wont shift from N

[paultracy3]

have a 99 newell with a 6 speed allison drove it 300 miles the other day to co camping in the sand dunes . parked for 3 days , fired the bus up to leave and it would not shift from neutral into drive or reverse . messed around for 6 hours checking for codes , unpluging the allison brain , check this sensor that sensor . nothing . got a guy to pull me with a 4x4 to get the bus closer to the main road , i had the bus engine running so i had power steering , we were rolling about 2-3 mph as he pulled me and i hit the drive key on the pad and it went in gear . i said holly crap it fixed itself , i went back to neutral and again it would not go back into gear . pulled the coach again and it went into gear , then i checked if it would go in reverse without going to neutral first and it did . i went for it and drove home 300 miles no problem with the tranny but never put it in neutral . got the bus back in my storage , put it in neutral again and it would not shift into gear again ... any thoughts on this please help

[Summersgal]

paultracy3,

I once sat in my driveway for an hour trying to get mine to shift, it would not go in forward or reverse. I found the fast idle switch was in the up position.

Jeff

[paultracy3]

fast idle was not in the up position . in fact i flipped it on and off multiple times to see if the switch was the problem

[prairieschooner]

Since I don't have that switch on our '82 I am just suggesting here. If the High Idle Switch can override the Shifting you may consider proving the Switch with a Ohm Meter, if it is OK and Energizes a Relay, check the Relay.
just a thought

[afrench45]

When I had my Prevost, I had this problem. I had to call out Allison because I didnt know what else to do. They unplug all those wires (I'm guessing thats the brain) and then it'd work fine. I had to do this quite often.
Goodluck fixin it! I'm curious to know what the problem is.
Andrew

[Ron Skeen]

What RPM is the engine turning when you are trying to put in gear? Mine will not shift at anything over 6-700 RPM. You can adjust the engine idle with the wheel on the board at passenger seat. Idle speed sometime varies under different temp circumstances. Call allison hot line for further info. Have a great Day!

[jwe648]

You maynt to take a look at the tranny connections.. Dirty or bad connections/grounds will confuse it's brains...

[HoosierDaddy]

WILD GUESS....If the RPM's were in spec I'm wondering if the RPM sensor was sending an artificially high signal compared to vehicle speed thus not allowing a shift command to be performed with the switch. It seems to me that the 'puter would compare the engine speed with vehicle speed before preforming any command. Once it sensed speed (while being towed) it obeyed the command from the switch.
I too will be very curious to know what you find out.

[paultracy3]

had a guy out from allison today and he plugged into a port with his scanner , no codes , no bad sensors , he was scratching his head . said he will talk with some tranny experts over the weekend

[paultracy3]

WILD GUESS....If the RPM's were in spec I'm wondering if the RPM sensor was sending an artificially high signal compared to vehicle speed thus not allowing a shift command to be performed with the switch. It seems to me that the 'puter would compare the engine speed with vehicle speed before preforming any command. Once it sensed speed (while being towed) it obeyed the command from the switch.
I too will be very curious to know what you find out.

engine rpm on the tack is between 5-600 . on the computer scanner it read 560 rpm

[prairieschooner]

I love it, Mechanic travels to troubleshoot the problem. He plugs in a Scanner and sees no Trouble Codes so he is now Dumbfounded! but I am sure that the clock is still running!
I had a very similar problem with a '06 F250 6.0 Diesel. The truck wouldn't run properly at Altitude (we live at 6,500'). First thing that the Service Manager at the local dealership asked was "how often are you at that altitude?" I simply stated every day, I live there. He then asked if there were any "Check Engine Lights" when I answered no, he then stated "How do you expect me to repair it then".
I am only reporting a previous experience to let you know that I understand any frustrations that you have. You may consider using an independent mechanic. With Yachts these guys are usually much more of a "hands on" guy and usually more experienced.
Good Luck!

[folivier]

"How do you expect me to repair it then"

Love it! Where are all of the "shade-tree" mechanics? I've gotten where I won't buy a new car, but try and find one of the certified ones with a warranty. And I won't buy top-line models either. Too much stuff to break and not every component has a check engine light.

[Wally Arntzen]

On my 88 I had a similar problem in Arizona a couple of years ago. I don't know if the If 99's have air oporated shifting on the transmissions or electronic.
My is air operated and there is an air shift pistion on the passenger side of the transmission that moves forward and backward depending what shift number you put it in and that will move as you change it at your shift handle or switch.
That piston got dry on mine and would not move. I was informed by my friend who is a bus mechanic wizard to get under and squirt it with WD40 or another loosening lubricant and it released it immeadiatly.
If you have the air operated switch make sure that you have the coach brake on when you go under and do this. Better yet turn off the engine and do it because you can move the piston back and forth without it running.

