Hi I have a 56 mercury auto 2 speed.question is when it is drive is it suppose to shift?Or just stay in that gear.Only have drive and low on indicater.
ThanksbBob

The Fordomatic (or Mercomatic in your case) is actually a 3-speed transmission. If you leave the shift selector in the drive position, the transmission will start out from a stop in 2nd gear and shift once to 3rd gear. If you move the shift selector to the Low position, it will start and stay in low until you move the selector to the drive position when it will shift to 2nd or 3rd depending on the speed when you make the shift.

In the "good old days" when we were kids and I had a 57 Ford similar to the one I own today, I would start in low and floor the accelerator to 30 or 40 MPH, then shift to drive with the pedal still on the floor, then shift immediately back to low which would "lock" the transmission in 2nd gear until you would shift again from low to drive at a higher speed (usually around 70) and the transmission would shift from 2nd to 3rd. I don't do that any more since I no longer get in drag races, but it worked at the time.

Regards,
Dave

Also, if you ":Floor it" when stopped it will automatically go into low


54 Victoria 312;  48 Ford Conv 302, 56 Bird 312
Forever Ford
Midland Park, NJ

I don't think mine is doing that 70 mph is when it shifts?is there a way to check to see if it shifts mabe an adjustment? Any ideas?

You can adjust the length of the rod between the bellcrank on the intake manifold and the transmission to change the shift points.  That 70 mph shift is a forced shift, in normal driving the shift at light throttle is somewhere in the 15-30 mph range, it varies with throttle position.  At full throttle it will probably be in the 50 mph area.

John - "The Hoosier Hurricane"

The following shift point information is from a Fordomatic shop manual that covers 1956-1957 model years. I assume that the Mercury transmission would be very similar in shift point speeds. I would copy the entire shift point table, but can't seem to manage posting pictures.

The 1956 shift points for 272 and 292 engines is dependent also on the axle ratio:

3.22 axle ratio
1-2 shift at max throttle is 34-42 MPH
2-3 shift at min throttle is 12-20 MPH
2-3 shift at max throttle is 60-67 MPH

3.55 axle ratio
1-2 shift at max throttle is 32-38 MPH
2-3 shift at min throttle is 11-18 MPH
2-3 shift at max throttle is 54-61 MPH

The shift point speeds I was describing earlier were indeed a manual or forced shift and not the automatic transmission shift points.

Hope this helps.
Dave

So it should shift into the finel gear about 35 mph or 40. Do I have to lengthen it or short ton the rod?Is there a adjusting nut or how do you adjust? Sorry for all the questons never had to do this before.Should be able to feel it shift right?
Thanks Bob

Did that too in my '65 Mustang.  I don't remember what speed I shifted at.  I did it by ear.  I don't do it anymore either because I no longer have the car or that kind of tranny.



Mark

1956 Mercury M100
1955 Ford Fairlane Club Sedan
Delta, British Columbia

According to the above chart, under light throttle it should be in high gear at 20 mph or less.  To adjust the rod, you loosen a jam nut at the clevis on the top of the rod, take the clevis off its lever and turn it.  Go easy.  A full turn will make a significant change in shift speed.  But we need to know, is the car taking off in 3rd gear, or is it taking off in 2nd and failing to shift to third?  If it is shifting at a very low speed, the shift will be very soft, maybe not noticeable.  If you suspect this is the case, lengthen the kickdown rod and try again.

John - "The Hoosier Hurricane"

So I back off the kick down lever 1 full turn ? Lol I don't no what I'm starting off in just seems like the motor is running to many rpms at 55 don't have a tack just seems like it should shift ?No it's not in low put it in low and low is low.
Thanks Bob