Packard Forum Index » ZIS, ZIL, and other Packard Cousins!

No photos but illustrations from early 50's Motor's and Chilton manuals.

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Most automatic transmissions (except a few early ones) have what we call a park position. I am sure you are familiar with the function but probably have a different name for it. Anyway, when selecting, the transmission stays or goes into neutral and a locking lever then drops into a very heavy gear splined to the rest of the geartrain. By the lever dropping into the gear, it locks the gear to the case and prevents the drive shaft from turning and car from moving. The same as putting on the emergency brake only done with the transmission by moving the lever or in this case, pushbutton.

And more button arrangements. straightl line and Vertical

Amazing what designers will do without constraints of linkage.

Powerflite was the first truly automatic transmission from Chrysler and, I believe a fairly decent unit. A two speed so 4 buttons. Torque flite was introduced in 56 and was probably the best and most trouble free unit of any of the manufacturers. Three speed and 5 buttons. Neither of those had the park position although Torqueflite added it later.

Am I incorrect, I seem to recall that the American Motors pushbutton system was also mechanical.

Believe so. Didn't AMC use Torqueflites at at that time?

That I don't know, I just have a recollection of my aunt's Rambler, perhaps a 1962, with pushbuttons. But certainly TorqueFlite was among the best, if not the best, automatic transmission of the time.

Those pushbutton Ramblers used the Borg Warner 3 spd automatic. That is basicly the same tranny that Stude was using at the time--which leaves the inventive person with a fairly easy way to have pushbutton shifting in their 57/58! That would surprise them at the concours.

Right--and very similar to Mercury. Think that was also Borg Warner. Dad had a 58 Merc with PB's. That one had one long bar for drive on top and 3 or 4 buttons underneath so had to be also cable driven. Park was engaged by pushing and pulling a bar under the whole housing.

PowerFlite was also bullet-proof reliability-wise. It lasted to about 1961, after which only TorqueFlite was available. I've had around 15 cars with PF or TF. They were respectively, for their time, considered the best 2 sp and 3 spd trannies by most automotive commmentators. ZIL picked good ones to copy! Neither PF or TF ever had a PArk buton, but later TFs around 1962 got a sliding Park lever under the dash to provide a true transmission Park feature, rather than just depending on the sometimes unreliable E-brake. Last year for pushbuttons was 1964, for '65 federal safetly mandates required column or floor shift.

AMC went from Borg-Warner Flash-O-Matic to TorqueFLite 908/998/727 around '71.

Not to disagree, but speaking from personal experience plus lots of folk I've talked to over the years, at least the early PowerFlites had a habit of braking reverse bands. But that TorqueFlite was some trans, I had several over the years and recall my early days at the drag strip in my lowly Hudson Hornet watching Plymouth hemis with TorqueFlite having better ETs than 4-speed manuals. That was a real turning point. Due to the the fact that Hudsons had the wet clutch, the Hydramatic was much quicker, ours had a "locked" Hydramatic by B&M.