjusted, not fully applied. Just a tiny bit of lost motion could make it activate right on the edge and vibration could cause it to open. Governor because it switches so often is subject to typical wear, and the Wade connectors if you have them because it was a known issue.

I thought about the lockout switch too, but it only seems to do it after shifting into third. At 22 mph, in second, the light will come on. It intermittently will go directly into overdrive when shifting into third.

I wondered at some point, when all was working fine, how the OD knew the difference between depressing the clutch and shifting, and simply taking your foot off the gas and letting it drop into OD.

It's like mine forgot. Is my Packard having a senior moment?

...how the OD knew the difference between depressing the clutch and shifting, and simply taking your foot off the gas and letting it drop into OD.

It doesn't know or care. As long as it's not in reverse and car is at speed and the light is on, the solenoid is energized, poised and ready to engage OD-- no matter the forward gear or condition. As soon as the engine speed is reduced a fraction for any reason -- to shift, depress clutch, let off gas etc -- the difference in speed of internal components in relation to one another will be utilized and the balk ring will move as designed to clear a path for the pawl to engage.

Howard,

Then are you saying that it's normal to go into OD when shifting from second to third? Mine had been waiting for a distinct change in torque- not simply when the clutch is depressed.

Dear Joe:

Given you recently got the car on the road I would look at the ground strap on the governor. It is a 10-32 round head screw that provides ground and the plating loves to corrode. Cleaning it with sandpaper and adding an anti-shake washer will eliminate that possibility.

Tim,

That I will do. I just drove her to the store, and the OD audibly clicks on and off at 22 and 17 mph, along with the light. However, when I pulled back on the road, shifting into third brought her directly into OD mode. I floored the throttle, and she kicked down, came put of OD, but no light. Would not go back into OD. I then briefly kicked down again, the light came on, and I was able to lift the throttle and shift into OD again!

I guess it could be a bad connection somewhere.

If all is good electrically and I kind of question that with the light being erratic (unless things are happening so fast the light never has a chance to go on), then here is some mechanical info.

The engagement is controlled by the balk ring. It is possible that some wear or perhaps the weight of oil has allowed the friction characteristics to change so maybe it is not moving as it should.

Basically, when car is moving but not actually in OD, all components in OD are at the same speed and balk ring is "parked" blocking the pawl engagement. You can see in the first illustration from R9 manual. When disengaged but the solenoid is ready, the pawl is resting against the ring. When engaged, the ring has shifted a few degrees aligning the slot with pawl so it can move in.

It's controlled by the speed differential inside OD. Was going to try and explain but remembered this description from R11 manual so it tells operation much better. B-W calls it a blocker but the function & operation is the same on both R9 and R11.

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... It is possible that some wear or perhaps the weight of oil has allowed the friction characteristics to change so maybe it is not moving as it should.

I think this may be the situation. Physiological, not psychological.