Problems with 300TE
 

Hey all

I have a 1989 300TE. I recently got put in a reco M103 engine, a reco gear box, a reco steering box and got the a/c fixed.

Now after 2 months, I can see oil seeping from the rear bank where the gasket is... The tranny is still pretty damn harsh and now the idle all of a sudden is as rough as guts, especially with the a/c on.

The claim to have fixed the idle but im bringing it back next week. Also, are the trannys always like this even AFTER a reco has been done? It seems to be the same as before except it doesnt slip anymore.

Thanks

Sounds like there's a vacuum leak, the modulator valve needs to be adjusted and if what you mean by the "rear bank" is at the back of the cylinder head just above the bell housing then it sounds like the head gasket is bad. Is there any oil in the coolant or vice-versa?

A vacuum leak can cause both rough shifting and a rough idle

Hard shift and bad idle sound like a major vac leak. Check ALL the rubber hoses and connectors on the engine, they are likely quite dead by now if not replaced. Worst offenders are the idle control valve hoses.

Another possibility is the OVP relay going bad, causing erattic mixture control, or a bad O2 sensor. Check duty cycle and EHA currrent.

And check for dead engine mounts -- they will cause severe idle vibration as the engine is mounted on springs when the glycol damping fluid leaks out! Harsh shifts can also be a bad tranny mount, or bad diff mounts allowing the diff to bang. Bad flex disk is also a possiblity for the hard shifts. If it's bad, it will bang especially badly on downshifts whilst coming to a stop.

Peter