Packard Forum Index » Pre-War (1899-1942)

I was driving on back roads. I never had the overdrive cable pulled out but i noticed the areo drive light on the dash flickering around 28 and the light would come on around 30mph. is this normal?

If the knob is pulled out and lockout switch is working it will be open and the relay will not energize so light should never come on but if the knob is pushed in the light will come on when the governor reaches whatever speed it is set for and closes its contacts. The light is to tell you overdrive is active, solenoid is prepped and OD can be engaged by lifting your foot off the accelerator for a moment.




The light should not flicker though so there could be a bad connection or some dirty contacts in the solenoid, relay, or one of the switches in series from the governor. A more common issue is the lockout switch could have a worn plunger end and is not being pushed up far enough when the knob is pushed in for a solid switch engagement. Vibration could be causing the flicker because the switch is on the edge between closing and opening.