83 SX/4 (Sketchy)

[Ace2600]

I haven't yet taken photos yet, and mine isn't much of a "Project" But I figured why not post a topic about it.

My dad picked up and 83 SX/4 from an old barn on a job site he was at. Ill link the post he made about it a while ago.

http://forums.amceaglesden.com/index.php?topic=44901.msg349581#msg349581

Notice he says he wished to get it running in time for "My daughters sixteenth birthday". He missed that window by two years. It pretty much just sat around for a few years. This past summer though, I cranked her to life relatively easy. She moved under her own power once. Its the 998, It has first and second, won't shift into second, and has absolutely no third gear. But man, was she quick. (Sketchiest drive ever, hence the name). She found a new home in the barn, and work began for a few months before the snow flew. We did normal stuff, Check fluids, try timing, make sure lights and such work. Car only has 56,000 on it, and it shows. blinkers, headlights, brights, all functional. heck, the radio tuned into some Boston while I was at it. The only big thing we got done in time was the "Ecm test" Even though we all know its the N u t t e r. Bypassed, and timed. and she was running well the last time we cranked her over.

Fast forward through months of hurricane winds, and whiteout snow storms. The weather around here has finally started to break. So that means its back to the eagle. Started by ripping off the Carter, and installing the Gronk 2150 set my dad purchased like 3 years ago. And My god does it make a difference. No tach, so I have no idea what the RPM's are, But it idles well. a few vacuum hoses and such to figure out. Ill be driving on the 31st, so doubt she'll be Ready by then. But thing are looking good.

Soon, the trans needs to come out and get work done. I kinda want a manual valve body just for the heck of it. and obviously a shift kit, to provide snappier shifts.

Then a set of tires.

Then exhaust.

And (hopefully) the eagle flies.

In her future I can see a wired 4x4 shift. Aftermarket stereo, 4.0 head, and id loveeeee, to put a t5 in it. But I might be dreaming. Ill post pictures when I can. You can see some old ones on the forum post I linked above though! Im excited to keep you all posted. and I'm sure ill have a lot of fun with her shortly.

[vangremlin]

Thanks for giving us the history of your project.  Maybe with a little luck you'll end up with a T5 in it 

[amarshall]

Sounds like you have a great car to start with.  Just work on it one bit at a time and you'll get there eventually.  Keep us posted, and we love pictures!

[RallyEagle]

LIt sounds like a good project.  I have some left over parts and with my 4:10 riffs, I might up size my like new tires. Let me know if you are interested. There are 5.

[Ace2600]

Ive got a Ton of photos taken but none of them will post? And I REALLY don't want to try to figure out photo bucket. Question on my trans. Could the lack of a kick down linkage be my issue? it has First, second, and I could assume third. it won't shift itself. and I can't get any reverse either??

[mudkicker715]

That so called kickdown linkage is needed to put proper pressure in the transmission. Without that you will roast your trans

[Ace2600]

That so called kickdown linkage is needed to put proper pressure in the transmission. Without that you will roast your trans

So its a pressure thing? Would that keep my transmission from letting me use reverse? and would that keep it from shifting automatically?

[mudkicker715]

No and no.

[Ace2600]

Aw 

That means it does need a rebuild... I was reaaaallly hoping to skip that...

Welp. Thanks for the help

So what does it really do??

[TheBirdman]

In laymans terms...
The torqueflite doesnt have a vacuum line like some trannies, but in order to operate, it still needs to know how much throttle youre giving it, in order to decide when to shift, and also regulate the line pressure, or the pressure of the fluid pressing on the bands and stuff. Without it, it thinks youre driving around with the throttle at idle, so it doesnt put very much line pressure into it, and when you give er the beans, you can make things slip, causing friction, cooking the fluid, and worst yet, tearing the material off the bands. Dont drive it without a kickdown, or as its more properly called, a TV (throttle valve) linkage.

If you cant find a TV rod, lokar makes a kit with a heavy duty push/pull cable that will do the same job and allow for a lot more flexibility.


Another thing you can try before taking it out for a rebuild is dropping the pan, removing the throttlebody. Clean the VB out with carb cleaner, clean out the pan (while youre there look for any signs of damage, like chunks of anything in the sludge). While youre in there, get a inch pound torque wrench and adjust both the bands.The procedure can be found in a manual or by google searching it. Then, being very careful to keep everything meth lab clean, even a single hair could get stuck in a valve and make it not work, put it all back together with a new filter and pan gasket, then fill it with fluid, run it in neutral for a bit, then remove one of the lines to the trans cooler, let a gallon flow out, put a fresh gallon in, and rinse repeat 3-4 times. Drive it around a bit to get things spinning, then after that if it still doesnt have reverse or 2/3rd, you can either try putting some lucas transmission additive in it, although this would be a last ditch temporary solution at best, or you know it probably needs a rebuild.

[Ace2600]

Hey thanks for the info. I believe my dad went through it long ago and did the fluid change and band adjustments. Ill have to look into it more. My guess is its totally fried though. Wish I could figure out how to post some picture though  Photobucket

[mudkicker715]

Pictures can be directly loaded to this site. Below the box you type in is a thing that says attachments and other, click that and select your photo

[Ace2600]

I attempted that on my phone, but it didn't work. I figured thats why photo bucket was so prominent. Ill have to try that.

[Blip Downshift]

imgbb also works well

[TheBirdman]

Photobucket is junk, I use imgur.