To start off i have a 1990 RS 3.1 v6 auto. And it has issues, but i love the car and just refuse to part with it!

Ok this past weekend, my car was backed long ways into a ditch, loong story....bottomed out on the frame. Well i had it pulled out and drove it home and noticed a few odd things now.

#1 Could not get it in Park...shifter linkage was off a little. I actually bought a new cable and just replaced it. Happened because i tried rocking it back and forth between Drive and Reverse kinda quickly to try to get it out. That problem is fixed. (only stated that incase it helps with the rest of the issues)

#2 The accelerator was almost down to the floor, though it did not idle the car up. I disconnected...what is either the OD cable or Passing gear cable (connects to the same linkage above where the gas pedle linkage hooks up) and the accelerator is in its normal position now. But the tranny shifts really slowly and weak when starting up 0-45mph or so. I followed the cable that i disconnected and it hooks to the side of the tranny on the passenger side. It was not damaged externally nor was it in contact with the ground.

#3 This issue started last week. The main support bar that runs up the middle of the car (sorry dont know what its called....torque arm maybe??) the back of it bolts up just in front of the rear axle and the front runs up to around the tranny. Its held in place in the front by a mount (kind of like a motor mount) well the rubber that is suppost to surround it is GONE, its what holds it in place from what i can tell. Now if i give it more than 25% of throttle at take off it comes up and pops the floor board. Now it doesn't look like it would be TO difficult to replace, but i have NO IDEA what its called to order one. I spoke with a local Autozone and described to them what it was and they did not know either, may just be my lack of knowledge on how to describe it. Anyone know what this is called and if its easily purchased at a place like autozone?

Thanks for any help in advance!

 

That bar that you are describing is the torque arm. The rubber is called the torque arm bushing. This is something that any auto parts store should be able to locate for you. Check this link to see if this is what you're looking for.
autozone
Also, don't EVER take automotive advice from someone behind the counter at Autozone. I'm not trying to be funny. Seriously, don't.

 

that extra cable you took off the throttle linkage is the kick-down cable for the trans and it is required for proper operation of the trans put it back on now. it is adjustable. there is a block that the cable goes into up of the engine and if you press in the side square shaped button, the size of your thumb, you can move the tube shaped piece that the cable runs in. the cable should be pulled completely out when the car is a wide open throttle. if you pull on the cable you can tell when it is all the way out.

 

That smacking that you feel on the floor board at take off is most likely a bad transmission mount. Look under the car, there is a crossmember that runs under the transmission. Sandwiched between the crossmember and the transmission, is a rectangular, rubber bushing. When this fails, the transmission is no longer fastened to the crossbar, and is allowed to hit the floorboard at launch. Try to put a large screwdriver between the transmission and the crossmember and carefully pry the transmission away from the crossmember. Don't force it, but if there is any separation in the rubber in the mount, you need to replace it.

 

I didn't realize that you took off the kickdown cable. I don't know which transmission is in your car, but with mine(700-R4) you can cause transmission failure by driving the car without the cable installed. If you do have a 700-R4, it's also known as the TV cable(throttle velocity).

 

Thanks guys! I will go purchase the torque arm bushing asap and get that in there. I was trying to descibe the part to the guy at the store and he didn't know what i was talking about....

As far as the "kick down cable" do those unadjust themselves for no reason? Before this weekend and the little incident it was perfectly fine. Could i have stretched the cable or something? But i will drive it home (im at work now) which is about 10 miles, and adjust that and get it back on there. Thanks, i didn't realize how important that was! Also honestly i dont know which tranny is it...

And the smacking sound was coming from the Torque arm, because there is NO bushing left, so when you "get on it" lightly it causes it to raise up and hit the bottom. Is there any real problems installing one on these?

 

The install can be a bit of a pain. Just keep in mind that there are two different applications for the bushing depending on the type of torque arm that you have. Look at the section of the arm that fits THROUGH the bushing. You should be in front of the car looking at the front of the bushing where the torque arm is protruding through it. You will notice that the shape of the arm curves either toward the driveshaft or away from the driveshaft. The ends of the torque arm are typically referred to as the "lips". So basically when you go to buy the bushing, you need to know if the lips face the driveshaft or face away from the driveshaft. Anyway, here is a link to an install article for a '98 T/A, the procedure is the same for our cars though.
torque_arm_bushing

 

Thanks! That will help me out alot when i get the part in. I might have made a mistake and ordered the wrong one though. I didn't realize there were different ones, this is what i ordered torque arm bushing.... well i might have to order the other one instead. Also that walk through made it seem like there are two of the bushings that are pressed together. I only ordered one...I'll have to take another look at it when it comes in. Like i said the one that WAS in there is completely gone, i had nothing to reference it to. But again thanks for the hlep. As you see i really need it.

Another thing has came up, you guys helped me out by letting me know to hook the TV Cable back up and how to adjust it. It does have the small pushable thing on the cable to adjust it, and also i took it off the bracket and tried using that adjustment button as well. From what i understand the little "button" should be against the throttle lever at no throttle, and you give it throttle its suppost to "follow along"...correct me if i'm wrong. But the cable seems like it's got a bind in it. because if i tighten it against the throttle lever and try to give it gas the throttle will not move. It has no slack in it what so ever. I may just be doing this wrong or the cable could be messed up, like i said it was abused for about an hour or so while i was trying to get it out of the ditch. I have tried to find another cable, and i cannot find one anywheres (local parts place). Is this something that is easily available or is it something that i need to go junk yard divin for? Or am i just trying to do this wrong and this cable is fine. I'm still driving it without the cable installed because it wont run correctly at all....i know i need it (not that you guys told me) but i have to drive it cause the tranny is out in mt acura....further help is appreciated!

