Way off topic 1993 caravan transmission

[Dave72dt]

You may want to revisit your brake install.  Typically the wear indicators are on the inside of the caliper.  Where were they on the old pads?

[Los_Control]

14 hours ago, Dave72dt said:

You may want to revisit your brake install.  Typically the wear indicators are on the inside of the caliper.  Where were they on the old pads?

I appreciate your input .... I also was thinking the same thing.

 

It is impossible to install it in the rear, unless you remove the mounting bracket like this.

The wear indicator gets in the way and you can not slide the pad on the rail.

 

Then remove caliper and change pads and assemble then reinstall as 1 complete unit.

I can then put it in the back.

 

My limited knowledge, I've never seen a car I had to remove the mounting bracket to install new pads?

I can leave the bracket in place and install on the front like they are.

I'm just not sure if it matters which side they are on. The pad with the indicator has a tiny bit more surface area so maybe it needs to be in the rear? I Dunno.

 

I guess another way is to leave bracket mounted, remove caliper, front pad, rotor, rear pad ....

Then slide rear pad on, rotor, front pad .... DOH! ..... I will change it   

[Dave72dt]

If they were on the outside when you took it apart, leave them that way.   The pads themselves will work even if the indicators may not.   The inside pads tend to wear faster than the outside pads which is why the wear indicator is usually on the inside.  When on the outside you may get metal to metal before the indicator can warn you.  It was just a suggestion to recheck your work.  My opinion matters little anymore on this forum.  They've been overlooked and disagreed with so often lately I'm extremely hesitant about posting anything.  Do some research on wear indicator positioning for your specific vehicle before you change them. 

[Los_Control]

1 hour ago, Dave72dt said:

My opinion matters little anymore on this forum.  They've been overlooked and disagreed with so often lately I'm extremely hesitant about posting anything.

I always appreciate everyone's opinion.

And to be fair I really just do not know better myself so getting others ideas help me .....

 

Thats where I was at ..... what could possibly be the difference? .... will it really matter?

In the end I can at a glance see where they are. .... kinda nice to have them on the outside.

 

Because of your input I did revisit it and here is the exact issue in my case why I cant run them on the outside.

 

You can see when I install the wheel, I will be pushing them out of position into the rotor.

I just did not pay close attention to that and was thinking it would be fine .....

 

@Dave72dt I want to thank you for your opinion .... you got me to take a better look at it.

1 hour ago, Dave72dt said:

The inside pads tend to wear faster than the outside pads which is why the wear indicator is usually on the inside.

Thats probably why the inside pads have a slightly larger surface area to try to keep the wear kinda equal.

I could just cut the indicators off .... all they do is ruin your rotor .... I watch my stuff closer than that.

So I will just switch them around ..... I learned something today   

 

[Los_Control]

Well 2 years later it is a runner again ..... I have some more work to do.

Damn I just hate pulling motors that should come out the bottom ..... out of the top.

So I have done it twice ...... I'm happy it actually runs and seems to run well.

 

So I'm happy it starts and runs .... The last engine did the same and spun a rod bearing at 50 miles on the odometer.

So it will take some time before I trust this engine that seems to run good.

[Sniper]

Congrats

 

[oldodge41]

Los_Control I admire your ability to stick to it and get it running again after that long. Good job.

[Los_Control]

5 hours ago, oldodge41 said:

Los_Control I admire your ability to stick to it and get it running again after that long. Good job.

Thanks for the kind words .....

Fact is, I was just pissed off at the car and put it in the corner for 2 years on a time out.

Even after I bought the motor for it and started working on it .... I stopped with the excuse it was spring time and if I'm going to have a garden this year I need to spend my time there instead. .... so I did.

The used engine came with a 90 day warranty, that ran out June 11th and I finally started it up on the 25th 2 weeks after warranty expired. .... I have just been dragging my feet on the job because it is a very big job, I really had no heart to do it, a 2nd time.

 

So now it is sorta personal to me to fix it, Mother wanted the car to go to her daughter when she passed away.

Then sitting in it this morning drinking my morning coffee warming it up, I adjusted the radio, turned on the AC, thought how comfortable the seats were ...... memories of the times we have taken it on road trips for months at a time.

We have a lot of seat time in that car.

Same time I have kept it up in good condition, If the motor proves to be good, the rest of it is ready for another road trip.