[paultracy3]

On my 88 I had a similar problem in Arizona a couple of years ago. I don't know if the If 99's have air oporated shifting on the transmissions or electronic.
My is air operated and there is an air shift pistion on the passenger side of the transmission that moves forward and backward depending what shift number you put it in and that will move as you change it at your shift handle or switch.
That piston got dry on mine and would not move. I was informed by my friend who is a bus mechanic wizard to get under and squirt it with WD40 or another loosening lubricant and it released it immeadiatly.
If you have the air operated switch make sure that you have the coach brake on when you go under and do this. Better yet turn off the engine and do it because you can move the piston back and forth without it running.

its electric. trans ecu is a allison wtec 2 b500 model

[Mikeh]

Does your coach have a slide?

[prairieschooner]

that makes sense, if the slide didn't trigger that it was in the coach wouldn't allow itself to go into gear.

[Mikeh]

Now ya talkin.

[paultracy3]

that makes sense, if the slide didn't trigger that it was in the coach wouldn't allow itself to go into gear.

nope tried it ,

[rheavn]

The only other thing that I know of that keeps me from putting the coach in gear is if I don't disengage the parking brake. You are disengaging the parking brake obviously as you can pull the coach, but I question whether the sensor is recognizing it. Once you slowly move the coach the sensor then recognizes the parking brake is off and allows you to put the trans in gear. Or when you disengage your parking brake it is hanging up slightly until you move the coach and it completely disengages.

[Mikeh]

Paul
Do you have a toggle switch underneath the left console to disable the slide sensor? I don't know about yours but mine has one. This allows you to move with the slides out in case you need to creep forward to level the coach. Mike

[paultracy3]

Paul
Do you have a toggle switch underneath the left console to disable the slide sensor? I don't know about yours but mine has one. This allows you to move with the slides out in case you need to creep forward to level the coach. Mike

i will look but i have never seen one before

[Mikeh]

Look underneath the console where the shifter pad is located. I have talked to people that have had your problem and they used the switch to get her going.

[tuga]

MikeH & Paul,

I think that the by-pass switch on a 1999 Newell with slides is located in first bay on the driver's side. You will see an aluminum box (about 10" X 10") on the right wall of the bay; remove 6 screws and the toggle switch is in there. Flip the toggle switch and you put the coach in gear.

Good Luck!

[Mikeh]

Thanks Tuga. They must have moved it closer to the driver as years went along. Gonna miss ole Tuga. Mike Haddox

[tuga]

Thanks Tuga. They must have moved it closer to the driver as years went along. Gonna miss ole Tuga. Mike Haddox

Thanks Mikeh, I'll still be on the forum and maybe at some rallies. Just won't be spending that money on the coach!

[paultracy3]

MikeH & Paul,

I think that the by-pass switch on a 1999 Newell with slides is located in first bay on the driver's side. You will see an aluminum box (about 10" X 10") on the right wall of the bay; remove 6 screws and the toggle switch is in there. Flip the toggle switch and you put the coach in gear.

Good Luck!

i will take a look this morn , and see what happens

[afrench45]

My override switch is in the front compartment with they hydraulics. As Tuga said there is a box, but mine is in the open. The switch has a red label that says transmission override. When I took delivery on my coach the switch was on, so I haven't changed the position.

[paultracy3]

MikeH & Paul,

I think that the by-pass switch on a 1999 Newell with slides is located in first bay on the driver's side. You will see an aluminum box (about 10" X 10") on the right wall of the bay; remove 6 screws and the toggle switch is in there. Flip the toggle switch and you put the coach in gear.

Good Luck!

big thank you guys . i opened up the box . its the brain for the slideouts , and the toggle was buried in the corner of it . i flipped it to the other position and the bus went in gear . i then ran the slides out and in and reset the toggle back , and the bus goes in gear . i would have never thought to open up a sealed box for that . but thanks guys for your help !!!

[Richard and Rhonda]

Paul,

What was the final outcome on the front end heim joint you replaced?

Glad you found the issue on the tranny.

[express1]

Gotta love the responses! We should have a 24hr call number!
Steve, what's you number (1-800 ??? ????)

[JohnC]

For coaches with HWH slides, the safety over-ride switch design has been modified several times over the years. Some HWH control boxes have a toggle switch inside the box, while later models were on the outside. On some control boxes the switch is disguised as a voltage switch with the option of changing from 110v to 220 volts. In reality changing the voltage actually over rides the safety lock-out system

As a reminder, Newell has a free after hours 24/7 emergency tech support hot line for 'all' Newell coach owners in need of emergency technical support. 888 3NEWELL (888- 363- 9355).

JohnC