1980 Eagle Sport STW 258+TF998 "Silver Beast" (from Finland)

[HornetRWB]

The TF998 currently works like this:

- Reverse works perfect, good nudge when put into gear.
- First gear works perfect, good nudge when put into gear, shifts to second gear well and according to kickdown adjustments.
-> When cold, third gear goes in normally for about 10-20 seconds then it downshifts back to second (no change to this on throttle). Will not shift to third after that.
-> When warm/hot, third gear does not kick in at all, for any throttle or speed.

The only way I can get it to third gear after the first cold shift or when it's warm/hot - is by shifting it to Neutral and then back to Drive without taking my foot off the gas. Then depending on throttle position it stays in third for a second or two (low to mid-throttle), or about maximum of 30 seconds (on high to floored throttle).

When I bought the car the transmission oil was likely mixed with some other oil (engine oil perhaps?), so I I got the trans emptied, filter changed and while at it I was told the trans and filter looked perfectly clean inside and bands looked like new. Estimate was that it should be in working order (difficult to say further without a full teardown).

After the oil/filter swap (Gulf ATF DX III) it started to go into third gear somewhat longer now (as described above, previously with old oil it rarely stayed in third for more than a few seconds).

I'm out of ideas other than trying some automatic treatment mojojuice and if that doesn't work then take out the trans (of the only car I am driving right now), give it to my automatic guy and wish I can afford the repair, as likely it will be ~1000 euros even if nothing big is damaged (and that is cheap around here, if I take it to a specialist it's 2500 EUR+). Finding a replacement is not really an option over here as this is the only '80 Eagle in Finland plus putting in a newer trans doesn't make sense to me since I need to drive this car basicly daily to work and back... So feeding the Eagle a '90s Cherokee's driveline isn't also an option right now.

So.. Any good ideas, what to try and what to check out would be very warmly welcome... 

[rollguy]

The Eagle trans is quite possibly the easiest trans on the planet to rebuild.  If you had the time and an extra car, it would be a great learning experience for you.  However, it may be able to be repaired without removing the trans from the car.  I was thinking about your fluid change, and how that made a difference.  It is possible that there is still some of the old fluid/oil in the valve body or some other component (3rd gear related) that is causing the ongoing (although getting better) problem.  It might be costly for the fluid, but I would suggest at least one or two more complete fluid changes, but this time use the cheapest fluid you can find. If and when it is finally fixed, then go with the quality fluid.  I might even suggest that you have your expert remove the valve body (some small ball bearings will fall out, and need to go back in the correct spot), and clean it out good.  Also, compressed air can be used to get more fluid out of some of the innards of the trans that may not drain normally.  The passages that go to each servo can also be checked with compressed air with the valve body out, as the holes are exposed (this is how they are checked during the rebuild process).   I have also heard that it is possible to drill and tap a hole in the converter for a drain plug (why ALL converters don't come with drain plugs, I don't know).  The converter is the hardest to get totally drained without a drain plug or complete removal.   I would not give up on this one, especially if the results are positive each time.  Also, do yourself a favor and install a drain plug in the pan if it already does not have one (welded in boss is best)....Rich

[carnuck]

Before you tear things apart, undo the line at the transmission cooler in the rad and make sure it's not plugged (REALLY common for Mopar auto trans) That will stop proper upshifting by dropping line pressure. The "passing gear" rod adjustment also adjusts the upshift point.

[HornetRWB]

A week+ ago I lost rear brakes and fluid from the rear circuit, didn't find a leak and refilled the reservoir. Took me a bit of time of testing it but Friday a week ago when leaving office the rear brakes suddenly jammed on me when 'touching' the pedal.. A bit backwards/forwards and they freed up so I drove it carefully home and straight to the garage. I'll find time to totally take apart the rear brakes to see what's up.

