No reverse!

[Troy]

My 76 Power Wagon (440/727/NP205) made a little popping sound when I shifted to reverse and now it won't go. I have talked to a couple guys and it sounds like it may be the band. I'm assuming this is not an easy fix? Any suggestions?

Troy

[A383Wing]

yup...sounds like a band broke...you will probably find the adjuster piece laying in the bottom of the pan...

I guess ya gotta take the trans out and apart to replace it...

[694spdRT]

I have lost reverse in at least three 727's and one 518 plowing snow. The forward gears followed rather quickly in mine.

Someone must have swapped the 727/NP205 combo? Is it a divorced or married setup? I was pretty sure that all 75-79 trucks had a full time NP203 case which requires a special tailhousing. You probably already know this but "big block" 727's never came from the factory with the NP205 rear tailpiece in the married combo so hold on to that one and have it fixed.

[Cooter]

Low/Reverse Band is in the back IIRC, and the trans will have to come out and down to repair...

[A383Wing]

just for info here and in case anyone cares....

we had a 68 Barracuda with slant 6 and auto trans....wife broke 3 reverse bands in the time we owned it over 12 years....found out why....

where she parked it was nose down in our driveway under the deck...she would go out in the morning, start it up, and put it in reverse and go to work....the trans shop said she should start car when cold, then put it in drive first, then shift to reverse and pull out of driveway. Shop said sudden reverse engagement at cold start RPM was cause of reverse band breaking....

we followed instructions and never had another issue with trans

[oldkimmer]

....U may have just broke the rear servo.........pull off the pan and have a look .........kim.......

[ACUDANUT]

just for info here and in case anyone cares....

we had a 68 Barracuda with slant 6 and auto trans....wife broke 3 reverse bands in the time we owned it over 12 years....found out why....

where she parked it was nose down in our driveway under the deck...she would go out in the morning, start it up, and put it in reverse and go to work....the trans shop said she should start car when cold, then put it in drive first, then shift to reverse and pull out of driveway. Shop said sudden reverse engagement at cold start RPM was cause of reverse band breaking....

we followed instructions and never had another issue with trans

Very true...It also helps when starting a cold car (that's been sitting awhile), to put it into neutral and let the fluid flow where it's needed.  Then put into gear and roll on.

[Troy]

I have lost reverse in at least three 727's and one 518 plowing snow. The forward gears followed rather quickly in mine.

Someone must have swapped the 727/NP205 combo? Is it a divorced or married setup? I was pretty sure that all 75-79 trucks had a full time NP203 case which requires a special tailhousing. You probably already know this but "big block" 727's never came from the factory with the NP205 rear tailpiece in the married combo so hold on to that one and have it fixed.

Yes, everyone that sees or hears about the truck has told me the same thing. It all looks correct and has been that was for a long time as far as I can tell. I'm glad for the part-time case because it gets just over 7 mpg in 2WD but not quite 4 mpg in 4WD.

just for info here and in case anyone cares....

we had a 68 Barracuda with slant 6 and auto trans....wife broke 3 reverse bands in the time we owned it over 12 years....found out why....

where she parked it was nose down in our driveway under the deck...she would go out in the morning, start it up, and put it in reverse and go to work....the trans shop said she should start car when cold, then put it in drive first, then shift to reverse and pull out of driveway. Shop said sudden reverse engagement at cold start RPM was cause of reverse band breaking....

we followed instructions and never had another issue with trans

Cold as in not warmed up at all or just the trans? This thing doesn't go anywhere without getting warmed up. However, from what I remember, the 727 doesn't pump the fluid (right terminology?) in Park. That's why you're supposed to check the fluid level in Neutral or in gear right? So just jamming it down into Reverse and hitting that gas is probably bad (but I don't see how it's any worse than Drive in that instance). If that's the case, then the transmission is never really "warm".

Here's my issue - it's my only truck. If I go pulling the pan or otherwise disassembling anything then I have no way of getting the trans (or truck) to a shop. Of course, right now I'll have an issue getting the truck backed out of the garage (had to use a block of wood and a lever under the wheels to get it backed up to align it with the garage door). Going to talk to a recommended shop on Monday morning and hoping I can drive it over there in the afternoon. They'll rebuild mine instead of doing a swap.

Troy

[694spdRT]

Probably best to take it to the shop like you planned. Out of all the jobs I have done pulling the 727 tranny/NP203 transfer case out of my old Dodge was the worst. Unless you have the proper equipment and extra help it is rather difficult due to the weight.

[Troy]

Taking it to a recommended shop this afternoon. He says there's a possibility it can be fixed without pulling the trans but I'm fully expecting a rebuild. I think the labor to remove the thing with all the 4WD stuff will be about as much as the trans costs.

Troy

[John_Kunkel]

So just jamming it down into Reverse and hitting that gas is probably bad (but I don't see how it's any worse than Drive in that instance).Troy

The difference is the line pressure, in Reverse the line pressure is about three times higher than in the forward gears (can top 300 psi when cold) so the rear servo, band and linkage take a major hit when engaged.

While a "pop" can mean the band or linkage broke it can also be caused by the small connecting link popping out of its grooves...easy in-car fix.