V8 BW65 stuck in drive

Junkman

Junkman

Member
From one second to the next, my BW 65 doesn't shift into neutral or reverse.
Drive still works, i.e. the car drives froward no matter which gear your select, except P, which actuates the parking pawl, but even then forward is still engaged.
 
If it tries to move forward in PARK, but the park pawl stops it, and even if you revved it it doesn't move and it's just like you're doing a stall test, if it's pretty much the same in REVERSE but it's not the pawl holding it, so you feel it might want to drag itself forward or backward a bit, but under protest, NEUTRAL drives forwards, as does "D", "2" & "1" then I'd say the front clutch is stuck on.

All the above assuming your description is correct, and you've checked the selector linkage.
 
The diaphragm spring in the front clutch is very prone to breaking, and normally when it does it doesn't cause any problems, but sometimes depending on the way it breaks, parts of the spring can jam the piston forwards holding the clutch on, so effectively it's engaged all the time even though there's no fluid pressure doing it.
 
OK, I put another gearbox in, also a BW 65.
That one is a bit reluctantly shifting up.
1-2 happens at 35, 2-3 only at 60, even when trying to force it by lifting off.
3-2 downshift happens at 30+, 2-1 downshift apparently normal (hardly noticeable).
 
Junkman said:
OK, I put another gearbox in, also a BW 65.
That one is a bit reluctantly shifting up.
1-2 happens at 35, 2-3 only at 60, even when trying to force it by lifting off.
3-2 downshift happens at 30+, 2-1 downshift apparently normal (hardly noticeable).
Click to expand...


Initially I'd be looking at the cable adjustment.
 
Junkman said:
It does that even when the cable isn't connected to the accelerator linkage.
Click to expand...

Has it got a crimp on the inner cable that's resting on the top of the outer cable adjuster even when the clevis is disconnected?

If so, cut the crimp off. (Carefully!)
 
That crimp has been removed a long time ago.
No, the valve is deffo closed when the pedal isn't pushed, we verified this with the sump off.
 
Junkman said:
That crimp has been removed a long time ago.
No, the valve is deffo closed when the pedal isn't pushed, we verified this with the sump off.
Click to expand...

In that case rather than it being a case of the line pressure being too high so it holds on to the gears, maybe it's a lack of governor pressure, as governor pressure needs to overcome line pressure to trigger the upshift, so if there's a lack of governor pressure it will hang on to the gears regardless of the cable position. If the box has been left standing for any length of time the governors can get sticky.
 
Junkman said:
Where is that governor and how can it be made unstuck?
Click to expand...

It's on the output shaft inside the tailshaft housing, so the rear flange and tailshaft housing have to be removed to get at it, then slide off the speedo drive gear.

The governor is inside the dotted line top left here:

http://www.rover-classics.co.uk/images/ ... rs_jpg.htm

You undo RTC152 and it will slide off the shaft, then it can be dismantled to check all is free. It's a two stage valve.

Note that although it will fit either way around the exhaust port is towards the rear to lubricate the speedo gears and rear bearing.
 
Excellent, thanks a lot!

I'll have this checked next week.
The gearbox was indeed standing for a while and the speedo drive was seized.
Maybe the same goes for the guv'nor.
 
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