Since then - I've been a bit under the weather, now back at work but still reluctant to go to the cold garage to get anything done. I was going to get things done this week, but as I'd like more to lose this flue so I'm staying out of the garage (it's -2 C out there). I just found out I'll be traveling all next week (for work) so a few weeks then before I get things rolling...

I did manage something though.. Thanks to Prafeston and Vangremlin I got a sweet deal on some second hand parts for the Eagle that I've been looking for a while.


Clear front park/turn signals !! Now I can get rid of those ugly aftermarket (in headlamps) parking lights and still keep the car road legal (amber parking lamps are illegal, while clear turn signals are not...). We'll see if I put in led amber turn signals or just leave them clear.


After a lot of cleaning on the outside and inside (with an old toothbrush and dish washing fluid) they turned out OK. A small crack on one of them but nothing to be worried about. I'll most likely polish the plastic before installation so they should look good. Very happy about these!


The intermittent wipers weren't working so Vangremlin sold me a working used control box and since the tach is dead I also got the ford part that's fairly bolt-on with just a few plastic trimmings needed. Thanks for these mate!



Also ordered new door locks, they're for an '80s CJ with metal doors, but looking at them from the pics I decided they'll fit. And it seems they do. Cost was about 40 USD which is a lot less than the ones for Eagles. It took all my self control NOT to order new door handles as well (they sell them in BLACK for Jeep Wrangler half doors btw...). I'll fix the old ones... Budgetbudgetbudget..

As to the automatic trans, no change from the magic mojofluid I added. Will have to take out the trans and get it to the mechanic, no time to learn myself on this one.  Pity, but what else can I do. No blockages in lines or kickdown issues.

So likely next update in a couple weeks after my work trip.

ps. This eagle got a name now, it's Hopeahirviö, which bluntly translated means silver monster or silver beast...   It's related to my dislike for white and silver cars in general, but also the fact that the Eagle looks like a beast sitting next to today's euro cars around here...

[tuned_pipe]

I have 3 eagle wagons  for parts ..  let me know what you need ..  if you don't mind the shipping fees  .. thanks PAUL

[Prafeston]

Glad me and Vangremlin could help you out!

[vangremlin]

Glad to help out!

[HornetRWB]

I've been a bit too busy at work so the Eagle's been just sitting in the garage + it's been freezing and snowing so it's been difficult to get motivation to go work on it.. (I've been driving the wife's XJ instead).

Transmission is still without 3rd gear, but I won't let that bother me too much.. Here's the latest update on other issues...

The rear brakes decided that they needed some attention...


Here's the passenger side, brake shoes themselves OK, but the brake cylinder leaked like a drunk after a sixpack....


Driver's side wasn't much better, brake cylinder had a small ooze, but the main problem on this side were the shoes... See anything missing? Check the brake drum...


So, while doing a few weeks of work traveling I ordered parts at my local parts guy (amazing you can get them here without problems) and they arrived after my trip. Quick service and prices weren't bad either.


Here's a close up on the boxes with part numbers, seemed to be the same parts I got for my Rebel's AMC20 big rear last winter.


Here's the passenger side put back together, no real problems since I've done this a hundred times before. Although I did have to jiggle a bit with the automatic adjustment cable since the original one was 90% cut. Didn't find one of those new so I fixed up a used one I found in my shed.


Here's about midway done on the driver's side. Here the adjustment cable was cut and since my shed didn't produce another I just got something close to it (big brakes from Mopar cars), shortened it to length and installed it. Also had to swap the adjustment screw on the bottom to a used one because it wasn't rolling freely (PO forgot to lubricate it last time?). Also the small rubber nubs were missing from the brake shield so got those too - should keep road debris out of the brakes a bit more easily.


And then a touch of paint... And yes, I know they weren't red when new but I'm funny that way... 

And then bleeding and testing, end result -> everything works now!

Here's a pic on those 1980 - 1990 CJ/YJ Wrangler metal door locks. Cost me about 20 USD on Ebay, and YES -> they exactly the same as the Eagle's original ones. Which means they'll also fit Hornets (ordering another set for my Hornet).



