[farna]

Okay, Martinsr will have to sit this one out a bit. What's an E-stick, and basically how did it work?

[MARTINSR]

[farna]

I figured you might know the answer right off, Brian! I bet no one else knows the answer without looking it up though. Just a day or two... then go ahead! Doesn't just pop right up in Google though...

[boothboy]

I think I know what it is but I don't or can't remember how it works. Still thinking. You probably shouldn't have excluded Brian! That got me thinking. There are three well known reasons to exclude Brian.
BB

[35terraplane]

It's the shifter on a 60-61-62- rambler with an automatic clutch

Bob

[farna]

It is the automatic clutch available on 61-63 Ramblers. Anyone have an idea of how it worked? There is one thing in particular that makes it a bit scary to most people... Brian, go ahead if you know!

[boothboy]

As I remember it used engine oil pressure but that's all I remember.
Wikipedia here I come!
BB

[farna]

It is the automatic clutch available on 61-63 Ramblers. Anyone have an idea of how it worked? There is one thing in particular that makes it a bit scary to most people... Brian, go ahead if you know!

[farna]

That's it BB! But I guess 35 Terraplane is up with the next question.

As to he E-stick, here is something I wrote in response to a remark about it a couple years ago (came up by Googling "rambler e-stick", first entry from amcyclopedia.org):

62 Rambler E-stick trans
Submitted by farna on December 30, 2010 - 11:30am.

Wow, an E-stick! Let me explain something about how this thing operates. First off the clutch works in reverse. The fork looks normal except that it's on the right side of the bell. As the fork is pushed back it INCREASES pressure on the clutch instead of releasing the clutch. There is a hydraulic servo on the right side that pushes on the fork. That servo gets power from the oil pump, which is a high volume pump. The pump body and gears are around 1/2" longer than the standard pump. There is a control valve body made into the cover. Pressure to the servo is controlled by vacuum and electric (neutral safety) switch. When vacuum suddenly goes high pressure to the servo is dropped, unless the neutral safety switch is open, "telling" the control valve that the car is in gear. Of course as engine rpm goes up so does oil pressure and pressure on the clutch increases also. There is a handle under the dash similar to an OD handle that can be pulled to put pressure on the clutch for
parking in gear and possibly push starting.

Two problems: The clutch slips a good bit on take-off by design. In heavy stop and go traffic there is a good bit of clutch wear. According to a few old-time rambler dealer mechanics they replaced clutches in those things every 2-3 years, and yearly in one case where the car was used as a big city delivery vehicle. The pressure plate lasts as long as the clutch isn't worn to the point of metal to metal contact. For a restored occasionally driven car this shouldn't be a problem.

Second problem is oil pressure. After 60-80K (depending on how well the car was taken care of) oil pressure starts to drop a bit. This decreases pressure to the clutch which causes it to slip and wear more. Hard seals in the servo due to age contributes to this. The servo has a single square o-ring seal similar to a disc brake caliper seal. Not sure how hard that would be to get.

I bought a car with an E-stick with an L-head and 80-85K on it. It had started slipping pretty bad. The seller had already purchased a standard bell and clutch linkage, so I changed it over. The E-stick uses a slightly larger diameter clutch (9-1/8" vs. 8-3/4" or 9"... forget which the standard manual used). I'm pretty sure I used the same flywheel, but can't recall 100%. The servo dripped a little oil, but not a major leak. Low vacuum may have contributed to the weak clutch also. If the engine needs rebuilding that will affect the clutch. Once rebuilt it should be fine though. Nothing special about the trans, just need the clutch and brake pedal, linkage, bell, and clutch/pressure plate to swap (might need the flywheel, but I don't think so).

[boothboy]

So to manually shift the transmission did you have to accelerate the engine or let off on the gas?
BB

[35terraplane]

It's been awhile since I have been on here, but those that know me know I like to go aways back in time.

What car in 1922 had v-8 engines. ( they might have been before 1922 not sure.) They also had a overhead cam, it was rated at 67-bhp 4.3 litre. Also all the cars had disc brakes.

Bob

[35terraplane]

I can tell you it was around a $60.00 option, but it was too complex that they never sold many. I would think it was fluid drive some how, like the old 53 Dodge we had. You would use the clutch to take off, and then shift it into high without it.

Bob

[boothboy]

Originally Posted by 35terraplane

It's been awhile since I have been on here, but those that know me know I like to go aways back in time.

What car in 1922 had v-8 engines. ( they might have been before 1922 not sure.) They also had a oerhead cam, it was rated at 67-bhp 4.3 litrev. Also all the cars had disc brakes.

Bob

American car? Was it a overhead cammed V-8?

[35terraplane]

Yes and yes

Bob

[farna]

E-stick: It was a dry disc clutch. When the car was in gear and you accelerated it engaged the clutch. The switch in the column a solenoid in the oil pump cover. When the car was in neutral (including between gears) the solenoid released oil pressure and the clutch would disengage. So you let off the gas and shifted, just like you would any manual trans car. The rise in vacuum accompanied by the tripping of the switch released the clutch, lower vacuum and the switch closed engaged the clutch. Once the clutch was engaged pressure on the clutch was strictly a function of oil pressure. As long as the shifter was in gear the solenoid would stay engaged.

It wasn't complicated at all -- it was ingeniously simple! As I said, it went through dry clutches quickly when driven in town/stop-and-go traffic a lot. In rural areas clutch life was probably satisfactory at around five years, but in city driving it could be a yearly ritual. Too much maintenance that ate up the cost difference in a few years. Most probably traded it in when the clutch started wearing down.

It was introduced in the 62 American as a low cost option to the auto trans. It was used on all six cylinder models in 63 and 64 (American and Classic, no six Ambos!). In 1962 the E-stick was a $59.50 option, compared to an auto trans at $164.85 (roughly a third of the cost). The standard three speed w/OD option was $102, and could be combined with the E-stick. That combo would be just a couple bucks short of the auto, but I have seen it! Doesn't sound like much, but a base model American 4dr sedan with the L-head six was only $1895. The auto added roughly 9% to the price, E-stick 3%. Some other 1962 facts we overlook:
Average Cost of new house $12,500.00
Average Income per year $5,556.00
Average monthly rent $110.00 per month
Renault Imported car $1,395.00
Average Cost of a new car $3,125.00
Eggs per dozen 32 cents
Gas per Gallon 28 cents
Factory Workers Average Take Home Pay with 3 dependents $94.87
That $1895 Rambler was still 34% of the average guy's yearly pay. The average US car would cost him 56% of a year. Joe Average was more than likely buying a couple year old used car as his "new" car, just like today!! I'd love to pay 28 cents for a gallon of gas, but not if I had to go back to making only $5556 a year! But then again, has anything but the numbers really changed? Bigger numbers, percentages aren't that different though.