limited power on 300d

[sherminator]

Hello,

I recently bought a '77 300d (174k) and have noticed a few things I am curious about.
First of all, when I accelerate the transmission sometimes overrevs and then clunks if I hit the throttle too hard, this only happens between 1st and 2nd gear it seems. I have learned not to go easy when acceleratign and can completely avoid this. Also, it doesnlt seem like the transmission shifts again when I reach around 60mph, should it? The top speed is about 65 but I don't have a tach and it sounds like the rpms are getting real high at this point. Which brings me to my last question: the car is very slow, it takes all day to reach driving speed, previous owner says compression is low in 3 of 5 cylinders and it burns about a quart of oil every 1000 miles. What can I or the shop do to get some more power out of this thing? Even if it means spending some $.

I would greatly appreciate feedback on any of the items mentioned.

chris

[barry123400]

I would do a compression check of that motor and perhaps a blow down check in case it was valves. If some of the adjustable valves were tight you might get low compression as well. Check them first.

[sherminator]

the valves were adjusted about 3000 miles ago so they should not be an issue. previous owner had compression test and revealed compression for 3 of the cylinders in the lower 200's as I recall...

[Mike D]

Lower 200's are LOW marginal. Were the low compression cylinders all in line? If so, then a possible cause is leaking head gasket. At 174K miles you should be looking at 275 p.s.i. minimum. "Normal" good should be 300+ and fresh rebuild should be 340+.