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57 Hydramatic Rebuild issues?

Started by Ed Eckhart #12747, January 22, 2017, 03:05:21 PM

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Ed Eckhart #12747

Since I am looking at a rebuild on my 57 Hydramatic, I read with interest the recent thread on 56 Hydramatic issues. It was stated in that thread that 56 transmissions had problems, and …“by 58 they were reliable”. I am presuming from this statement that 57's also had problems. I’m hoping to learn enough to ask the right questions about a 57 rebuild, so if there are specific problems with that year, parts to be upgraded or Hydramatic issues in general, your input would be much appreciated.

Ed E.

Walter Youshock

Took me 3 tries over about 20 years to finally get a proper rebuild...

'56 was the worst.  '57 was slightly improved.  By '58, most of the bugs had been worked out of the original design.

Which model car fo you have?  If it's a "Q" engined car then some of the internal parts are specific to the higher output of the engine.  Also, 1957 had an external fluid cooler.  It was moved to the lower radiator for 1958.

Best advice is to find the best shop with the oldest mechanics who are familiar with these.  There's no real need to replace it with a newer version unless it is physically damaged or nobody can rebuild it.

Are you experiencing problems with it?
CLC #11959 (Life)
1957 Coupe deVille
1991 Brougham

Ed Eckhart #12747

Walter, I have a Series 62 Convertible Coupe with the single 4 barrel carb 365. Experiencing major fluid leakage and shifting/downshifting problems. Have had all linkage adjustments checked per shop manual, and TV rod several times. Had 5 years of trouble-free shifting prior to last year. Don't know the history of the car prior to when I bought it to know if it was ever rebuilt. Thanks for your insight.

Ed

Walter Youshock

Most likely needs to be resealed with new gaskets.  I'd have it done before damaging anything like a sprag.

The problem seems to occur when inexperienced people try to reassemble it and do it incorrectly...  that happened to me.  Eventually, a few bushings got chewed up...

Where are you located?
CLC #11959 (Life)
1957 Coupe deVille
1991 Brougham

TJ Hopland

Sounds just like the 57 I dealt with last year.  It had been doing a lot more sitting than driving with the previous owner but it had to have leaked for him too,  there was a pan under it in his garage and a couple quarts in the trunk.   He was in bad shape in a nursing home so we didn't get a lot of details from the family.  When we first started driving it it shifted OK and just left drops overnight but after a while it started leaving puddles and the shifts got inconsistent.    Shop said pretty much every seal was rock hard and the clutch frictions were glazed as well as a couple bushings were pretty worn.   They said if we had kept driving it it could have got real expensive.   We got away with a standard kit and a bushing kit.   Apparently it was common for those to wear some of the bushings.

I didn't ask the shop about specific updates on that one.  I have had several transmissions done at the shop before this one and on the others they always did any update that was available.
StPaul/Mpls, MN USA

73 Eldo convert w/FiTech EFI
80 Eldo Diesel
90 CDV
And other assorted stuff I keep buying for some reason

Ed Eckhart #12747

Walter,

I am in the Dallas, Texas area. I do have a rebuilder experienced in Hydramatics, but I was curious to know if there are any issues specific to the 57 that I should be asking about. Thanks,

Ed E.

Walter Youshock

If he's familiar with them then he should know their quirks.  I'd say the most important thing is put it back together EXACTLY the way it came apart.  The last guy I had work on mine knew exactly what was wrong when he took it apart...  it wasn't reassembled right.

Only other thing I can think of is the sprags.  For some reason, they tended to break with no warning--hence my first rebuild.
CLC #11959 (Life)
1957 Coupe deVille
1991 Brougham

savemy67

Hello Ed,

There is nothing peculiar to the '57 transmissions that isn't also applicable to the '56 or '58 transmissions, speaking strictly from a design standpoint.  In your case, you may want to consider approaching the rebuild from two perspectives.  One perspective is to consider that the transmission is old, and parts like seals, clutch plates, and bushings may need to be replaced.  The other perspective is to consider that '56 was the first year of the Controlled Coupling Hydra-Matic, and GM had "teething" problems with components such as the front coupling unit, and the sprags.  As Walter mentioned, initial material and build quality issues were mostly resolved by '58, but your '57 could be "afflicted" with parts from the factory that weren't quite up to snuff.

It may take a full day or two, but you might want to research this transmission, not only on Cadillac forums, but on Oldsmobile, Pontiac, Hudson, and Nash forums.  Also, you may want to contact Autotran.us or Fatsco, and ask them what parts are most often bought for your type of transmission.

The patents for the Controlled Coupling transmission were filed in 1953 if I recall correctly.  The transmission was produced for nine years - 1956 through 1964 - as a passenger car transmission, so hundreds of thousands were built.  Some consider it the most complex and expensive transmission GM manufactured in the 20th Century.  Good luck with your rebuild.

Respectfully submitted,
Christopher Winter
Christopher Winter
1967 Sedan DeVille hardtop

Walter Youshock

Oh...  and no matter how well it is rebuilt or refreshed, you may always notice (if you haven't already) a roughness between 2nd and 3rd gear.  It is the nature of these beasts.  TV rod adjustment is critical and very picky on these.
CLC #11959 (Life)
1957 Coupe deVille
1991 Brougham

TJ Hopland

The 2-3 shift is the one where every element has to change state so there is a lot (6 elements) going on that has to happen perfectly timed.  The front section is sort of your 1st and 2nd gear then the rear section is your low and high range so 1 and 2 is the front with the rear in low then 3 and 4 is front in 1 and 2 again with the rear in high so to get there the front has to drop down while the rear shifts up all at the same time. 

Fatsco seems to be a major supplier that has all the typical wear parts. 
StPaul/Mpls, MN USA

73 Eldo convert w/FiTech EFI
80 Eldo Diesel
90 CDV
And other assorted stuff I keep buying for some reason