Leaderboard

88 and 89 use square column, the end of the cylinder has the gear on it that activates the rack, on other gm cars with that column, the rack would crack and the .key would bind. 90 and 91 use the traditional round gm column and you don't have the rack breaking issue, and those have the vat system

Yes, unlocked you just have an old style tranny with O/D. Is generally worth about a 500 rpm drop (the 3%) and best MPG with most 3-4 liter engines is 1900-2000 rpm at 70 mph.

I agree with that. Before deciding to run the converter unlocked for extend periods, I went to a local transmission shop that has been in business for years and asked the owner his opinion on running the converter unlocked. He was in agreement with you about more heat being generated due to the converter slipping. He recommended a transmission cooler to help dissipate the extra heat. I installed a rather large cooler you that see below to make sure heat wouldn't be a problem. I also asked him if driving with the converter unlocked would do damage to the converter by not going through the normal lockup cycle. He said he saw no reason why it would so I feel pretty safe in running the transmission with the converter unlocked.

I am so glad that these photos have received so many views and many positive comments. My father was a true "car guy", loved cars and enjoyed working working on them and sharing everything he knew about cars. Even though he passed away, he lives on forever every time when I see a Reatta driving down the street. The uniqueness of the Reatta has made it a true classic collector's car.

I agree Ronnie. Where I have noted similar behavior to what you describe is in the southwest part of the state. This area was beyond the extent of the glacier and parts are called the driftless area, leftovers of what was carried alone. I have quite a few relatives from that part of the state, 150-200 miles away. I can simply drive without overdrive but that is wasteful and doesn’t seem to be necessary. Keeping the rpm above 2000 under high load seems to be just fine.

I guess that might be a reason the switch for the TCC might not matter as much to you as it would to me. My area is much different. It is relatively flat here in the TN Valley where I live but in just a short drive things can change a lot. For example, the Cherohala Skyway (below) and other places in the hills and mountains of East TN are much different. A converter kicking in and out as you get on the brakes and than back on the gas can be irritating and distract from the fun of driving up and down hills and around curves. I think I would really like the extra power you have when I'm driving in the mountains. I believe it would really improve the fun factor. ?

Cberry1962 was kind enough to send me all his father's photos. the must be about a hundred of them. Cberry1962 has already post the ones that most people would be interested in. Most of the ones that haven't already been posted are of views of pieces of the car as they were being developed. I intend to post some more of the photos when I get time to scan them into my computer so they can be posted here.

These are absolutely amazing

Just noticed this post. The photos are great and thankfully preserved pretty well for cell phone shots of old Kodak print. (I printed the two showing the "inards" of the door - may allay some fear of replacing that exterior door handle.) Pride goes both ways - Cberry1962 can be proud of his father for his part in engineering this fabulous vehicle, and, I'm sure Cberry1962's father is proud of him for sharing these photos with a bunch of people that like to see the Reatta carry on.

Thank you for sending me the photos. They are much appreciated. I hope you will come back and visit us often.