Stuck in 2nd gear?

[flash]

Is it possible for the savage to get stuck in 2nd gear? The last few times ive run, sometimes when i floor it from standstill it takes off quickly but most of the time it is pulling away quite slowly and after it picks up some speed it starts to pull again properly like it should.

Ive tried driving it slowly to hear the gear change and I usually can. Anyone any idea whether I have an engine problem or a gearbox problem?

Engine is about 6 months old (HPI F4.6), i run on sand 100% of the time so I'm sure the engine takes a beating and also i seem to be getting through alot of glow plugs. Burnt up 2 in the space of an hour last time out! i don't think its lean but i am also getting high temps, measured 280F at times. Also the oil residue on the exhaust tip is quite black/dirty, same for the dead glowplugs, black/oily

 

[Trixter]

with my experience when it bogs off the line after its at a good running temp its because the low side is too lean.when you lean an engine it will burn up glow plugs as well.try too fatten up the low side a little at a time untill it takes off good. Good luck

 

[X25]

i would do that and it probly wouldnt hurt to pull your diffs and make sure they are not full of sand.

 

[AllanQ]

Temps in the 280's is not necessarily bad. Every motor, even perfectly tuned, likes to run at a certain temps for that mill. Other things that could affect temp, besides the weather conditions is air flow to the motor for cooling. If there is not enough air passing through, this could raise temps also

When was the last time you looked at your clutches? If your clutches are worn, they may be slipping and grabbing correctly at the lower rpm's. Also check/clean the inside of your clutchbell make sure its clean and not glazed over.

Another thing to check is the tune like previously stated, lean on the bottom but too rich of a HSN setting would make the engine bog, you may want to reset the carb needles and retune. A bad tune would affect the way the tranny shifts also.

If everything else is ok you can make adjustments to the shift point easily. If you think its stuck in second, it may be shifting early, turn the adjustment screw to the right to make it shift later.

As far as why the oil is black coming out of the pipe I am not sure. the closest thing I could find is this thread by purenitro, one of the best engine modders around:
https://www.hpisavageforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7955

Maybe your front bearing is going and you are getting a lot of dirt in there. I am sure one of the smart engine guys can give you more advice.

Hope this helps you out.

 

[Grumpy1822]

Oily glow plugs is a rich sign. Your shift point may also be set too early.

 

[flash]

I recently rebuilt the truck when i put on some Fastlane LCG EXT TVP so i know that the drivetrain and diffs are good at the moment. Although the sand does seem to be tough on them as i broke a few pinion gears even after shimming. I think the first thing ill try is to reset the LSN and then tune the HSN for performance and not worry about the temp too much so long as there is still smoke. Will see how it goes after that.

 

[jcam54]

Smoke is your friend! Just make sure it is there throughout the run! If it stops midway/uptop richen it up fast!

 

[flash]

I reset the needles and re-tuned today making sure i had smoke. I think it was too lean before as there was very little smoke. I did still manage to get through 3 glow plugs however. Its seems that when it turns on its roof and i don't get to it in time to flip it back over the engine is starved of fuel as expected but because it runs really lean at this point it destroys the glow plug.

Any thought how to avoid this? Surely i shouldnt have to replace the glow plugs every time as a result of flipping it on its head and it going lean before cutting out.

One thought, i think i removed some of the spacers that go between the cooling head and the engine body not really knowing why there were 4. Now i only have one. Will the increased compression contribute to the problem I'm having?

 

[NiteRida]

If it seems "stuck in 2nd" then it's shifting too early. Get the engine up to temp. Shut it down. Make an adjustment (1/2 turn clockwise) on the 2nd gear clutch. Fire it up. Run it from a standing start (on pavement) and see if the shirt point is better. If not, repeat all previous steps.

Just went through this exact issue with one of my trucks. Seemed like it was a "new issue". One full turn got it to where it needed to be.