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

Just for reference, the '54 Gearstart throttle linkage assembly is different than the non-Greatstart models.

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I finally got back to the Packard yesterday after other things getting in the way. As it turns out, that may have been what was needed to allow postings like Howard's above as well as Tim, 55packardguy and others. The first thing I noticed was that the accelerator linkage that crosses over the top of the engine was no longer perpendicular to the engine as it now crossed the engine at an angle. I went and got the one that was originally on the car and "borrowed" the one from the '51 Patrician for comparison. The one from the Patrician was different from the other two and perhaps the 9 bearing Senior Body cars have their own - though similar - parts. The original one from my 200 D has the arm further from the firewall than the one I borrowed from the Patrician as well as the one from the parts car. When I re-installed the original, the cross over linkage was once again perpendicular to the engine. Earlier, I had checked on the throttle shaft and it was trying to bind a bit. I straightened that up and put everything back together and crossed my fingers.

The result was SUCCESS ! ! ! This does look to be a very critical piece of work - surprisingly so. I say that as there was no indication from the linkage at all when disconnected from the carb that there was ANY binding at all. Plus, the amount of change is very, very small. However, I can see no other reason for the results. So, not only is that linkage critical from the Ultramatic's point of view, it is at least as critical from the carb as well.

Thank you Howard, Tim, 55packardguy, Jish 'n Jim, Packard Illiterati, Owen and everyone else that helped on this. Sometimes, it's the little things that slow us up.

Good for you! Yes, absolutely the little things that only require figgerin' rather than a big fix are important. If you notice any "slop" in the accelerator, that is, having to press it a little ways before you get any throttle response, check out Ross's tip about putting a shim between the cross shaft and the firewall. I believe this fix solved my throttle response problem.

HH56 mentioned this earlier and here is the quote from Ross:

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Here is my beautious solution, out of focus, but you get the idea. The piece of rubber is just a "found object" and the hole in it serves no purpose. It was glued to the firewall with RTV when the picture was taken-- didn't work. Duct tape is working for the time being.

Notice the kink in the piece of wiring harness, and the mark on it... that's what was serving as a "stop" for the throttle shaft before. Look where the shaft is now. Quite a difference! The shaft should basically go straight across the block and form a right angle with the longitudinal shaft that goes to the carb. The connection between the two shafts can also be stressed by the out-of-alignment condition, so check that closely, too.

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My 51 had a wooden clothes pin glued there. They used a tar like substance that held great. You can take a set of pliers to the rites on the mount to help firm things up as well.