th350 with hurst ratchet shift issues....

[jaredstillwell]

Hey everyone, I just bought an 84' k10 pickup with a "newer" 350 engine, and what looks to be a th350 transmission, and the transfer case is stamped with a "C15085".

Now I am not very well versed in auto repairs, but I am trying to learn. Here is my problem(s): The truck when I bought it, seemed to run and drive really nice. However, after I bought the truck, I noticed a bit of a vibration near my feet at higher rpms in 1st gear. I found that if I just took it easy on the throttle, it was fine.

Since I have owned the truck, (about 2 weeks) it tended to clunk more when I put it into drive or reverse. Today, when I was going to take my dog to the dogpark, I drove up the road and it wouldnt shift out of 1st gear. I checked tranny fluids, they were fine. I topped off anyway. I looked underneath, and the pan looked to be coated in a slow drip of trans. fluid. The gasket was completely shot also. The shifter is a ratchet-type. It seems to shift, but it doesnt do anything. Just stays in drive, no matter where I put the ratchet. When I shut the truck off, it rolls back-wards, as if in neutral. It starts in drive, I just keep my foot on the brake very hard.

Again, I'm that experienced with this, but am willing to try it. This is my only mode of transportation other than my motorcycle, but I live in Minnesota and I lost my job two months ago, so I have very little money right now.

Can anyone offer any advice to me on this? If more info is needed, I will do my best to give it.

Thanks for reading.

[PhilaTruck]

Did you try going under the truck (not running)? Make sure the truck is on a level surface and that the tires are chocked. Disconnect the linkage and work the shifter on the transmission. They should click through. Then you can eliminate the tranny ($$) and look at the linkage and shifter.

The linkage could have been installed wrong, incomplete, or just came loose.

If you think at all that you won't remember how to put it back together, use a digital camera and take some quick snaps.

Hope you find it. Welcome to the board-

[t&tkennels]

should have a shifter cable. could have have come loose. truck will roll in any gear as if it were in neutral.shifter shouldnt have any thing to do with actual transmission shifting , just gear selection .

[jaredstillwell]

Thanks for the reply guys. I called someone tonight that works on vehicles part-time and seems to be pretty sharp. He mentioned I disconnect the linkage and work the shifter also. Its dark now, so I'm going to wait until tomorrow to do this. I will also take a look at the shifter cable.

Thanks very much for the replies, I'll report back tomorrow.

[cableguy0]

your vibration and clunking is most likely a bad u joint. while your under the truck messing with the linkage see if theres play in the driveshaft. grab it with both hands and try to spin it. if the u joint is bad it will rock back and forth a bit and you will feel the clunking. sometimes it will get stuck from going into gear. putting into reverse and drive to free it before you check will help free it

[joeys66pickup]

i have the same shifting problems with my B&M rachet...all forward gears are Drive not 1,2,D like it should, im guessing the linkage is F'd

[Rodms]

Check your cable I have the same shifter,they are some good ones or your trans parts are loose!Just inside the case and not taking the shifts.

[jaredstillwell]

Well I got under the truck again this morning and disconnected the stock transmission linkage arm from the hurst shifter arm so that the stock arm, the one directly connected to the transmission, on the driver-side of the t-pan. The cable looked like it had seen better days. The protective coating on the cable was corroded down to the wire, and looked like it may have been stretched out.

I moved the stock arm back and forth; it hit all the spots: P,R, D, 2, 1 I believe would be the order? Anyway, I moved the arm into park, got out from under the truck, unchocked the wheels and what do you know, it stayed in park. I started the engine, and the same held true.

First of all, thanks for the tips. That little task gave me some confidence. So I'm going to assume that I need a new shifter cable assembly first, to get me back on the road. Can I get those at any auto store? Probably have to order it through hurst huh? Its the pro-matic 2. Also, would the cable affect also that it wouldnt shift gears during operation? As in, automatically going from 1st, to 2nd, 3rd?

2nd, I think my next project will have to be to replace the u-joints. I studied up last night and like you said "cableguy0" most things pointed to this.

If anyone can help, again appreciate the time.

-Jared

[cableguy0]

a lot of the shifter cables are universal. gotta figure out how long yours is. the auto parts store probably wont have it but a local speed shop should. worse case you can order one online. if the cable is stretched or weak it wont move enough to change gears when you move the shifter.more than likely you found your problem. you need a vice to use as a press for the u joint. a ball joint press also works great. if you have a harbor freight nearby you can get a ball joint press fairly cheap.u joints can be really hard to do your first time out. im sure there are some decent articles online with pictures to show you step by step. but its really a simple job so long as you have the tools.

[dgfreeze]

no, the cable itself has no bearing on whether the transmission shifts when in drive. my guess is that somehow the selector was all the way down in 1st gear. at that point, of course, the transmission won't go into second. oh, and fyi, the gear selection is P,R,N,D,2,1. u just missed neutral, that's all

[jaredstillwell]

Thanks everyone for the advice. Got the shifter cable replaced with no troubles at all. It was actually pretty simple; a good first fix. This was my problem. Shifts great now. I also replaced the gasket on my trans. oil pan which was leaking like a siv. Seems to be leak-free now.

Thanks again!

[cableguy0]

good deal. glad ya got it worked out cheap and easy

[PhilaTruck]

Way to go. My wife calls my truck "the other woman," just to give you an idea of what you're in for.

[vegaschevy]

seems like your on your way to getting things taken care of...