1992 240 DL Reasons For Missing Overdrive

Maximum Turtles · Post by **Maximum Turtles** » 19 Jan 2014, 22:51

I got a used wagon (260,000 mi) a few months ago in pretty good condition, but I've been making minor fixes as I go. I was in the middle of trying to fix the overdrive, which I had determined had a faulty relay, when I found that the car's relay had been removed. I located the harness, but the overdrive relay was nowhere to be found.

I want to get the overdrive working again, but I was wondering if there was a reason for the overdrive to be missing. If someone had removed this intentionally, what kind of problems could have driven them to do so, and what dangers would I risk inserting a new relay?

I am willing to make some fixes and do some very lighting digging around to find symptoms, so any ideas you might have will be very helpful.

lummert · Post by **lummert** » 19 Jan 2014, 23:04

I'm not going to be the only one to ask this: But, what transmission?

Maximum Turtles · Post by **Maximum Turtles** » 20 Jan 2014, 01:14

4 speed automatic, can't believe I forgot to mention that.

Post by **jimmy57** » 20 Jan 2014, 07:42

One possibility: the relays often fail in way that the relay will go from OD back to third and vice versa at will with no input from button on gear lever.

Maximum Turtles · Post by **Maximum Turtles** » 20 Jan 2014, 21:25

In that possibility, would a new relay face any of these problems, or is the problem more than just a failed relay? Thanks for the response.

lummert · Post by **lummert** » 20 Jan 2014, 22:12

Seven years ago I replaced the overdrive solenoid with a bypass plate from IPD. Disabling the overdrive lock out hasn't caused any problems for me.

Maximum Turtles · Post by **Maximum Turtles** » 03 Feb 2014, 16:37

I got a cheap new relay, plugged it in and its been working fine for a couple weeks now, I'll post if there are any problems in the future.