Transmission Completed (Post #534) 4/8/2015

Good news! My transmission is in and works like a dream. Mickey’s crack team of mechanics got the transmission installed in good order. They had a few bumps from the ancient original hoses that were still in use. The ones that gave the most trouble were replaced by Rover Cannibal.

I knew going in that the transmission fluid cooling hoses needed to be swapped out. Instead of swapping, Mickey sent them to Palace Auto Supply for them to be re-made. The oil cooling hoses, as I’ve mentioned before, were “wet” and needed to be replaced before they facilitated a lovely engine fire.

As mentioned before, I had the transmission rebuilt by Kings Transmission in Norman. When I picked up the transmission Breck and the guys let me look “behind the curtain”. They showed me were the transmissions were cleaned.

It is basically a giant washing machine. It uses soap and water to clean the parts. It washes away the clutch material and other debris.

He showed me a basket full of parts that was being prepped for a rebuild. When a transmission is rebuilt all the different kits that are needed to renew it are assembled. As you can see there are a lot of parts.

They had several work benches. When I visited this shoppe back in the late 1990’s the original patron had several transmissions in various states of dis-assembly. It amazed me that he could keep each one straight from the others. Mercedes Benz transmissions were right next to Chevrolet’s. He knew what was needed for each of them.

I asked Breck what the most exotic transmission was they had worked on. I was expecting some exotic sports car or perhaps some race transmission as they rebuild dragster transmissions too.

Much to my surprise the most exotic turned out to be a new Nissan. Apparently the modern electronics in them give the most trouble on the rebuild. Computers have to be flashed with new software. The computers and electronic shifters required to make a transmission do its magic get more and more complicated each year.

He mentioned that they still get the odd 1960’s Power Glide as well as even more modern. Having 50 years of transmission knowledge is amazing. Breck mentioned it is an ever changing industry and staying current is very difficult.

I am happy to report that of the three tanks full of petrol, my gas mileage has improved from an average of 12.5 miles per gallon to 14.5. My last tank was 15.1 mpg. That is a significant improvement. I’m sure you agree.

Thanks for reading and Happy Rovering.