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Transmission question...I have a '56 Patrician with the push button transmission...I took it for a 10 mile drive and parked it in the garage...I decided I needed to pull it another foot forward but it won't move...I hear something when I push each button...I can put it in neutral and it will roll and if I put it in park it won't roll...I checked the fluid level and it was full...I started the engine and checked it again and it was low...I had to add a quart to bring it up to full...But, it still will not move...Where should I start first?...Thanks.

If the auto park function is hooked up and working, when the key is turned off it automatically goes into park. You need to have the key on before it will get it out of park and let the other buttons work. Are you saying with engine running and one of the drive buttons pushed it will still not move?

The converter drains back when the engine is off. To check fluid level the engine needs to be idling with trans in park or neutral for two or three minutes before checking. On the V8s with dipstick in the engine compt you can keep the engine idling while checking. On older cars with the dipstick below, if you stop the engine the fluid needs to be checked within one minute of stopping.

Yes, with engine running and button pushed for reverse or drive, it will not move...With engine off the dipstick showed full...With engine running it showed low so I had to add a quart to bring it up to full mark...Should I let it run a little longer and try again?

When you push the buttons do you hear the motor moving the gear selector? When going from park to reverse you should hear several distinct clicks from the transmission area as the motor moves the selector the entire distance of travel thru the detents. The same clicks as it moves the selector the other direction when going from reverse to neutral or park.

When you try to move does it feel like the transmission is in gear and car just cannot move or does the engine seem unloaded like it stayed in neutral no matter which gear is selected.

If the engine seems like it is in neutral let it idle for a couple of minutes and then check the fluid level. If it is full then there could be something that has happened in the trans. If not full, add more fluid until it is at the full mark on dipstick and try again. If it still doesn't move or you don't hear the clicks then we need to check a couple of more things.

Thanks...I just started it again and let it run for a good 5 minutes...The dipstick reads between add and full, but it is the color of the fluid I put it which was kind of blue and not red like what was already in there, which makes me wonder if it is mixing yet...I hear something when I push the buttons but it is very faint...I think the sound should be more distinct...When I pulled in the garage yesterday I decided I needed to get over away from the wall a little so I backed it up and pulled back in...Then I saw that I needed to still pull it forward about a foot and that's when it quit...The motor revs like the transmission is in neutral...I'm thinking the gears are not engaging...I have to leave now for the evening so it will be tomorrow before I can work on it again...Is there a fuse that could have blown?...Again, thank you for taking your time to help!!!

There is a self resetting circuit breaker protecting the motor and, if a mod was done per a service bulletin, also a fuse for the buttons, relays and finger control circuitry. If the mod was not done then only a circuit breaker for the motor. The breakers have failed but not very often.

When you look at the car again you need to verify for sure if the motor is turning when the buttons are pushed. That may entail getting under so you can feel or hear the motor and also any clicks. If you do go under, there is a small cover held by two screws covering a setscrew on the bottom of the assy. You could remove the cover to visually see if the sector is moving. If the motor is not running that turns into an electrical troubleshooting project to find out why not.

If the motor is running but you do not hear the distinct clicks that would be coming from the selector valve as it moves thru the detents, there are a couple of possibilities. One would be the setscrew under that small cover on the bottom of motor assy. That screw secures the worm sector to the shaft into the transmission and if loose, no motion from the assy is going into the trans. That would be the easy fix but if you can push the neutral button and move or roll the car by hand that screw is OK.

The other and more likely place would be inside the pan. There is a pot metal lever which works the selector valve and is secured to the shaft by another setscrew. That lever is a known sudden failure item. The threads in the potmetal strip letting the setscrew come loose. When that happens the lever no longer connects to the shaft and cannot move the selector valve. There is also a small pin on the end of the lever which connects to a link going to the valve. That pin can work loose and fall out letting the link drop so valve doesn't move. Since you say the car sounds as if it stays in neutral a lever problem would be very suspect.

If the motor is running and you hear the clicks then possibly there is a mechanical problem with the park pawl not releasing. The engine should be under load if that were the case and car would act as if the gas was being given while the brakes were on.

Thanks, Howard...I will check these things out.

G'day FSTST56,
to PackardInfo, and I invite you to include your '56 Patrician in the Packard Owner's Registry.