[freebird]

My neighbor has just bought this car. It has a hemi V-8 in it. He needs info as to how the button works on the shifter lever.. All he has done so far is depressed the clutch, put it in drive and drove around the block. He thought the car would shift automatically after engaging drive but it did not. His thought was the button was some sort of overdrive. Of course he has not done the obvious, like checking fluids or perhaps cracked vacum lines etc. I guess first things first as to what is the proper operation of this button?
Thanks in advance guys.

 

[Stewart]

I may not understand the question.....you said push in the clutch and engage drive??? Clutch means to me it is a standard and you would have to push in the clutch to shift gears manually.
Sorry if I am not reading this right?

 

[Michael]

The '52 Chrsler had a semi automatic with a clutch and push button auto. My father had one. The precedure to drive the car was push the clutch in and place in gear and then release the clutch and drive away. Its kind of strange to us today with fully automatics with computer controls but you were the computer 52 years ago. When you came to a stop you pushed in the clutch and then released it to go again. Shifting gears you did not push the clutch, you just selected the next gear. The semi-automatic should be a 2 speed so the driver should select low and then drive to make it work properly.

 

[freebird]

So the button the at the end....I guess you should push it in in order to move the selector? Thanks for the response.

 

[Stewart]

Sorry I am not up on that type of tranny, sounds interesting. Thanks Michael!!

 

[freebird]

I was just reading on another forum that the button could have been for forcing a downshift like when you go around a corner. Thanks for the responses again!

 

[johnbron]

:smoking:
If I remember right the button was used for down-shifting if needed while passing much like todays throttle passing gear.

Funny to see this post about a 52-Saratoga cause I have a full set of original like new hubcaps for a 51/52 Saratoga.