Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

I drilled out the broken off cooler fitting and removed the oil tubes. Here are some pictures of the pump and bell housing. The issue is no direct drive clutch actuation though the test port pressure is within range. The converter shaft has the holes in the annular groove.

Any problems seen with mismatched parts? I notice the converter shaft is the upgraded 40 tooth but the pump rotor is 20.

photos.app.goo.gl/5gtyR5dEyVafeFpk7

Finally dragged my samples out of the shed. You have a 56 front pump in your 55. 55 pumps have 16 holes through the plate (counting the screw holes), 56 has 15. The critical hole is at the 12 o'clock position in my photo. Direct pressure comes in the hole marked "D" and in 55 comes back out the hole at 12 o'clock to fill the space at the back of the stub shaft on the convertor and thence to the direct clutch.

While you have your trans that far apart I would check your shafts and bushings. Factory clearance was .003", I find you can go to about .006, but after that you do not get much satisfaction.

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Thanks for the information!

Is the 20 tooth rotor a '55 part in the '56 housing, or were early '56's also 20 tooth?
Doesn't the '56 housing inject the clutch oil in the center end of the pump vs. the bell housing channel, in effect getting it to where it needs to go down the converter shaft? But then with the unnecessary drilled annular holes and/or the 20 tooth rotor is the clutch oil bleeding off where it isn't supposed to go?
Not sure I fully understand the path but I don't understand why a '56 housing wouldn't work. I guess I need to know what combination is best.

As for end play on the center shaft, by hand I don't feel any at all. It's tight. As I've mentioned this trans was reportedly entirely rebuilt but that's when the clutch quit working, but everything else works fine. I don't know what, if any, problems it had beforehand.

Just as a follow-up, I pulled the pump plate off the pump to discover that although the plate is '56 the pump is '55. That's an incompatible combination with the plate blocking the DC oil path.

I have no idea where that '56 plate came from but I assume it somehow got swapped when the guy rebuilt it, even though his only parts vehicle was a '55 clipper.

The transmission is now reassembled with a '55 plate and will be going back to the car with the expectation the problem will be solved.
We'll see...

Good job of sleuthing Rebus.....good luck.

Just to bring this to closure (hopefully), the transmission and rebuilt engine were installed and the car taken for it's first test drive. The direct drive clutch now works.