VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1916-1922 - Model 490 1919 490 Touring finally makes it home

Glad you got her home! I watched the vid of you driving it and have a few tips. You shouldn't have to give it very much gas at all to get moving, just a slight bit above idle is good, any more that that just wears the leather.

Thanks for the tips Bob. Since I made that video I've learned that low RPM's = smoother shifting. My standard shift experience consisted of several 70's-80's imports, so I was used to revving it.

Also be sure the wheel wedges are good and tight so the wheel won't slip inside the rim and shear off the valve stem. I have experiance with that one!

[b]Haven't checked that yet, but did pump the tires up to 65 to help avoid shearing off the stem. Now that the clutch is less grabby it should be better.
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The trans sounds a bit growly, Get some 600wt and see if it quiets down a bit. Do not rev the engine like when you pulled it in the garage. Big heavy flywheel and tiny crankshaft = not good, it puts a lot of stress on the crank which is also subjected to the 4 cyl vibrations at the same time. These engines like low RPM.

Gotcha. I'm using the throttle now a lot more than the accelerator. Using the accelerator tends to result in a lot of lurching.


It seems a bit grindy on the gear shifts, that could be the gear oil being too thin or just shifting it too fast. Take all the time the trans needs between shifts and with the right oil, gear grinding will be much less. Downshifting problems can also be created by the wrong oil or a low oil condition. My 21 490 likes to dump oil out the front shaft while running and I have to keep checking it to make sure it is full enough. Haven't figured that one out yet. One other thing, add oil in the 2 top plugs as that lubes the shifter rods and forks. Just remember one weak point is the ring and pinion and rear axles are also. Try to keep the motion smooth as jerks to the driveline just stress things. Sometimes though jerks and grinds just can't be avoided.It seems to be the nature of the beast to a point. Just getting used to it really helps and driving it around is the only way to get used to it.

Most of the grinding is caused by the clutch not releasing fully. Sometimes if RPMs are too high I can't even get it in gear. I found if it is at a slow idle it will ease into gear. I've cleaned the leather with brake cleaner and relubed with neatsfoot oil. That seemed to help, but the expanders have to be adjusted just right. They have no cotter pins, and I am unable to get one in the hole. Loctite seemed to be somewhat ineffective.

A local oil change place ( whose owner is very knowlegable of lubricants and took the time to research what I needed ) is going to take care of the trans/rearend for me. I think they may presently have 90w in them.



Before I go, I noticed the oil gauge looked a bit on the low side. Might check the lines going to the oil pump and the pump shaft packing incase it is sucking air and making the gauge read low (also pumps less oil like that). My car reads about 10 lbs cold at idle and 8-10 lbs warm going down the road. If the pump shaft doesn't leak until it is shut off it is sucking air. When you get all the little things ironed out, you will really love taking it out on the backroads and might be suprised how far you go on those little trips! Car looks great by the way!