Hello, I purchased a 142 in LA. It is now 60 miles south of San Fransisco. the overdrive slides out of gear when pressure is applied and it won't idle that well after it is warmed up. Any help would be appreciated.

The specific year of your car is very helpful in dignosing problems.

The first thing to do with any new car, IMHO, is go over the electrical system, especially battery connections, fuses, and grounds. Ignition and electrical problems cause or can cause almost everything related to poor driveability.

There are a number of 140 original equipment fuel systems.
If carburetted they are either SU or Stromberg. SU's are readily identifiable by a large dome on top of each of the dual carburettors. Strombergs have a flatter top. A popular conversion was to a single Weber carb on an arched manifold.

Most running/idling problems are caused by ignition, however. Check/clean/replace the distributor cap and rotor and spark plugs. Clean and set the distributor points gap.

The over-drive problem can be of several things. 1. Low tranny fluid. easy and cheap to fix (although probably leaking). 2. Wearing-out solenoid, depending on year may be hard to find. 3. Wearing-out clutches internally, diffcult, (impossible) to fix. 4. It could even be low voltage, I think, refusing to keep the od engaged.




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MPergiel, Elmhurst, IL '74 145e T-5 'Orange Alert'

What year is your 142? carbs or fuel injection? what brand of carbs?

thanks Colin,
the writing is in swedish. so I assume they are original and could use a rebuild. Ryan

Could you be a bit more specific about what you mean by "the overdrive slips out of gear"? Does it just stop working and puts you back into fourth gear? If that's the case, I would first chase down all the electrical connections from OD switch through relay,fourth gear switch, and solenoid to make sure they are clean and tight. Or is it the gearbox itself that slips out of fourth and so disconnects the OD? Or does it feel like it slips in OD like a slipping clutch?
Bob S.

thanks Bob,

It feels more like a slipping clutch. It slips out with very little pressure. It did'nt do this for the first 200 miles or so of the trip. ryan

Ryan, check how much fluid is in the tranny. On the right side, near the front of the gearbox you'll find two plugs with 1/2" square heads. The bottom is the drain and the top is the filler. Fluid should be right up to the bottom lip of the filler.

When my OD in my Duett gets low on oil it sometimes wont even go into OD. Just top up as was suggested. I think engine oil is the recommended lbricant for the OD boxes.

Bob