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Jim
Grant has been working in the automotive industry for over twenty
years. In addition, Jim is an ASE Master Technician with advanced
L/1 certification. He works as manager and technician in his
family's automotive business in New Hampshire. He writes weekly
automotive consumer columns and is editor of an automotive newsletter
that is circulated throughout North America. |
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Jim Grant's Tech Tips
73
Datsun (Nissan) 240 Z, Zipless Transmission
Q:
The automatic transmission in my '73 Datsun 240Z has lost all forward
gears. Reverse works fine, but when I shift to Drive, the car creeps along
and does not respond to higher engine RPM's until the mood strikes, which
is right about 2 minutes after the green light turns red and I'm sandwiched
between 6 lanes of traffic. It will eventually build up enough speed to
start shifting automatically, until I have to stop. Any advice would be
greatly appreciated. I must say, of all the questions I have been forced
to ask in my 29 years of driving, this one has been the hardest one to
get an answer for. I have called every local transmission shop in the
Atlanta area and not only do they not want to work on my car, they wont
even share their knowledge and experience to give me even a small clue
as to where I should start with this problem. Thanks and keep up the good
work.... Joe
A: When
it comes to automatic transmissions its just not that simple. Your vehicle's
transmission was built before most of today's technicians were out of
elementary school. There were not many made and technical information
is scarce and hard to come by. As for expecting a specialist to share
their knowledge, you have to realize those days have gone. The cost of
training, equipment and doing business today just doesn't permit handing
out free information over the phone.
With
the age of your 240Z, the transmission is likely in need of a complete
overhaul. I spent just a few minutes searching the Web and found several
Web sites dedicated to your vehicle. This would probably be a great place
to find a transmission specialist or rebuilt components for your vehicle.
It's a great car, enjoy the ride.
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