 

So for me it is a forever car that we will own til we die ..... I just wish I fixed it sooner.

Edited June 26 by Los_Control

[Los_Control]

Little too early for a victory lap yet .... We got 50 miles on it so far .... last used engine spun a bearing about 40 miles as soon as I gave it a good shake down run around town, I took it right out on the freeway .... It did ok.

 

A issue popped up, the speed limit is 75mph. Normally this car you barely touch the gas pedal and it cruises at 80mph. ..... The gas in it is 2.5 years old.

I had to give it over 1/4 throttle to get it up to 75 .... then going over 75 it started to chug like it was running out of fuel.

Drop the speed down to 70 and it cruises comfortably ........ The gas gauge was reading full I have it down to 3/4 tank and want to get it to 1/2 then fill it with premium fuel and let them mix together. ...... maybe it will run better.

 

Other then fighting bad fuel, it is running fine. ...... It is getting a major bath this weekend, just getting ready to pressure wash the engine bay, then give the exterior a good bath .... recharge the AC.

I thought about getting it registered today, then my tag would be due in June and only get 11 months instead of 12 .... so Monday taking it down for inspection. .... Then will get full 12 months registration.

 

I need to adjust the camber on the drivers side, passenger is fine and it drives fine .... will get abnormal tire wear so I will lift it back up and adjust, give everything else a once over to be sure is ok ..... I am feeling confident it is back in the living world again.

Edited June 28 by Los_Control

[Los_Control]

Finally went down Monday and got inspection and registration sticker .... gave it a good bath and went out on the freeway for a test drive and immediately got pulled over by a sheriff. Ran my plates as he was passing me by and came back last registered in 2022 .... He was very polite and professional, took a couple min to clear things up and he apologized .... I thanked him for his service and just drove home forgetting about a test drive that day.

 

Anywho, been running into a little trouble with the transmission.

I drove to the inspection station and it was not shifting correctly, not going into 4th gear.

After inspection I drove it and it was shifting fine.

Same thing this morning, start it up and go for a drive, not shifting into 4th gear.

I pull to the side of the road and shut it off, count to 10 and start it up and it shifts fine.

So I jump on the freeway and drive 10 miles one way, turn around and 15 miles the other way and coming back home when going through town at a low speed it drops to 3rd and wont shift again. .... Has me baffled, I need to double check wiring connectors and such.

 

So now I'm wondering and hoping others can chime in about the ATF fluid.

Father told me this car needs Dexron 4 ATF, I could not find that last time and used a universal Castrol GTX fluid that Dr @Sniper agreed it should work .... and it did.

 

This time I went to Napa and they had Dexron 3 or 5 .... no Dexron 4, But Charlie convinced me Dexron 5 would work fine so thats what I'm using. Valvoline Dexron 5 / Mercon LV ...... I'm wondering if this is my problem and I need to flush it out?

 

 

It suggest for use in place of 2,3,5 .... nothing about 4

Edited July 3 by Los_Control

[Plymouthy Adams]

friction modifiers in the Mopar tranny fluid are unique....they found this out the hard way with the first of the 4 speed automatics stamping the dipstick in error for the wrong fluid...they did not go to any extremes correcting or admitting the error....killed many transmission on their first fluid service.    USE the ATF-4 specific to Mopar.

[Los_Control]

1 hour ago, Plymouthy Adams said:

ATF-4 specific to Mopar.

Winner Winner chicken dinner!

 

I,m such a idiot asking for Dexron 4 .... they don't even make it ..... they make 2,3,5 .....

I went back by Napa today and was talking to the owner of the store and he set me straight  .... after I confused the hell out of him asking for Dexron 4 ...... ATF +4 is what I need.

 

So now I'm just hoping have not ruined the transmission yet, I have just a little over 100 miles on it and all short trips.

I bought 5 quarts of ATF +4, when I drain the pan I wont drain the TC .... will probably only get 2 or 3 quarts in it.

 

I guess my plan is to drain what I can then refill .... run it a few miles and then change it a 2nd time .... I just do not have any better ideas on how to get the bad stuff out of there.

[Los_Control]

Maybe I dodged the bullet on that one. Changing the transmission fluid worked.
Just one of those things where something seems wrong, just cant put your finger on it. Now it shifts correctly, real smooth going down the highway .... have been driving the car for 10 years ..... you know when something is not right, you know when things are right .... it is all right now.

