Overdrive

[gnarly]

Hi I'm a noob with a 94 Exceed Spacegear.

I have an overdrive switch on the AT gear selector. But pushing the button does nothing interms of indicator lights nor AT shifting while driving on the highway.

Soooo , just wondering if overdrive was standard for exceeds?

Thanks in advance.

Could use O/D for better fuel consumption on pending road trips.

[Stiful]

G'day.. OD is standard on all L400 autos. The only indication on the dash is a warning light that comes on and says "OD off ". It is designed to be on ALL the time unless 4x4ing in difficult terrain where going into OD may not be a good idea. Sand, mud snow etc. It will not go into OD unless it is a a suitable speed so just leave it on all the time and don't think ' I am only doing 60 kph so maybe I should turn it off". It won't go there unless it is appropriate to do so. It is not unusual for dash lights, warning lights etc to be blown behind the dash. They are time consuming to fix but not impossible. If your OD button is not engaging, and that is common, both my L400s arrived from Japan with broken OD switches. There is a "how To fix" written by me in the "how to section" of www.delicaclub.com . Cheers..

[mycale]

yes just leave it on, that's the best bet. However, if you are fiddling with the OD while driving and you don't notice a gearing change that might indicate that the OD switch isn't doing what it is supposed to do, which means something is not working properly. OD should be changing your gearing ratio or something along those lines.

[jessef]

You can buy new OD switches.

Overdrive is useful when driving downhill and you need to gear down. Also on the highway when driving up a long hill it will keep your revs up slightly to keep your egt down.

[gnarly]

Hey thanks for the quick response.

So what I've gathered from your responses is that my switch is probably broken since there is no gearing changes when i'm switching it on and off during highway speeds. And I certainly do not see any indication lights on the instrument panel.

Where do I buy a new OD switch?

I saw the tutorial, thanks.

[jessef]

Mardy at Amazing Auto
Noel at EnviroImports
John at Rockymountainimports
Glenn at Coombs Auto

[mosquitocoast]

"OD is standard on all L400 autos. The only indication on the dash is a warning light that comes on and says "OD off ". It is designed to be on ALL the time unless 4x4ing in difficult terrain where going into OD may not be a good idea."

I'm a new owner who is also a bit confused on this point. Do you mean that overdrive is designed to be on ALL the time, or that the warning light saying "OD off" is designed to be on ALL the time.

As it stands, I have this light coming on, and I'm not sure how to disengage it (or how to engage overdrive).

[jessef]

Overdrive device is operational when the selector lever is on D position

NORMAL DRIVE
Turn the switch ON.  Changes gear from 1st to 4th automatically. Ensures economical driving performance.

HILLY DRIVE
Turn the switch OFF. Changes from 1st to 3rd automatically. Use when descending long slopes where engine braking is necessary.
NB: When the button is out it is off and an orange coloured dash warning light will state OD OFF:


Overdrive 'OD' should always be on unless you turn it off (see pic above / button at the end of the windshield wiper indicator)

When the OD light is ON, that means the OD is OFF.

Overdrive OFF is useful when going up or down steep grades.

The OD can be left on all the time, apart from when you need the extra braking assistance.

[Green1]

Overdrive OFF is useful when going up or down steep grades.

just an addition to this, Overdrive OFF is also recommended when heavily laden or towing heavy loads.

[rudy27]

My O/D light comes on and of anytime I push the switch but there is no shift poor thing is reving 4000 rpm to go 100km/h on flat ground,is there any relay or what to check??Thx.Rudy new L400 owner.

[jessef]

Sounds like either your switch is toast in which case it would need to be replaced or your TPS is way off in which case it would need to be adjusted.

[rudy27]

Thx.for speedy rep.Its there way to check the switch? the O/D OFF light comes on when I pres it its there separate circuit for indication light and another circuit to shift things in tranny??Can I feed one of the wires with 12V (bypass the switch to chek if O/D is working?)

[jessef]

I don't have the circuit schematic so I couldn't tell you

considering 99.99999% of all L400 overdrive not working problems are 99.999999% solved by replacing the switch (the whole arm), I'd recon to replace the switch.

Before you do that though, check the voltage on the throttle position sensor (TPS). There's a few detailed posts on how to do it somewhere in here.

Mine for example wasn't shifting until 4,000rpm. My TPS voltage was at 2.5v when it should have been around 0.7v
I adjusted it and it shifts like butter now

it will also vary depending on whether your timing is retarded, normal or advanced.

[djelica]

This may also be of use in tracking down your problem:

http://www.pocuk.com/forums/viewtopic.p ... t=earthing

Hope you find the answer. Please let us know what fixed the problem when you figure it out.

Darren

[rudy27]

Just checked voltage on TPS and it shows 4.5V and no change when turning TPS to adjust V so TPS must be toasted,any one knows where to get one of these??