Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

16 is not horrible but a vacuum leak would be one of the first things to rule out. Lots of hoses involved in the wiper/washer system and to the power brake and reservoir, any of which could have a small crack or dry enough rubber to have a loose connection at a tube.

Power brake has some rubber poppet valves inside, one of which could have hardened and be leaking slightly. Wiper motor or washer could also have a small leak. If the crankcase mounted aux vacuum pump is still present, there is some plumbing involved with that which could be doing something strange.

Even the vac advance..could be leaking

Put a vacuum gauge on it.

The hand held type.

Engine off.

Make sure your connections are not leaking

It should hold. If not. One problem down.

Guys I finally got her on the road for around a 6 mile ride, heres what I found with a couple questions....


Brakes:
The brakes worked good up until the end of the ride. By the time I got home the brake pedal was really hard to push, it felt like they do when then engine is off. All city driving allot of stops. Are there any tests to determine if I need to rebuild the booster? Any tips?


Acceleration:

When accelerating from a stop some times I accelerate no problem and other times there is a hesitation, I stalled a couple times. After I get going no problems. Could this be a failing fuel pump? Debri in fuel pump?



Torsion Level:

I noticed the torsion level goes in and out. Sometimes I can sit on the trunk to test the system and sometimes it comes on and others it doesn't.
When I got gas the rear end was
Low so I manualy lifted the rear end as high as I could and then pushed it back down and it just stayed there. After I got home it re leveled 5 mins after it was parked? What could cause this?


Thanks for the help guys!

Ross would be the guy on issues inside the BTV and the acceleration issue but offhand I would wonder if there is an issue with the vacuum check valve or a leak. There is a reserve canister for the vacuum in the space under the left fender. I would check for any leaks in the reservoir and hose connection as well as the Tee fitting and connection to the BTV. Work your way back to the rear of the carb and find the check valve. If any connection is leaking or valve not holding it could be the reserve vacuum supply is not present. With nothing leaking there should be enough reserve for any stop and a couple of assisted stops after the engine is turned off.

On the TL, frequently the contacts inside the control switch oxidize. There are two sets of contacts plus those on the relays. The bimetal time delay contacts have to keep bending until they finally increase pressure enough to make a solid connection and energize the relay. The fact it sat for 5 minutes and finally did something kind of leads in that direction. If switch sits energized for too long the heater can burn out so I would pull the switch cover off and GENTLY run a contact burnisher over ALL the contacts including the relays and see if it works better. Pay attention the burnisher does not catch one of the thin wires going to the heaters. If the cover has never been removed you will need to drill the rivets and replace with short screws and nuts.

There is a small chance contacts in the limit switch are oxidized so you might want to pull the switch and clean them. If it continues to act up you may need to think about replacing the control switch with one of the reworked solid state switches.

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Your Treadlevac is probably fine but the check valve at the rear of the carburetor is likely sticking and not letting the carb draw the vacuum it should. It is the big hex fitting at the back of the carb with the large rubber hose going over to the vacuum tank on the driver's inner fender. Of course check all of that tubing for cracks and leaks. You can tidy up the check valve by squirting some penetrating oil into it while the engine is running.

The hesitation while accelerating is likely a weak accelerator pump in the carb. OR, there could be a sizable vacuum leak somewhere--which would also cause the problem with the power brakes.

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So I am gearing up to replace the FRONT SEAL and PUMP SHAFT SEAL. Please take a look at the attached pages. I have highlighted the seals I plan on purchasing to complete this. Please let me know if I am missing any..

How long would you guess it should take a complete transmission newb to complete this task in my drive way with car on stands? I hope im not getting in over my head on this one. Lol

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The pump shaft gasket may be OK. If the bolts holding the shaft to the pump housing are tight it should be fine but if you see streaks radiating outward from the gasket then would be a question. I don't remember which direction the bolts insert so if heads are on the converter inside, would require disassembling the converter to change and that you might not want to do unless you are planning a rebuild. You might watch a few of the videos Ross (Speedwell Garage) has posted to YouTube taken during his rebuilds of transmissions. Most can be found at the left menu video link.

The other seals you might consider are those around the throttle and manual shafts. Those are a frequent source of leaks. In some cases there is enough room in the bore that a new seal can be pushed over the old leaving it and the shaft intact. If that is not the case the transmission may need to be partially disabled to remove a shaft to change them. If you try to change leaving the shafts in place, take care to clean the shaft well and when trying to remove the old seals do not let the tools scratch any surface of the shaft. The new seal will be damaged sliding over a dirty or scratched shaft and soon start to leak.

How long would you guess it would take a complete rookie to change the front seal?

You have to pull the trans

That's the time.

And that takes hours.

Unless you are a dealership mechanic with a flat rate chart, I think giving a time estimate is difficult -- even with more experienced people with proper tools doing it.

Aside from the time needed for trans removal and replacement which can vary greatly depending on tools and jacks and any additional help on hand, once it is out you are going to need to figure out the best way to remove the old seal -- assuming you are going to keep the bellhousing attached to the trans body. If you leave it in place you will have the input shaft to contend with so that might need some ingenuity and working space might be a bit tight.

If you plan on removing the bellhousing then you are most likely going to need a new gasket and no idea if those are available outside of a gasket set or rebuild kit. In either case, you must remove the seal without damaging the input shaft or more importantly, the pump shaft bushing positioned just behind the seal. The new seal needs to be installed straight and to the proper depth.

Here is an illustration showing the seal in position and how close the bushing is behind it. I also drew in an approximation of the space taken by the input shaft if the bellhousing stays on. The factory had special tools which are shown in use and some universal seal and bushing tools can work but all tools depend on a clear work space. Removing the seal with shaft in place will be a matter of finding something to either attach to the seal or get some kind of jaws behind it to pull it out. Ross might have some suggestions on more easily removing and replacing or if it can be safely done with the bellhousing in place..

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