Replace Transmission Governor

[alexwolf1216]

Good morning! I found a D in the shape/price I was looking for and its in the process of being transported here. The previous owner stated that the transmission will go into 1st and reverse, but not 2nd and 3rd. He said the governor needs to be replaced.

My question, is this something that I could do as a novice in my garage with the DMCH replacement setup or is it more involved? I was able to find replacement instructions for a different style part from another vendor? I dont have a lift, but ramps.

I am so excited to get started on this car!

Alex

[David T]

Good morning! I found a D in the shape/price I was looking for and its in the process of being transported here. The previous owner stated that the transmission will go into 1st and reverse, but not 2nd and 3rd. He said the governor needs to be replaced.

My question, is this something that I could do as a novice in my garage with the DMCH replacement setup or is it more involved? I was able to find replacement instructions for a different style part from another vendor? I dont have a lift, but ramps.

I am so excited to get started on this car!

Alex

That is not the typical failure mode for the shift computer but it is possible. It can probably be repaired. Do a search, there are volumes on how to repair it. Yes, a novice can do it. When you get the car the first thing to do is clean it and then change all of the fluids.

[alexwolf1216]

Thanks David. For some reason my phone didn't pull up any good results but I found some pics and vids on the full site on my computer.

So this isn't typical behavior for a governor? It appears that it'd the original anyway, so probably a good idea to get it rebuilt anyhow. I'll change the fluid and hope it shifts.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

[David T]

Thanks David. For some reason my phone didn't pull up any good results but I found some pics and vids on the full site on my computer.

So this isn't typical behavior for a governor? It appears that it'd the original anyway, so probably a good idea to get it rebuilt anyhow. I'll change the fluid and hope it shifts.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

Could be a burnt wire. The wiring harness to the shift computer can get melted if it is not routed correctly away from the exhaust pipes. This site, like many others, is not optimized for use by mobile devices.

[AugustneverEnds]

Good morning! I found a D in the shape/price I was looking for and its in the process of being transported here. The previous owner stated that the transmission will go into 1st and reverse, but not 2nd and 3rd. He said the governor needs to be replaced.

My question, is this something that I could do as a novice in my garage with the DMCH replacement setup or is it more involved? I was able to find replacement instructions for a different style part from another vendor? I dont have a lift, but ramps.

I am so excited to get started on this car!

Alex

Congratulations and welcome to DMCTalk!!

Can the transmission be manually shifted into 1st, 2nd and D? Most governor related problems cause the tranny to start in 2nd and/or downshift from 3rd to 2nd very suddenly and violently. Personally I've never heard of the tranny refusing to go to 2nd or 3rd totally because of the governor. Not trying to frighten you! As David T said you might have burned wires since they do live near exhaust parts.

Definitely a smart move to change your fluid right away. The trans is very picky about not having enough fluid or too much. Also where the dipstick tube goes into the pan is known to leak on occasion but it's an easy fix with an otterstat seal.

Depending on how much work you plan on doing, you may want to clean out the tranny filter. To the best of my knowledge these are no long available from DeLorean parts vendors but they can be taken apart and cleaned. I think the write up is in the how-to part of this site.

Best of Luck on your project!

[Jonathan]

If the car is already on it's way to you, then hold off on finalizing what your repair solution is until you get in the car and drive it yourself.

There are some pretty easy diagnostics you can do once you have the car and it will let the group here help you figure out next steps more efficiently.

Agreed that it doesn't sound like a traditional shift computer failure, but it's not a lot to go on and there is potentially more to the story. It could be something easier too for all we know. Fluid changes and ensuring levels are good, etc. is a great place to start. The previous owner may have meant it would only go in 3rd perhaps and that might be something incredibly simple to resolve like the fuse is blown.

Many of us know this super excited feeling you are having, but try your best to stay patient. Now and for the life of the car. It's the single most valuable piece of information I could give anyone in general terms about D ownership.

[alexwolf1216]

Yes, its not actually on the way but waiting for transport from Indiana. I have owned a manual before but this is my first auto. It's a low mile car, 13000 and in pretty good shape from what I can tell. I guess I am getting a little ahead of myself ha. Must......wait..... :)

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

[hmcelraft]

This is an article from an old DeLorean publication (DeLotech) that is a good guide to diagnosing the 'computer' on the DeLorean automatic.

There are several "how to" articles floating around on repairing the computers plus I believe DMCH has a digital unit now.

You want to be careful driving the car with a known bad computer or bad wires. You can always just pull the fuse (#13) and the trans should go into 3rd gear. You can move out slowly but be careful as the torque converter can heat up the fluid considerably and cause damage.

[alexwolf1216]

This is an article from an old DeLorean publication (DeLotech) that is a good guide to diagnosing the 'computer' on the DeLorean automatic.

There are several "how to" articles floating around on repairing the computers plus I believe DMCH has a digital unit now.

You want to be careful driving the car with a known bad computer or bad wires. You can always just pull the fuse (#13) and the trans should go into 3rd gear. You can move out slowly but be careful as the torque converter can heat up the fluid considerably and cause damage.

Thanks! The only driving the car will do is on/off the transport and into my garage.

[Ron]

Browse through this ink in Resources (http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?350-Automatic-Transmission-Governor) for testing (and lots more), and, if you decide the GC is bad, check out the How To: here (http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?7648-How-To-Remove-the-Automatic-Transmission-Governor-Computer)...

[kbrown84]

My governor gave me fits and had to be replaced...had no strange shifting or starting in 2nd. The only symptom I had was it never shifted to 3rd. Just really make sure you route your wires clear of the exhaust! That could be an expensive mistake!

[alexwolf1216]

So I've read! I'm not sure of the condition of thr wires yet. Holiday weekend is slowing down transport arrangements.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

[D Knight]

The most common problems with the governor are bad solder joints and caps undersized and/or blown.

I also have an auto (I wanted an early VIN, auto, black interior car) that had been sitting since 86 behind a barn with the windows open. All vacuum lines were removed. I heard that it developed a power issue and a "mechanic" removed all the vacuum lines thinking that would fix it. It of course didn't. I bought the car (almost everyone on here thought it was a parts car and wouldn't run again) reversed everything the PO did and started from scratch. I got it to run correctly and noticed the power issue. What was actually happening was the car was starting in 3rd. No 1st or 2nd at all. I took apart the CG and there were bad solder joints. Dave actually resoldered all the joints and replace a couple of caps with modern replacements, and it's worked perfectly ever since. No issues at all. So the original design works just fine. It was the british's application and assembly that were to blame. You may want to start there before you decide to replace it. Save some bank and rebuild yours. Hopefully you don't have internal trans issues.


-D Knight-