Auto Transmission Problem

[deloumis]

I'm sorry, Elvis, but you're not asking the right questions.

Bill would say your problem is that you bought an automatic DeLorean, and you should trade it for a manual. He would then make a statement designed to rouse ire. In that way, you and he are very much alike.

If I was in the market for a Delorean when I first got mine, I might have searched for a manual. Problem is I was 17 and it was one of those things that just happened.

[David T]

To "bench" a GC you hook up power, ground, and a light box and spin the alternator with a drill. You do not have to be very fussy about the speed, you are looking for the GC to change the lights as you increase the speeds. Once you see it actually changing gears then you know it is at least shifting. If it never gets you a gear you keep fixing it till you see it do all of the gears (3). I am sure if you ask nice Elvis can give you the pinnout to hook up power and ground. Anyone trying to fix a GC should bench it before installing it, saves a lot of time if it still isn't working right after dissecting it.
David Teitelbaum

[Elvis]

Like I said before - take it out and work on it on the bench.
You need a 12V power supply or a battery and another adjustable power supply
from 0 to 10V.


on the round connector that goes to the firewall you connect the 12V and GND,
and the adjustable one goes to the 3 Pins where the alternator is connected.
You have to unsolder the 3 pins of the alternator.
the center pin is Ground and one of the two outer pins has to be connected to
the 0...10V. Both outher Pins do the same.
I suggest to use power supplies with current limiters (set to ~0.2A).

Most people won't have stuff like that at home, but your Dad sounds as he can
help you.

About a week ago I posted here how to test the solenoids to see if they are still OK.
Did you ?
Did you build that LED tester ? You need it !

Here's the pin configuration again:
"
This is the round connector at the fire wall.
........o 1
o 2 ...........o 4

o 3 ...........o 5

1 = +12V - when the fuse and all conectors are OK - here should be +12V. confirm it !
5 = GND
2 and 4 are the solenoids. connect them to GND (Pin5) if you want to test them

"

With this connected and the adjustable voltage at 0V, both LEDs have to be on.

I have the list with the correct voltages at work, I can post them tomorrow, but roughly I still remember them:

second gear - one LED off: ~4.7V
back to first gear - both LEDs on : ~3.6V

third gear - both LEDs off: ~7.7V
second gear - one LED on: ~6.0V

With kick down pushed, the values shift a bit.
Then also the two switches need to be tested - Multimeter needed.

When these values are OK, then knock the PCB's gently on the bench.
If the LEDs flicker - you still have bad solder connections.

In the past I tried to find the specific bad solder connections, but soon
it was clear that they all need to be resoldered.

If the voltages are off, then - when installed - the shifting rpms are off !


When you are this far with testing, please tell me the values.
Installing it without this test is the same as installing the distributor without
testing the timing.

When this is OK and the PCBs are back in the housing and the alternator is
connected, then both LEDs have to be on.
spinning the shaft by hand will turn off one LED, turning it faster will turn off
both for a short moment. When moving that lever, it will become harder to get
the LEDs off by spinning it by hand.

This is no rocket science at all, but needs some time to be done and can NOT
be done under the car !

Before the reinstallation the PCBs should be covered with a coating to protect
it from moisture AND to reduce the effects of the vibrations. I have a special
paint/glue at work for this, but don't know the name or where to get it.
At least you should use clear coat.

My LED-Tester:
CIMG0908.JPG
CIMG6379.JPG
Governor_Tester.jpg

Bad caps - these are the ones that always fail: (you had the other/better ones )
IMG_4856.jpg

Good/better caps - replace them anyways with tantalums.
And - how to connect the 0-10V power supply to test the shifting points.
Copy of IMG_3082.jpg

Bad solder joints due to vibrations:
IMG_4864.jpg

Filtering caps in place. Nice to have, but it will work without it, too.
CIMG6533.JPG


Have fun while testing it. It's far past midnight here now...
I'll post the correct voltages soon and hopefully I'll find pics of the finished and
covered PCBs, too.

[Ron]

Much better way to test than spinning it...GREAT HOW TO Elvis!