Last thing I'm going to do to it for now, I drained the water out and filled it with 5% strength cleaning vinegar.
Will run it up and down the highway a little bit then flush it out and fill with antifreeze.
I like vinegar, it is a mild cleaner and it works well while doing no harm. I like to run the engine through a few heat cycles for best performance.
The used engine I pulled out had a lot of dirt in the cooling system and turned to mud in the radiator ..... while I did flush the radiator out, there would still be some in the heater core .... I just feel better cleaning it before adding new antifreeze.

 

Tomorrow I start working on my chebby truck, as a daily driver I just have a list of things that need to be corrected.

Will probably take me a month at the speed I work.

But then I get to work The 49 Dodge and this time finish it up and get it on the road ..... Just getting one step closer to working on my pilothouse

[JBNeal]

How'bout after running the vinegar cycle ya just fill up the cooling system with straight water...whenever I have done a flush where chocolate milk drains out of the radiator, I drive around for a day with straight water to flush out some more.  Also cheaper if a leak springs up, then ya don't lose coolant just water.

[Los_Control]

13 hours ago, JBNeal said:

How'bout after running the vinegar cycle ya just fill up the cooling system with straight water...whenever I have done a flush where chocolate milk drains out of the radiator, I drive around for a day with straight water to flush out some more.  Also cheaper if a leak springs up, then ya don't lose coolant just water.

I agree 100%, I flushed the radiator with water then filled it with straight water and drove it for a week.

Now when I drained the water just a tiny hint of brown color came out with it. ... It would have been fine to quit there.

I already bought the vinegar and had planned to do it .... probably over kill .... but it is finished now.

[Sniper]

I like to use the vinegar trick myself. It seems to do a good job without being overly aggressive. Plus it's biodegradable.

[Los_Control]

Well guys, what you think?

 

 

I have been fighting a transmission issue for awhile, I have almost 300 miles on the used engine but the transmission was not shifting correctly .... I finally found the dirty wire connection and fixed it and took it for a 80 mile drive on the freeway and performed perfectly .... not even a hint of overheating.

 

I already flushed the coolant system out with clean water a few times, then I gave it a vinegar treatment .... this is a crust when I remove the radiator cap to check coolant level .... 3/4" thick and actually need to poke my finger through it to see anything.

 

This is from the last used engine I installed that had sat for 8-10 years .... not from the current engine I just installed.

I think I will need more then just vinegar to flush this one   

[Sniper]

You using eating vinegar or cleaning vinegar?  I ask, because I recently found out that cleaning vinegar is stronger, who knew?  lol

[Los_Control]

36 minutes ago, Sniper said:

You using eating vinegar or cleaning vinegar?  I ask, because I recently found out that cleaning vinegar is stronger, who knew?  lol

yeah, it is cleaning vinegar .... has a higher acidic level. I think I was just not taking the job serious enough.

 

I think this morning will run to the auto parts store and pickup a flushing T to add to the heater hose.

Just let the engine run awhile and back flush it at the same time ..... Do a better job then I did the first time.

Then add vinegar and let it run some more ... then flush it again.

 

I wont be in such a hurry to put antifreeze in it this time.

[JBNeal]

a cautionary tale of the Farmall 1206

 

during the refurbishing of Dad's 1966 Farmall 1206, I had flushed out the block several times to get crud out, using a coolant flush and a garden hose each time.  A few months after this tractor went back to work, an area of paint blistered on the side of the block about the length of my index finger, then eventually a coolant weep was observed after hours of use.  The attempt to weld the crack failed, and eventually the block was replaced as there were several local donors available at the time, with the original engine guts transferred to the replacement block...alotta cussin and discussin went into that venture, as the mechanic who did the block replacement defied instructions and rattle-canned the replacement block to match the rest of the shiny tractor, getting red overspray on black hoses and white sheet metal.

