Hello, all..

I haven't posted in a while because the '92 240 y'all helped me with a year or two ago is now in the hands of my son, dblumen.

I acquired an '89 240 w/ approx. 230K on it two months ago, and haven't done much on it other than fix the odometer.. the usual missing-gear-teeth problem. Easy, rewarding fix. A few weeks ago, the overdrive stopped working. I'm familiar with the system, having read about it at length here, in the Bentley, and on Art's site. I've confirmed that the relay is good and that the switch on the shift lever is good. This afternoon I got under the car and spent a couple frustrating hours. Basically, the insulation on all wires crumbled in my hands no matter where I touched it. I removed the wire bracket clamp near the solenoid and scraped a little insulation off so I could see if I was getting any current there... test light said no. I traced that wire back to the bullet connector on the other side of the transmission.. according to my tester, no voltage into that connection, either. Remember, the relay and the switch are good, and the dash indicator light works correctly. When I disconnect the bullet connecter, about 4" of insulation came off in my hands on the solenoid side of the wire... sigh. In frustration, I connected everything back together, taped up all the newly exposed bare wire I could get at, and gave up. Guess what... I drove the car just to make sure it was still at least driveable, and the overdrive works now. Go figure.

OK, here's the question.. obviously, the solenoid isn't bad if the system is working now. However, the wiring is totally shot. Since there isn't any way to attach new wire directly to the solenoid, at least none that I can see, should I splice in new wire as close to the solenoid as I can, terminate the other end w/ a new bullet connector, and then replace the wire from the other end of the bullet connector up to the connection by the shift lever? (It's an automatic car). AND.. how the heck to you get the knob off the top of the gear selector so I can remove the plastic cover plate completely and gain access to the wiring down in there? I couldn't find any mention of removing the top of the lever in the Bentley.

OR... should I just replace the solenoid anyway? Is the wire harness that goes from the selector to the bullet connector available?

Thanks in advance for any insight. You folks were great helping me with the first car.. couldn't have done it without you.

Barry