Dynaflow Transmission doesn't seem to be engaging

[PFJN]

Hi,

I just bought a 1951 Buick Special with a Dynaflow transmission and ran into a problem today while giving it a brief test drive around my neighborhood.

Briefly, while driving I noticed the temperature gauge climbing so I started to head home, which was just a few blocks away. Just a block or two short of my home though the revs began to climb and the car became hard to stop and I ended up overshooting my house because I didn't want to try and break too hard. When I did stop the car started revving even faster so I put it into Park and turned the engine off.

After letting the car cool down I restarted it and tried to do a 3 pt turn to get back to my house but when I put it into Reverse the car would not move. Because I had started the car on a hill I now realize that the transmission may not have been engaging in forward either and it may have just been gravity that made the car move forward as I started my turn.

Fortunately a neighbor helped me move my car back to the curb, and I hope to try and restart the car in the morning to test everything again. But I'm not sure what may be going on with the car & transmission and why it first began to rev high or why the transmission seems to not now be engaging, and I'd be very happy if anyone has any thoughts or suggestions on what may be going on.

Thanks.

Pat

(PS. I'll probably be taking my car to a local mechanic so he can give it a once over and check things out, but if I could getting back to running for the trip it would be really helpful.)

[raycow]

Check the easiest stuff first, like the transmission fluid level. However, that probably wouldn't explain why the brakes aren't working right.

Ray

[PFJN]

Hi,

Thanks for the recommendation. I got to thinking about this today and I began to wonder if there might somehow be something wrong with the accelerator linkage or cables. Specifically, I've been wondering if the increase in revs when I was driving, plus the difficulty in stopping might somehow be due to the accelerator "opening up" as if I had stepped down on the gas pedal (eventhough I hadn't). If that were the case then maybe the difficulty in stopping may have been due to trying to brake while the throttle was still acting as if I had my foot on the gas.

Additionally, later when I had trouble starting the car and when it wouldn't respond when I put it in gear and tried to move it later maybe could possibly have been due to the gas pedal no longer being "connected" to the starter and throttle, or something like that.

Hopefully I'll get a chance to look at it more closer tonight after work while its still kind of light out to see if I can tell anything more.

Pat

[PFJN]

Hi,

It looks like I lucked out. I took off work a little early to make sure I'd have time to take a better look under the hood of my car and it turns out that the linkage from the gas pedal to the ball joint on the carburetor had popped off. I'm still having some intermittent starting problems, but after I reconnected the linkage the car now moves when I put it in gear, and I was able to drive it from in front of my neighbors has around the block and back to my house.

I think the next thing I need to do is check all the fluid levels like you suggested, and then try and tackle the starter issue.

To be honest this is actually kind of fun, encountering challenges and then trying to think them through, research, get advice from people who've gone threw similar things and then try something out (& hope that it works, or go back to the drawing board).

Pat