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How to manually select 4th gear (overdrive) on your A518

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Old 10-20-2019, 07:06 PM
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will chek that when i get back to the truck this week.
Old 10-20-2019, 07:15 PM
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already done, didn't work.
speedo not working. and that speedo thing on the transfercase is kind of frankenstein looking, no intention to fix that thing right now, Thats why i didn't botter with anything and got straight to a direct switch. ( i use an app on my phone to check speed)

but thats weird my orange wire is grounded by default. From what i understood from the shop manual, the solenoid get powered only when all condition are met in the circuit. So its not right as it is now... anyways i just want it to overdrive when i need it too.

I ordered a solenoid from rockauto for 39$ cdn

will install the solenoid, with a direct switch in the cab and see if works or not.
Old 10-21-2019, 04:35 AM
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I'm not sure about your truck but my 92 with the A518 would not go into overdrive unless the speedo was working.. had to fix the reducer that spins the speed sensor then all was well.
Old 10-21-2019, 05:03 AM
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Originally Posted by nonrev
I'm not sure about your truck but my 92 with the A518 would not go into overdrive unless the speedo was working.. had to fix the reducer that spins the speed sensor then all was well.
If the Speedo isn't working, the pcm won't ground the orange wire out, but he's already got a wiring issue,with a grounded orange wire , which is the strange part. If he's lucky, replacing the solenoid will fix him up....
Maybe his solenoid burned up being energized all the time

Unlike myself, who had to have the trans rebuilt
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Old 10-21-2019, 06:44 PM
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Originally Posted by NJTman
If the Speedo isn't working, the pcm won't ground the orange wire out, but he's already got a wiring issue,with a grounded orange wire , which is the strange part. If he's lucky, replacing the solenoid will fix him up....
Maybe his solenoid burned up being energized all the time

Unlike myself, who had to have the trans rebuilt
that's what i think too.
how much you paid for the rebuilt?


And yes why not repair the speedo thing after all. anybody got a link where i can find the parts?
Old 06-08-2020, 03:42 PM
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Originally Posted by NJTman
Much better clarification for us old folks 😊

Splice a wire into the orange, run it into thecab, to a switch, the other side to ground. Obviously, I don't,have to tell you to plug it back in.

Drive on a road, surpassing 35mph. Flip the switch. Does 4th engage? If not, solenoid is either bad, or defect internal in trans. At least at that point it provides you a starting point at which to begin.

If it works, then you'll have to explore the harness back to the com to see if its damaged, or pinched, grounding the wire somewhere.


Btw... Your Speedo is working, right?


All of this is great information and this works great but I have one question. If I forget to flip the switch back before the tranny wants to downshift , What will happen to the tranny ?
Old 06-09-2020, 08:39 PM
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Originally Posted by Mr-rookie29
All of this is great information and this works great but I have one question. If I forget to flip the switch back before the tranny wants to downshift , What will happen to the tranny ?
I had the same question. Buddy sent me to learn how a torque converter works, cleared up my concern. I forget to take it out of OD and it just lags around 30-50mph range reminds me to take it off.
Old 06-10-2020, 10:18 AM
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According to my transmission manual, OD can't occur until it is in 3rd gear. The valve body prevents it. If your concerned about it, I'd install a pressure switch in the governor port. Hooked in series, it will give you a minimum speed upshift to OD.
Old 06-10-2020, 10:44 AM
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Originally Posted by cougar
According to my transmission manual, OD can't occur until it is in 3rd gear. The valve body prevents it. If your concerned about it, I'd install a pressure switch in the governor port. Hooked in series, it will give you a minimum speed upshift to OD.
It normally doesn't, but if you bypass the tps, it 100% will shift 1,2,4. The OD solenoid is separate from the valve body, my understanding is that the trans doesn't know the difference between 3 and 4th (OD) except that the electronic OD solenoid releases and allows spring tension to engage 4th.
Old 06-11-2020, 10:10 AM
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It is going through 3rd, it happens so fast you don't notice it. OD gets its hydraulic pressure through the 3rd gear valve. The only thing keeping OD from happening at that point is the solenoid.
Old 06-12-2020, 05:52 AM
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Originally Posted by ScubaSteveCA
It normally doesn't, but if you bypass the tps, it 100% will shift 1,2,4. The OD solenoid is separate from the valve body, my understanding is that the trans doesn't know the difference between 3 and 4th (OD) except that the electronic OD solenoid releases and allows spring tension to engage 4th.
That is why I am asking. I bypassed the tps and didn’t know if something bad would happen to the transmission if I didn’t flip the switch back off so the overdrive kicks out before it went to 2nd
Old 06-12-2020, 11:07 AM
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Premature wear on the bands and clutches.
Old 06-12-2020, 11:11 AM
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Originally Posted by Mr-rookie29
That is why I am asking. I bypassed the tps and didn’t know if something bad would happen to the transmission if I didn’t flip the switch back off so the overdrive kicks out before it went to 2nd
No because your torque converter is not coupled when your foots off the accelerator. Thats my understanding. Not a transmission guru, but I did a fair bit of research before I put my OD on a footswitch.
Old 06-12-2020, 11:14 AM
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Originally Posted by cougar
Premature wear on the bands and clutches.
Can you explain this? Because it seems that using the transmission downshift to slow down would actually cause more wear?
Old 06-13-2020, 11:12 AM
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Originally Posted by ScubaSteveCA
Can you explain this? Because it seems that using the transmission downshift to slow down would actually cause more wear?
I've been sitting here thinking of how to explain how this works in simple terms. In an automatic transmission, gears have no teeth. The transfer of power is dependent on friction applied by clutches and bands. The amount of friction depends on the amount of hydraulic pressure applied to the pistons and servos operating the clutches and bands. Like all hydraulic pumps, pressure is produced by RPM. The higher the RPM, the higher the pressure. At a normal idle speed, the pump doesn't produce enough pressure to apply much force on the clutches and band resulting in little friction if set to manufacturers specs. Increase the RPM and pressure increases and then does friction. It is this friction that wears your clutches and bands. Now think along these lines. Friction is the difference between something moving and something not. At a stop, all of the moving force (engine torque) is applied to a non moving force (stopped) = max friction. In a decelerating or compression braking situation engine RPM is high and so would be the hydraulic pressure applied to the clutches and bands. Question: how much torque do you need to apply to break the applies friction thus causing slip? Or, how much friction are you creating by simply increasing RPM or upping the line pressure? Hope this helps.
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