Getting them swapped sure took a bit of time. First the door panels and associated hardware, then the ripped up plastics (made new ones from tar paper cut to size). After this I emptied the door of fallen down sound insulation bits, cleaned it up and put new rust proofing.

After this I got my hands dirty from the new rust proofing while taking the door latches off, cleaning and lubricating them and then the locks off. For some reason the driver's side took me about double the time than passengers even though I started up with the passenger side. The lock mechanism just was that much harder to play around with (and plus I didn't want to remove the AMC door tag that's blocking the small round hole which allows easy access to the lock on the passenger's side.

No good pics of this progress, but after getting them back on, tested them at least a dozen times opening and closing and locking and unlocking the doors. Everything works wonderfully now. Then everything back together and it's basicly ready for the inspection bureau.

Hopefully I'll have time this week to get my licence plates and inspection done.

[HornetRWB]

The Silver Beast is now road legal     
















Got very good feedback from the inspector, some minor pointers but nothing broken or rusted. Really good feeling. Next job will likely be installing a proper Stereo/MP3 Player and speakers plus get that transmission fixed (still not third gear...). Then putting on the other touches here and there...

[HornetRWB]

Radiator  hose was leaking slowly which I've fastened a couple times before. So this time I decided to swap it to a new one...

After swapping the hose I noticed an even bigger leak coming from the engine side and after some disassembly I found the problem..



2 smaller 'almost holes'  in the backside and right in the front you could almost push your finger thru this hole seen in the pic. How in the earth does aluminum corrode like that from coolant? Unless the aluminum mix was pure rubbish...



Oh well, after some welding the hole and the almost holes are now plugged and it's now good as new. Got it back on yesterday evening, let it cure overnight (it's -5 C in the garage so decided to play it safe) and put everything back together this morning before leaving for work (with the Eagle).

Everything works good now, except that automatic trans which still does not hold on to third gear unless I am flooring the gasoline pedal all the way to the floor. I'm more and more worried this isn't a small problem that'll cure itself after some driving... Do any of you have any ideas what to try (fluid's been swapped, additives added, cooler cleaned, etc, nothing changed) before complete overhaul (and breaking my bank)...

[HornetRWB]

And this Eagle was sold on Tuesday this week. A fellow AMCCF clubmember had more time and patience so he bought it off my hands for a good price (for us both). He will continue the project, but unlikely on this page.

Thanks for all your help and thoughts to this project, I'll now continue with the Hornet and the Rebel for now... Hopefully in the future I'll have time and money to get another Eagle since I really liked this one.

Best of luck on your projects mates!

[vangremlin]

Thanks for sharing your work on getting the Eagle where it is today.  You made great progress, good luck with your other AMCs and good luck to the new Eagle owner!

[juhap]

Hello!
I´m back... as a new owner of RWB´s Eagle.
He sold it to a Jeeper. He is a fellow of finnish AMC Club.
Long story short... I had a XJ Cherokee lying around and he had no use for Eagle, so.... I took a three and a half hours trip to his place and towed Eagle to my Eagles nest.

I´m the proud new owner of my fourth Eagle.

I´m going to do some restoring during the dark and cold finnish winter. Don´t know when, but I´ll post some info as time goes by.

Here it is with my 81 STW...



First thing to do is some cleaning. I washed the car and saw that paint needs some attention. And that interior too... that colour... 
My other Sport Wagon had black interior, so...

First black parts taken apart...



to be continued...

[amcfool1]

hi, and welcome! nice to see the the Eagle Saga continues. keep us posted, and if you need any help, please ask. I just finished a three year resto of an 84 eagle Sedan. Whew! 99% done, the last 1% is NEVER done. btw, I live in the US, but I'm from CZ. good luck, gz,    aka Jiri Zeman

[85AmCfreak]

Welcome, Can't wait to hear more on this project.