BTW David, if you want/need to do it the other way, all pin-outs are are found in the GC thread Post #1. The ones you mentioned are in, post #1, Pic #3 (and Pic #6 also).

[jangwin]

I just happened upon this discussion. Is there any status to report?

Elvis: Great discussion on how to bench test the Governor. This is the way I run an initial test all of the governors that I build. It lets you see exactly when the solenoids fire, which is important - and lets you see check the hysteresis that is designed into the circuit (eg: shifting from 1 to 2 happens at a different speed than shifting back from 2 to 1).

*shameless plug* If you ever get tired of tired/frustrated with trying to fix your existing CG, consider buying one of my "plug and play" units. They mount in the engine compartment or some owners have mounted in the area behind the driver's seat - and they come with under-dash mounted status LEDs & lifetime guarantee.

---Jeff---
VIN 3034---

[deloumis]

was it on the old forum where I had described how to test the governor on the bench ?



one quick check to see that the solenoids and internal of the tranny are OK:

NOT meant to drive the car!!!!!!!

This is the round connector at the fire wall.
o 1
o 2 o4

o 3 o5

1 = +12V - when the fuse and all conectors are OK - here should be +12V. confirm it !
5 = GND
2 and 4 are the solenoids. connect them to GND (Pin5)

this should activate first gear !!!


get somebody to help you to start the car and push the brake.
put it in 1, 2 or D then you should connect both pins 2+4 to GND.

does it make a difference compared to your other tests ?

I don't know what happens if you connect the pins when set to R or P.
therefore disconnect it first, then set the car back to P.

if it activates first gear - great, the governor ist shot. no big problem.

if it does not activate first gear - the solenoids are shot - or something
else in the tranny that I'm not familiar with.

OK so after many hours of frustration, I decided to do this test just to see if I have multiple problems I may be working with. After a few test this is what I came up with:

When in:
P- one light (solenoid 2) Car idles fine.
R- one light (solenoid 2) Idle drops down, and I can feel the car "kick". Car moves fine, I can feel there is power, seems to be working properly.
N- one light (solenoid 2) Idle goes back up.
D- one light (solenoid 2) Idle drops slightly, small kick. Car will move VERY slowly.
2- one light (solenoid 2) Idle remains the same. Car moves the same as in D
1- one light (solenoid 2) Idle remains the same. Car moves the same as in D and 2

I also did a test with a volt meter, I had my brother up in front holding the brake and moving the shifter.
P, R, N, D, 2: all get 14+ volts to solenoid 2, ~.35-.5 volts on solenoid 4.
When I shift to 1, solenoid 2 remains with 14+ volts, but solenoid 4 drops voltage to about .05v.

I had my brother drop to 1, I then grounded solenoid 4 to see if it would activate 1st gear, but car seemed to move even less.

What I really want to know is am I looking at any other problems besides my GC? Could I need to rebuild my transmission, or may I have bad solenoids?

[deloumis]

I took the car out for a test drive with the light box for the first time. The car will not get out of second gear. Will not shift up to 3rd or down to first. It does not matter if I put the gear selector in 1, 2 or D, only one light is lit up all the time. PRND12, there is always one light on, the same light and will not change. I will pull fuse 13 right now and take it for another spin, and see what it does this time.

[DMCMW Dave]

I will pull fuse 13 right now and take it for another spin, and see what it does this time.

If you can carefully reach back pull fuse 13 while driving you will feel it shift to third. Carefully!!!

[deloumis]

If you can carefully reach back pull fuse 13 while driving you will feel it shift to third. Carefully!!!

Should my test lights work at this point? I'm thinking no but its worth asking. What if I pull it out before taking off? Should I manually shift from 1 to D?

[DMCMW Dave]

Should my test lights work at this point? I'm thinking no but its worth asking. What if I pull it out before taking off? Should I manually shift from 1 to D?

When you pull the fuse the test lights will be off. This is the same as speed three. If you pull the fuse first it will only be in speed 3, kind of rough on things, and not quite as conclusive as feeling it shift.