# ### no park? 1st post



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

Hi Folks,

This is my first post here!

A few months ago, I picked up a somewhat rusty 1967 GTO with a non-original 400 and an automatic trans.

This will be my 3rd build/restoration project 

Anyway, i have the car running now and I have to put brakes on it because someone took the shoes off. 

The transmission does not seem to engage in park and it has no drive or reverse. I have not looked at the trans yet, I think its a TH400.

Its probably completely blown....but...does anyone have any quick tips to try? or things to check out? Ideally, i'd just like the car to move around on its own power and maybe do a big smokey brake stand before I park it until my garage/shop is finished.


----------



## Instg8ter (Sep 28, 2010)

will your shifter run through the gears and just not engage? or is it just locked up? linkage may be bound up or kinked. did you drain and check the fluid?


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

i have not checked the fluid, drained/etc. i am going to pull the pan off this weekend. shifter appears to go through all the gears and I can see the linkage moving on the transmission itself. shouldn't it engage in park without fluid though?


----------



## FlambeauHO (Nov 24, 2011)

Yes, but it could just be mis-rigged. When you have some time check the fluid and inspect everything visually. Then loosen linkage at the transmission and move lever on tranny to the farthest detent forward (with shifter in PARK) then tighten linkage. It might take a few tries to get it perfect. Will also likely have to adjust park/reverse/neutral switch.


----------



## 69Goatee (Aug 14, 2009)

Park is mechanically connected to the shift input shaft, no fluid required to engage. When you pull the pan, check for any linkage parts in the pan before you dump it all of the way out. It may be just a broken clip, or link.
One way to check the pump and fluid is to unhook the supply line to the trans cooler at the radiator (lower fitting on trans is supply). Put a lenth of rubber hose on it,then put the hose into a clean milk jug. Start the car and watch for fluid.


----------



## geeteeohguy (Feb 2, 2008)

Had a friend a while back who picked up and old GM car with a TH400 and it wouldn't move...turned out the filter (which is the pick-up for the fluid) was MISSING. Check the fluid level, if ok, pull a cooler line at the rad and see if it pumps fluid when you run the engine for about 2 seconds. Be ready for a big mess if the pump is ok. Congrats on your new project.


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

thanks for the ideas, i am going to check it out in more detail this saturday or so.
if i get it running, i'll post my burn-out picture 

later this year or so, i plan to get it into my new shop, take the body off/etc and start a restoration on it.


----------



## kjk990 (Sep 1, 2010)

sspano01...
Your story is exactly like mine. I bought a 67 with a th400 that had not been running for about 2 years per the old owner. I brought it home got the engine runnning, put in gear and nothing happened. It didn't even try to move in the slightest. After banging my head against the wall I pulled the pan and found that the filter/fluid pickup was laying sideways in the pan. I replaced it and I am still driving now with no problems. It's been about two years.

I hope it is the same for you. Good luck


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

Hi Folks,

So I had a chance to pull the pan, the shape matches the TH400 outline, so it looks like a TH400! No parts, metal shavings/etc, the pan was clean. The linkage intact/etc.

However, it seemed very low on fluid, and the pickup (as mentioned by kjk990) does not seem to match the exploded diagrams of the TH400 that I have found. The diagrams show a tube and a large rectangular filter.


Th400 or ??? by sspano01, on Flickr

The attached flickr link shows what I found in the trans. Its "pickup" looks like it was just at the level of the valve body and barely making contact with the fluid? It was inserted into the transmission though, probably in the place where the normal pickup/filter would be.

I am going to see if I can locate a filter tube and filter/etc for a TH400, but, can anyone shed some light on that weird filter I found?


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

67 GTO! by sspano01, on Flickr

here she is though :cool
Rescued from North Carolina to New York State


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

hmmmm - maybe i just answered my own question

GM TH400 FILTER, 1964-E1967, (A34010) | eBay

Looks like my GTO may have the original tranny! Seems like this is a filter for the 64-67 TH-400.... Maybe I will put it back in, refill it with fluid, and see what happens...


----------



## kjk990 (Sep 1, 2010)

Make sure that there is a rubber ring around the filter/fluid pickup (the end you are holding in you hand) before you insert it into the hole. These fall off or get lost a lot and you will lose your seal without it. 

Good Luck. And if it works please don't forget to let us know.

She looks great by the way.


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

It had the rubber seal. I'm going to get back on it Saturday or Sunday depending on weather here. I'll definitely post back my results or lack of results

The front end is in pretty good shape, rear behind the doors to the taillights is pretty rusty... Frame is solid, so it's just a little sheet metal and some seat covers right? :0


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

well!! i got the drivetrain sorted out and got it running reasonably well.
this was just to test things out, now i actually need to start fixing it 

goat 081112 - YouTube


----------



## Instg8ter (Sep 28, 2010)

Who the hell says Pontiac motors are boat anchors....LMAO, well done


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

hah hah!! thanks. most of the transmissions issues were fluid related and a clogged filter. i had to replace the carb, fuel pump, rag joint on the steering column and a few other small items.

this was just a rough test to see if all of the drive train works. I plan to pull the engine in a month or two, rebuild it, and start fixing the quarter panels/fenders/trunk, all new suspension and brakes. you know the drill I am sure.....


