Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

My 56 Patrician's Ultramatic has just undergone a rebuild. The "wavy washer" had disintegrated, so Mike Dulinski supplied a replacement torque converter. The clutch pack had too much end play, so an additional clutch plate was installed. New gaskets were installed and we're back in business --except that the transmission pan interferes with the lever coming down from the shifter shaft. The nomenclature may be off, but I hope you can understand the problem.

The pan looks as if someone had attempted to put a bubble in the bottom with a ball peen hammer to give necessary clearance. There may have been two pan gaskets also to lower it.

The car shifted very reluctantly when I bought it. It almost refused to go into gear if parked on even a very slight slope. It might be necessary to push the buttons for 10 minutes to get the shifter to work.

Has anyone ever encountered this situation before? We're going to put two rubber/cork pan gaskets on and hope for the best, but there must be an explanation and a better way. Any help will be much appreciated.

Thanks,
Bernardi

Have never encountered that in many dozens of Ultras. Can you take a picture for us? Either someone made a lever or your pan is pushed in. Oh, suddenly hits me that could happen if the shifter shaft was way bent. That would go hand in hand with your park problems. Best take the shaft out and roll it on a flat surface to check.

I think two pan gaskets may not be the best idea, they can leak and it really doesn't solve the problem you may have.

I have five pictures of the pan and the lever, but cannot post them. Apparently the photos must be downsized to a smaller number of pixels, and I haven't been able to do that.

The shifter shaft showed evidence that a previous owner had apparently thought the set screw holding the lever was a punch pin and bent the shaft trying to remove it. The lever was bent and difficult to turn in the case. It was straightened and the lever properly attached. it would take a significant bend to drop the lever far enough to hit the pan, particularly after the attempt to put a bubble in the bottom. That big a bend is not evident, in fact I doubt if it is even 1/64 out.

Two gaskets is probably not the best idea, but I'm stumped.

If anyone wants to see pictures, please send me your email address - I can send them that way.

Thanks,
Bernardi

Bernardi's photos

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IIRC There is an STB or SC that addresses a problem with the T'Ultra involving very difficult effort to shift it OUT of PArk when car is parked on an incline.

If its hitting pan then the lever slipped.

Contact peter fitch,,, he has metal type I think,,,,

Or someone made that one to long

The little L shaped stop that is under the locknut on the setscrew on the shifter lever needs to be rotated 90 degrees clockwise so that the long part of the L contacts the transmission case when the trans is shifted into reverse. As it is positioned now you will never get reverse.

Really can't see anything else wrong, which has got me wondering if y'all are mistaking the stop hitting the case too soon for the lever hitting the pan??? Hard to imagine a tolerance stackup of a magnitude to cause that problem.

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Never mind, think I got it. With your stop positioned as it is, it catches on the edge of the pan as the lever is rotated forward. The casting is relieved in that area, but the pan flange is full width there and stop is coming up under it. Just rotate your stop to where it is in my picture.