 

ok, put the tv cable back on both the bracket and hooked to the throttle linkage.....now...with the engine off reach in to the throttle linkage and push it to the wide open throttle position....did the tv cable move as well??were you able to go wide open throttle??or did the tv cable get tight before you reached open throttle??if so, loosen it using that button...ok, now..while you hold it at wide open throttle feel the tv cable...it should be tight...no slack...if it is not adjust it so when the throttle is wide open its tight..no slack, and you should be good to go...you will ruin the tranny if you don't have this cable hooked up and adjusted right...keep trying you'll get it.

 

Thanks for the word of encouragment. I got out there the other night working on it and hooked the cable up when there is no pressure on the throttle linkage. If i try to go WOT it will not move....at all. So i've tried pushing the button and trying to go wide open throttle and it still will not move. Thats why i think i binded it up somewhere. I got the haynes book out on it the other night and followed the steps the best i could (not very good with stuff like this) but i will give it another shot this weekend, because i need to get it back on there i know. Thanks again for the help.

 

Just to be clear about the adjustment: Make sure cable is hooked up to bracket and throttle lever. Push "D"-shaped button in. While still holding button, slide cable housing backwards toward the windshield. Release button. With your hand, manually open the throttle FULLY, as far as you can. Don't force it, but make sure it is fully open. When you do this, the cable housing should "wratchet" toward the front of the car into the correct position. The wratcheting action will produce an audible clicking as the cable housing slides, this is normal. It should only move about a half inch or so, but it's an important half inch. If the cable doesn't behave as described, I would assume that is has been stretched passed the allowable operating specifications and should most likely be replaced.

 

See thats just the thing, there is not enough slack in the cable to reach WOT when its hooked up. There is barely enough to get it hooked up under NO throttle. And if you try to give it has with it hooked up it just wont go or it starts to strip the adjuster. I have tried hooking it up and pressing the D-Shaped button to see if that would alow some slack but it just wont give....i honestly thing i stretched it or kinked it or something to that nature. I just cant find one to buy around here. Theres one sitting on blocks next door, might go ask them if i can buy a part off of it......

 

What do you mean it "strips" the adjuster? Keep in mind that when you open the throttle, the adjuster will "click" forward. It sounds like a harsh clicking, but that is actually the proper way the make the adjustment. It may sound like the adjuster is stripping, but it isn't. That is just how the adjuster operates. Read through my previous post to you again. With the TV cable hooked up to the throttle lever, hold the button, slide the TV cable housing backwards, then release the button. You now should not have much slack at all on the TV cable. It should feel tight. Now, at the engine, take your hand and manually open throttle lever to wide open throttle. You will feel resistance from the TV cable. Try to open it anyway. I mean don't try to force it with both hands or anything, but give it some pressure. This is the point where the adjuster is supposed to "wratchet", "click", or "strip" forward. This will NOT cause any damage to the adjuster, this is what it was designed to do. I've got to be honest with you, if you've been driving this car with that cable out of adjustment, you may end up with a situation that warrents servicing of the transmission. It of course depends on how long and how far out of adjustment it has been, but I just want you to understand that this cable is VERY important and there is potential here for transmission damage.

 

Just one more thing, If you absolutely cannot get the TV cable to advance, you may have damaged the mechanism within the transmission. The cable actually hooks onto a valve that, when moved, adjusts pressure in the trans to tell it when to shift. If that valve is somehow damaged or stuck, that cable will also be stuck being that it is connected to it. If this is the case, you should find a trans shop that will take a look for no charge. They will be able to tell you within literally two minutes if there is an issue on the transmission side of the cable. Either way, as I said earlier, if you continue to drive the car in this condition, you're taking a huge risk with your transmission. AND about the torque arm bushing, the replacement bushing comes in one piece. If you put the two pieces in the picture together, that is what the new one will look like.

 

Thanks for the help, I got the Torque arm bushing in this weekend, and it only fixed one issue. It took me 5 hours by myself to get it in there.....didnt have much room to work . It quit popping when i put it in reverse. But if i give it 25%+ throttle the tranny is whats going up and coming back down on the cross member. So i gota get a tranny mount and put in it. And about the tv cable, i just found one last night in an restore/upgrade camaro mag i have at the house. I was prob going to order one, and put in it. If the valve in this tranny is like the passing gear valve on a 350 turbo then i should be good about putting it in, i've put in about half a dozen in my old 78' camaro when i had it. But that is a good idea about taking it to a tranny shop and letting them look at it first. I think i'm going to take your advice there and do that.

 

Glad to hear that you got the bushing in, and yeah that definately sounds like the trans mount. Just a suggestion, before you order the cable from the mag, check on the price from a local auto parts shop. Typically, restoration mags will be more expensive because everything in the catelog is considered a specialty item. If its available at a parts store, you may end up saving about 15% -20% depending on the part. Anyway hope all goes well.

 

Thanks for the help! Yea thats the problem, I have checked local Autozones, Advanced Autoparts, and O'Reilies (Mostly online) and am unable to locate the cable so far. The mag. has it for 18$, so i figured it would about be my best bet. I live in a pretty isolated place, not to many part stores around here. Thinkin about gettin a part time job at autozone just to get the employee discount.....gonna need it for all the work im gonna be doin to this car.

 

OK, for $18 I wouldn't sweat it. Those stores aren't what I had in mind, but if there aren't "real" parts stores around you, I guess you have to work with what you have. Actually, working at autozone sounds pretty good because you'll have their resources available to you, and you won't have to rely on the lack of knowledge of some schmuck. Good luck with everything.