----------



## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

Car looks nice in the photo! Is that perchance a ram-air hood scoop insert I see?

Does it really need a frame-off resto?

Bear


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

thanks Bear! I told my wife that you said it looks nice and her response was "Pictures don't do the car justice" 

I was originally thinking a frame-off, because I thought it would be 'fun' to take the body off/etc. But it does not need that at all. The frame is in very good condition. Front passenger fender has a small hole in it that can be easily patched. The worst part is the back end of the car. The rear deck, rear window rails, quarter panels, are rusted out. the entire trunk floor is missing. But! it is not that bad at all. I can patch it all together with some sheet metal and a few OPG parts, and a little-bit-o-filler.

here are a few shots from the other day


Untitled by sspano01, on Flickr


Untitled by sspano01, on Flickr


Untitled by sspano01, on Flickr


My plan is to keep the 400. Its not original, but that is OK. I was going to do an LS swap. I am going to set the car up for some basic drag racing and going to try road-racing it. I have been doing HPDE/track days at Watkins and Pocono with my 67 Shelby Cobra replica that i built. That is fun time!!

I am planning to start October 5th on the path to get an SCCA competition license. I'd like to run the GTO with the historical racing group from SCCA and maybe do some hill climbs.


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

and no - its not a ram air car.
i had PHS run the numbers on it - just a basic GTO.
It did have a non-standard custom paint though


----------



## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

sspano01 said:


> well!! i got the drivetrain sorted out and got it running reasonably well.
> this was just to test things out, now i actually need to start fixing it
> 
> goat 081112 - YouTube


HAHAHAHAHAH!!!! I loved it when the camera went into 'white out'. :cheers

Bear


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

i smoked the crap out of the brittle 14 inch tire that was on the old goat! Seemed to only spin one wheel though - guess its an open diff?

i need to do a re-do though, so look for video #2. i had someone videoing outside the car, but he didnt press record so something so we missed the big mushroom cloud of tire smoke. 

Guess I'll have to do it again


----------



## FlambeauHO (Nov 24, 2011)

Looks like you'll need a gas mask for round 2! Lol


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

definately doing round #2. 
the stupid shifter cable bound up and I was locked in gear, so it was a little difficult to manipulate the transmission. i have a new shifter cable coming. i'm going put that in and try for take #2

maybe i should just enter it in burnout competitions?!


----------



## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

sspano01 said:


> definately doing round #2.
> the stupid shifter cable bound up and I was locked in gear......


Check your grounds! There should be a braided ground strap going from the back side of one of the heads (passenger side on my car) to the firewall. If it's not there, the car will ground through the shifter cable and get it hot enough to cook the sheath, causing the cable to bind up.


Bear


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

thanks!! that may be exactly what happened. i will look for the ground strap. i was confused there because I could shift it fine - UNTIL after running it for about 1/2 hour. The transmission still shifts fine, but it was like the linkage got caught somehow in the sheath...


----------



## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

There should also be another strap going from one of the inner fenders to the frame.

Bear


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

As promised 

GTO 092412 - YouTube

I have a plan now and am about to begin


----------



## FlambeauHO (Nov 24, 2011)

Nice! Look forward to watching the progress!


----------



## Flash (Nov 13, 2012)

*67 GTO Vintage Track Car*

After driving the Cobra replica on the track it would seem like it would take a ton of money and work to get it to handle and brake near as well. Wouldn't a 2004-2006 series GTO that was set up for Grand Am Contential series be a better way to go? I'm not sure it would qualify for vintage but it would be a competitive car in NASA racing and I'm sure they are out there.


----------



## sspano01 (Feb 20, 2012)

Flash said:


> After driving the Cobra replica on the track it would seem like it would take a ton of money and work to get it to handle and brake near as well. Wouldn't a 2004-2006 series GTO that was set up for Grand Am Contential series be a better way to go? I'm not sure it would qualify for vintage but it would be a competitive car in NASA racing and I'm sure they are out there.



The cobra took a fair amount of bucks to get it to actually handle and be predictable on the track too!

I got the GTO before I started running road course tracks, and now I am sucked into doing that. So I figure I will be very unqiue with the 1967 GTO running some road tracks. Let's just say with the way its going to look, there will be nothing close to it on the track! It might not handle that great and have to go slower in the turns, and you might be risking you life going over 110mph with it.....but it will be fun, unqiue, and something else to pound on other than the Cobra. 

I am looking at getting an actual race car (spec racer ford) for regular SCCA club racing.

Its all for fun though - and a few looks and laughs 

Besides...how would you like be driving a BMW 3 series and see that 8 foot wide, 29 foot long, 6000 pound GTO coming down the straight away at you. Big ass "RAM AIR" painted on it, air dam, wing, cold air induction instead of headlights.... i think you'd point me by for the pass


----------

