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Willys

Tramsmission wouldn't couldn't move car .....

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Hi guys, I just returned after a 2 1/2 week time span from driving my Smart, vacationing in England......when I left the weather was spring, green grass etc etc...but when i returned it was 6" of ice and snow. I heated smart up using block heater etc etc, started ok, allowed it to idle for a while, then went to move her back...she wouldn't move! Sounded like the tramsmission simply wasn't strong enough to move the car? It would rock it back and forth so not frozen to ground. It couldn't climb small mound of snow to get free. It wouldn't spin tires either to try?   Oh when it first started altenator was siezed I think as the belt screamed at me until I stopped and started it a few times and it freed itself and now is fine......But after many many attempts at freeing it'self it finally did and I allowed it more time to warm up idling in driveway before risking it on the street. Went for short spin around block, seems perfect now?

Why...????
What causes this and what did i do wrong or what can i do to not do this again?

What went wrong with transmission or was it the engine or anti skid mechanism stopping it? 

I'm sort of lost for an explanation as my first thought it was frozen to ground which makes more sense but it rocked a good 6"....back and forth.....

Here's hoping someone has had this happen and can shed some light onto the issue..

Thanks

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Chances are, it is not a transmission problem.

 

If your car had been left in a damp environment with parking brake on,  it could be that the rear brake drums and pads have stuck together.  (it doesn't take long)  Smarts (diesels in particular) do NOT like to sit for long periods of time, particularly in damp conditions with the parking brake on.

 

Solution that I used on the last car I encountered with this problem (a friend in Waterloo) was to hook up a tow line to another vehicle and have a driver in the smart with the car in gear press on the "go pedal" while the tow vehicle pulls in the same direction.  If you are on solid ground, it "should" break free.

 

The only thing that makes me wonder if the above diagnosis is correct is where you said  "it rocked a good 6"....back and forth....."  If the brakes were stuck, in theory, the car shouldn't move at all.

 

I'm sure others will chime in with their suggestions, but this is the first thing that came to mind when you posted the problem.  Good luck with it.

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Thanks, that was my first thought also, but it rocked so that like you removed that thought..lol.     It runs fine now, well I haven't tried it today yet...so maybe I should speak too soon.....will check after coffee...lol.

 

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Any updates on this problem?

 

BTW, the person I referred to in post #2 (from Waterloo) only left her car for one week while she was out of town.

 

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I drove it again today and so far it seems fine again, but it does seem slow off the mark but that could also be me being used to the English cars and having to get up and running far faster than I normally do here.  It also is averaging 4litres per 100 which is pleasing me....lol. Tomorrow I'm stripping off front and rear body panels and having a close look at things as well as all wheels and power washing the entire mechanics.....just to get it clean to work on.....Then a new power/fuse block will be added to power any and all extra additions over going after the stock fuse panel....I like to keep all extra electronic items seperate from the car's electronics I'm just wierd that way...lol.  Less chance they could mess with the computer's etc if anything were to go wrong down the road.   I did notice plenty of condensation under the rear mat that covers the engine lid so to speak, puddles  of water.....so will also be looking at that.  Maybe the seal isn't good enough?  I haven't checked it but the twist clamp was correctly seated....?

 

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