 

After it was all said and done, Dad commented that the tractor never had a serious problem up until the original injector pump failed and I fixed it up nice, and that it ran strong for decades with rusty sheet metal and half-rotted and chewed up wiring...he went on to add that I had flushed that engine one too many times.  He went on to tell the story of a neighbor who bought a Farmall 866 at an auction that ran well but was absolutely filthy...so one winter, that neighbor decided to clean up that red tractor, and come to find out all that dried up gunk and grease was plugging up every leak on that workhorse, and the guy had a time keeping fluids in it during planting season...so the guy never cleaned it again afterwards so the leaks would plug back up with dust and grit.  "Now ya tell me" is what I was a-thinkin after that tale had been shared 🙄

 

[Los_Control]

On 8/31/2024 at 12:45 PM, JBNeal said:

he went on to add that I had flushed that engine one too many times.

A lot of good advice there.

 

I feel like I'm up against something new .... not really sure how to handle it .... feel like I will need to get creative here.

 

The engine that I bought sat in a shed for 8-10 years ... the wrecking yard owner had no paperwork on it or knew anything about it .... just that he had it .... must have been good or he never would have kept it. These were his words.

 

What I'm fighting is good old Texas dirt blown into the coolant passages over the years. Add water and it turns into clay.

I installed the flushing T, 10 days ago. I figured to flush it a few times over labor day weekend and would be clean.

I add a 1/2 gallon of vinegar and run it several heat cycles, then drive it 40 -70 miles .... I wait 2 days and then flush it again. ..... right now I have gone through 2.5 gallons of vinegar 1/2 gallon at a time.

It is better but still not clean .... the dirt sticks to the interior walls of the coolant system and the vinegar is not cutting it.

 

At this point I think I need to try something new .... I'm thinking soap.

I never heard of using soap to flush a car with .... you get dirty hands you wash them with soap, not vinegar.

 

Question now is what kind of soap? ..... I like Dawn dish washing soap for dirty hands.

I have simple green on the shelf.

Also have a soap called purple power that I bought with my pressure washer.

Heavy Duty premium multipurpose pressure wash concentrate ..... I'm giving it a try, been sitting on the shelf a few years and would like to free up some shelf space.

[JBNeal]

Maybe that water needs time to saturate that caked grit that ya can't see, while the heat cycling of the engine is helping to release the crud...I'm not sure what any of these cleaners are doing to the water pump seals and bearings, coolant sensor, freeze plugs, etc.

[Los_Control]

11 hours ago, JBNeal said:

I'm not sure what any of these cleaners are doing to the water pump seals and bearings, coolant sensor, freeze plugs, etc.

Understood .... I do not either.

I feel the metal is not being damaged because the vinegar is very mild. Also when I used vinegar in the 49 Dodge I filled the coolant 100% vinegar with no water added ..... it turned out fine. This time I'm only adding 1/2 a gallon to the water so it is diluted.

 

I had a new water pump I installed on the dirty used engine ..... It was full of mud when I removed it.

I did not feel like cleaning it up at the time, the existing water pump felt good so I just used it.

Since then I spent 5 minute with some glass cleaner .... It is a couple years old but has very low miles, less then 200 miles on it so will use it again.

 

Knowing how easily it cleaned up I'm certain the soap will clean the coolant system.

First time using soap last night and letting it run, sit overnight then warmed it up again I flushed it.

I have a positive feeling about it.

 

Plain vinegar for 2 days and several miles driving, 5 minute of flushing the water would be clean.

Using soap over night with 2 heat cycles, it took 10-15 minute before the water would turn clean.

So it is cleaning deeper and removing more dirt .... I'll try this for a bit, no more vinegar.

[Los_Control]

Well thats it! I have been flushing the coolant system for 14 days straight.

The vinegar no longer had a useful effect .... then soap no longer has a useful effect .... I'm over it.

It still looks dirty and not satisfied with it ..... I'm going to run it for a few weeks with straight water and see what happens.

Some point will need to add antifreeze for the winter .... just not convinced I'm done with flushing yet.

 

One thing I will offer up about flushing with soap or simple green .... It does clean .... the car never overheated with it.

I just felt like with all the sudsy bubbles there was too much air in the system and I would not trust driving it for a 80 mile trip. I drove it to the local grocery store or around the block .... just no freeway trips.

 

I really thought I would be done with the Caravan last week and back on the 49 Dodge this week .... soon I will be there.

[kencombs]

Well I just stumbled upon the flushing saga.   Too late now, but my choice would have been automatic dishwasher detergent.   No bubbles and one of the strongest cleaners available, especially when dealing with grease/oils.