No, not television, throttle valve.

Mine looks like this:



I'm assuming it's stock since everything else on the car has been. By pressing in the block that the arrow is pointing to, you release the tension and can "set" the cable. If you do that by pressing the block and rotating the throttle to WOT, then releasing the block, the car won't shift out of first - at least not at any reasonable speed. I adjusted by trial and error to get it to where it drives well, but I'm concerned that it's not set correctly and I'll end up eating the trans.

I already tried to call BowTie Overdrives and was surprised that the guy was actually quite rude, cut me off before I could explain anything and told me their page was titled "tv made easy" because it's so simple. Since what's on my car doesn't match what is on their page I had hoped to get some help, but I know one place for sure that I won't be calling when it comes time to go through the trans!

 

Press that button and while you have the button pressed, move the ratchet bracket back towards the fire wall, then release the button. NOW slowly open the throttle and listen for the clicks all the way to WOT, your done.

 

Time to go try that and do a road test

Thanks!

 

That did the trick, thanks again!

 

Enjoy the summer

 

at what speed did it shift to overdrive? make sure it is not to low speed or it will destroy the 3-4 clutch pack.

 

At full throttle or at in-town putt-putt speeds? I haven't held it down long enough for it to get into OD at full throttle.

 

just regular acceleration. on a open road just slow down let it down shift in to third and just accellerate normally. should shift to overdrive between 40 to 44. its personal preferance but below 40 the line pressures will be low and the engine will lugg and cause damage to the clutch pack. if u search on here there is actually a chart with pressures and speeds on shifts. also i think there is a chart in the fsm also. just saying make sure it isnt to low.

 

Thunderstorms tomorrow so I'll check that out on Sunday. Thanks!

 

Thank you so much for the pictures and information in this thread. I had some transmission issues and thought it may be a goner. I didn't understand the TV cable or adjustment until I read this and now, everything is PERFECT! I actually removed my cable and hit the adjuster and let it fully retract, then put it back on the TB and went to WOT and listened for the "clicks." I did it three times to make sure it was the same amount of clicks. Shifts REAL GOOD now. Before, my 3rd and 4th seemed to "hunt" a lot.

My 85 is shifting perfectly thanks to all the great information I've learned so far.

P.S. I know I need to get a FSM. I'm working on it.

 

Glad you found it helpful!

 

That's my cable, too. How many clicks put it in the correct position? Or how far does the tip of the casing stick out through the adjuster hole? Is your TV spring and valve stock/original?

 

Thats not exactly accurate...
Remember there are many things that effect the TCC system and when it shifts and how.

the adjustment procedure is perfect but the setting is a bit low.

If you start in 4th (OD) and drive as normal the auto-upshift into OD should be at 50-55 mph. If yours is upshifting below 50 mph then its overloading the trans clutches and THAT will wear them out besides lugging the engine too much.

When properly adjusted the trans will upshift as it was designed to and allow higher rpm before upshift depending on where your foot is.

Ex: if you are easy on the gas it will upshift at a lower rpm, if you floor it the upshift will be delayed and it won;t upshift until near the red-line...just depends on your foot.

You CAN drive in-town with the stick in OD. The difference is the TCC. Torque Converter Clutch. Thats electronic and controled by the TV cable and the stick. The ECM is the manager of the trans TCC, so temp, rpm, vehicle speed, TPS and other things are considered for proper TCC operation. The TV cable is about the only 'manual' part of the system.

When you are in 4th the TCC waits to lock-up the TC so the shifts are softer and smoother. Has to be over 130 degrees too. It won;t bog a cold engine.
If you drive in-town in 3rd, the TCC will lock-up the TC sooner for a "direct-drive" or positive drive. The TC will stay engaged when decellerating all the way as low as 900 rpm OR until you touch the brakes....for added engine braking. The brake pedal will immediately disengage the TCC so the engine does not stall during decelleration.

TCC is not well understood by most owners. Its a simple but unique feature to give the auto-trans the feel of a stick when you are playing street racer in 3rd or it allows you to maximize the cars comfort with smooth shifting if you leave it in 4th..
Either way, letting it upshift @ 45 mph is too low and will cause premature wear.
If you have doubts, look at the rpm when its in 4th right at upshift..then look at a chart that has the HP and torque curves...at 45 your engine (rpm in 4th) is not even in the power band, its right at the edge. If its lugging thats bad. If it tries to downshift with any increase in throttle...its set too low.
Adjusting the slide (TV) by one or 2 clicks (about 1mm ea) is all thats necessary. Engine off, after adjustment simply open the throttle wfo and close. It is pretty simple. TV cables do stretch with time and wear so the upshifts may become softer and sooner very slowly..not noticable until the trans starts "hunting" for a gear because it can;t pull the high gear but the next lower gear tries to wind out too far...then its definately time for adjustment. Its less of an issue for those that drive in-town in 3rd, and do their OD upshift manually. For those of us that want the softer shifting in-town or in traffic, it needs to be set right so we're not stressing the engine and drive-train under high load, low rpm.

 

Leesvet, thanks for the great explaination, I didn't agree with the previous described method of holding the button in while going to WOT, but I think they meant to say to push the button and pull the cable back, then release and go to WOT. I guess I don't understand why some sat to go to WOT by hand and some use the gas pedal, don't know why that would make any difference, unless the pedal isn't set right, then would you have higher pressure at low speeds? My issue is I set the cable to WOT and I need to then back it back out toward the firewall a few clicks or the trans stays in 1st or 2nd (I think the shift from 1st to 2nd is so light sometimes I can't tell it's in 2nd until I manually downshift). After I do this re-set, it shifts good, but if I floor the gas I will probably lose my setting again. I am assuming that is low pressure when it doesn't shift. I am also wondering if this means the cable (aftermarket square button) is wrong, or something is wrong with the TV spring, or ??

 

Tonight I popped the governor cover off and took a look. I remember the guy I bought it from telling me "it's not a governor issue, it needs to be rebuilt, according to a friend of mine who knows about transmissions". What I found was the governor gear was "apple cored" only in one spot. It looks like it stopped turning, or was stuck and didn't turn at some point. It's turning freely now, but I don't understand, looking at it, what the springs do. The "ears" just flap loose and the springs don't seem to do anything?? Anyone have any ideas why my gear would be flat in one spot only? And I'm wondering now how I got it to shift the few times I did, maybe the gear engaged for a few revolutions?