The Ford Barn

shew01 · 08-03-2020, 04:52 PM

I purchased my 1931 Victoria (my first Model A) about a year ago, and, over the weekend, the transmission (or the clutch or maybe something else) developed a new noise that sounds/feels like a piece of metal flying around in the gearbox or the bell housing. (The sound reminds me of a marble flying around in a clothes dryer, ricocheting off something.) The noise is NOT a steady grind or drone. I can often feel the random noise in the clutch pedal. Sometimes, I can feel the noise in the stick shift as I pass through neutral. This occurred while I had the car out of town. I drove it home about 150 miles (mostly around 40-45 MPH), and the noise came and went along the way. I don't notice any difference in power or acceleration.

The previous owner converted the transmission to a 1984 Ford Bronco top loaded, manual, Tremec T170 synchronized transmission with overdrive and a Model A (not AA) bell housing. The torque tube and the rear radius rods have been shortened to accommodate the replacement transmission. I don't know if the drive shaft was shortened or not, but I presume it was since the torque tube was shortened. Please see http://www.fordgarage.com/pages/TremecT170FT.htm for more information about the transmission, if you like.

I usually notice the noise in third or fourth gear. It's rare to hear the noise in first or second. When the noise occurs, I can usually press in the clutch, and the noise will at least change and usually go away. Once I stop the car, the noise usually will be silent for quite some time. I may drive 15-20 miles without hearing the noise at all.

I've heard that a number of things can "sound" like a transmission issue, even a differential. I know very little about manual transmissions. I've never worked on one, except to adjust the clutch.

So far, this is what I have done.

1. Removed the floor board

2. Removed the filler plug from the T170 transmission

3. Drained the T170 transmission (by using a tool to suck the fluid out through the filler hole because there is no drain plug in this particular transmission--I didn't see any metal shavings in the fluid, I did see a bunch of little air bubbles in the fluid, but I assume that is normal)

4. Removed the inspection plate from the bell housing (I didn't see anything loose while looking through the hole in the bell housing)

5. Used a magnetic tool to see if I could fish any metal chunks out of the transmission through the filler hole (I did not find any loose metal)

6. Used the magnetic tool to see if I could fish any metal chunks out of the bell housing (no loose metal was found)

7. Used a borescope (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borescope) to peer into the filler hole and the bell housing--I didn't see broken gear teeth or loose parts

What suggestions do you have?

08-03-2020, 04:52 PM	#1
shew01 Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: Roanoke, VA USA Posts: 1,908	Tremec T170 Transmission Troubles (this issue may be a puzzle) I purchased my 1931 Victoria (my first Model A) about a year ago, and, over the weekend, the transmission (or the clutch or maybe something else) developed a new noise that sounds/feels like a piece of metal flying around in the gearbox or the bell housing. (The sound reminds me of a marble flying around in a clothes dryer, ricocheting off something.) The noise is NOT a steady grind or drone. I can often feel the random noise in the clutch pedal. Sometimes, I can feel the noise in the stick shift as I pass through neutral. This occurred while I had the car out of town. I drove it home about 150 miles (mostly around 40-45 MPH), and the noise came and went along the way. I don't notice any difference in power or acceleration. The previous owner converted the transmission to a 1984 Ford Bronco top loaded, manual, Tremec T170 synchronized transmission with overdrive and a Model A (not AA) bell housing. The torque tube and the rear radius rods have been shortened to accommodate the replacement transmission. I don't know if the drive shaft was shortened or not, but I presume it was since the torque tube was shortened. Please see http://www.fordgarage.com/pages/TremecT170FT.htm for more information about the transmission, if you like. I usually notice the noise in third or fourth gear. It's rare to hear the noise in first or second. When the noise occurs, I can usually press in the clutch, and the noise will at least change and usually go away. Once I stop the car, the noise usually will be silent for quite some time. I may drive 15-20 miles without hearing the noise at all. I've heard that a number of things can "sound" like a transmission issue, even a differential. I know very little about manual transmissions. I've never worked on one, except to adjust the clutch. So far, this is what I have done. 1. Removed the floor board 2. Removed the filler plug from the T170 transmission 3. Drained the T170 transmission (by using a tool to suck the fluid out through the filler hole because there is no drain plug in this particular transmission--I didn't see any metal shavings in the fluid, I did see a bunch of little air bubbles in the fluid, but I assume that is normal) 4. Removed the inspection plate from the bell housing (I didn't see anything loose while looking through the hole in the bell housing) 5. Used a magnetic tool to see if I could fish any metal chunks out of the transmission through the filler hole (I did not find any loose metal) 6. Used the magnetic tool to see if I could fish any metal chunks out of the bell housing (no loose metal was found) 7. Used a borescope (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borescope) to peer into the filler hole and the bell housing--I didn't see broken gear teeth or loose parts What suggestions do you have? Last edited by shew01; 08-03-2020 at 04:59 PM.