Toubleshooting a bad torque converter

[383]

Thanks guys....you hit the nail on the head...I had three loose flex plate bolts...they had burs on them where the flex plate was moving around, thats why I thought they were okay... after working them for awhile I got 1 1/2- 2 turns on each to tighten them up...It's always the little things that get over on me......


PS Do you use lock tight on flex plate bolts, or does that special coating lock it in?

[This message has been edited by 383 (edited February 02, 2000).]

[MOPARCHAS]

sounds stupid but see if the TQ bolts are loose on the flywheel

[timty2]

Hey, had the EXACT same noise on my 68 Charger/440/727. It turns out the FLEX PLATE was cracked in at least 1 place, and it was the noise created when the cracked metal rubbed against itself. (Found another crack after I pulled the engine out a year later for a rebuild.)But, based on your description on the sound it makes, I also thought it was worn-out H2O bearing!

Has anyone else had this problem, and determined the cause? I read in the Mopar Chasis manual about a complicated alignment process from block to trans, with some offset dowel pins from MoPar to make any adjustments...could this problem be related to miss-alignment in this area?

[Tim_K]

Check to see if those cover shields are rattling. The one that covers the bottom half of the converter from the front, behind the engines' oil pan. Being that they're thin sheet metal, they can rattle quite well and make lots of noise. I've rarely been able to get them to be quiet once I take them out and put them back, so I just leave them out. I figure it helps to cool off the converter a little, so why not?
Also, see my article 'My first torque converter failure', which is way back in the pages, having been written several months ago.

[timty2]

Hey 383! How's it going?

Were you able to see if the flex plate was cracked or not? If it failed similar to the way mine did, the cracks should be located around or near the outside diameter, near or into the TC mounting holes. You should be able to check it without taking more than the dust shield off (which you need to check also, per Tim_K.)

Just wondering...Good Luck!

[ROWDY]

I always use lock tight after removing convertor bolts and the flex plate...they'll never come loose again,thing is they're so tight when removing them...oh well

[This message has been edited by ROWDY (edited February 06, 2000).]

[383]

Originally posted by timty2:
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Hey 383! How's it going?

Were you able to see if the flex plate was cracked or not? If it failed similar to the way mine did, the cracks should be located around or near the outside diameter, near or into the TC mounting holes. You should be able to check it without taking more than the dust shield off (which you need to check also, per Tim_K.)

Just wondering...Good Luck!
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I checked it..the bolts were just loose...no cracks...I got off easy this time...Thanks for the help...you guys nailed it down

Rob