Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

Thanks Jim,
All of the linkage parts are original to car, including the transmission arms.
This is going to turn out to be something really, really stupid on my part or something really wrong.
Mark

Center position is neutral. There are two reg trans for 41-7 Clippers and 2 with OD. Difference appears to be engine size. Different cover plates for prewar EC trans and that would be because of a switch used on prewar ECs.

3.346 Front Levers are the same for all Clipper body style based trans 41-50. 3.347 Rear levers same 41-47 but different for 48-50. That may be the issue. Don't know what the difference might be but possibly if you are using your old levers there was a compensating adjustment the the newer levers somewhere else.

If it's any help, measuring my trans in neutral from rear surface of bellhousing straight back to approx center of rear lever rod hole is 8 1/2". Going between rods is somewhat less accurate because of the cross member but measuring from lever to lever holes, it's a slight diagonal but distance would appear to be very close to 6 3/4".

22-23 series gets interesting because there are 4 trans with OD and 4 without OD for those years and does not appear to be any part number of assys the same as earlier-- even cover plates and trans cases are different. Engine size would be one thing but what the other differences are to need 4 trans is not obvious.

There is also a special listing for an EC trans for a 23rd series junior only. The only reason I can think of would be the adapter plate for the governor since the switches used with EC on the cover plates with prewar trans were eliminated by 21st series. There doesn't appear to be an EC only listing for 22nd and 21st series. Maybe OD was mandatory with EC those years or an oversight in manual.

Thank you Howard,
Oh boy...the bell housing/rear lever measurement is right on at 8 1/2. When I measure straight diagonal from front lever to rear lever, center to center, I get very close to 7 3/4. And, of course, it is the front lever rod and idler that is pushed forward out of alignment as compared to your picture of the idler lever assembly in neutral.
All of which brings me to the tragic conclusion that I must have the wrong transmission or at least part of it is wrong. I guess I will be in contact with my parts people. Perhaps, if I am lucky, it can be fixed with parts. Otherwise, we pull the trans, and ship another one back and forth from Alaska.
A good friend and Packard Emeritus advised me once to always rebuild my own parts. Lack of local expertise led me to the exchange decision.
So, if anyone is out there struggling with a problem take heart - it could be worse. And, shouldn't this win the "Worst experience with a Packard" award for this year? I will keep you posted on my endeavors.
Thanks again Howard.
I don't usually drink, but I might start...

One of the differences between 21st Series and later transmissions is the shaft for the shifter forks, Group 3.252 in the parts list.

Doing a rough comparison between a 1941-47 cover assembly and the later 1951-54 one shows a difference in the way the shaft for the front shifter is indexed to the external shift lever.

The photos show the difference using the 1951-54 external lever for easy reference. The first photo is the early cover and the second photo the later cover.

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And, of course, it is the front lever rod and idler that is pushed forward out of alignment as compared to your picture of the idler lever assembly in neutral.

My apologies. I missed somewhere and thought it was the back lever that was causing the problem. BDeB I think has the answer with an incorrect fork shaft but for reference, my measurement of the front lever to the bellhousing (by eyeball since the ruler doesn't have a truly good solid spot to measure against) looks to be between 2 and 2 1/4".

Thank you gentlemen. The arm and shaft will be the focus for a fix.
Just for clarification, in the last two photos that BDeb posted, the shape of the arms look like they are the rear arms, not the front. See my pic posted on 7/9, where the front arm has a distinct curve rearward, almost a boomerang shape, and the clinching bolts are different. Am I correct?
The SM shows the cover upside down which adds for more confusion. Just want to make sure I am focusing on the correct arm.
Is there a part number on the trans itself somewhere? My Motor's interchange lists 42-47 for the Super. Would be helpful to know what transmission I have.
Mark

in the last two photos that BDeb posted, the shape of the arms look like they are the rear arms, not the front

Because it is fairly straight, he used a 51-4 arm for clarity to only show the difference in shaft indexing. I have no idea how you would tell the difference between the different senior trans. As near as I can tell from the parts manual there is at least 3 OD trans which should fit the senior car -- the original 42-47, the original 48 with R9 and the 48-50 with the R11. There is also a transmission assy to be used when converting an R9 to an R11. No idea if that was a different trans or just more pieces in a kit.

I can only see one number on the trans visible from the bottom where I can access. There is a casting number on the side just behind the clutch fork. Mine appears to be 387580 but doubtful it will be of much use in actually identifying what you have.

OK, I think we are at the end here. I will post the solution when I get it.
Thanks to all,
Mark

I don't know if these will help but here's what mine looks like in Neutral.
Wes

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I am glad to be able to close this out by reporting success. Max still had my original transmission and sent me the original cover assembly. Brian's info about the shaft indexing was absolutely correct. My original cover assembly slipped right in, and the linkage lines up perfectly.
Thanks Gents,
Mark