[steve]

I recently learned I may not be treating my trans well by not using the kickdown switch (on the gas pedal). Months ago my kickdown seemed to quit working and I just started using the shifter to downshift when I needed to. So I decided to take a closer look and try and get it functional. It used to downshift once or twice and then stop working after I reset it. Just went for a test drive and it seems to be working now. I wanted to clear up the whole “tube” or spacer thing people put on the switch to try and get it to come in sooner. Many, many posts online state that is the way to get it to come in sooner. From what I understand this is totally incorrect. Am I right on this ?
This brings me to my bigger concern. The car seems to shift way too early. It won’t hold first through an intersection and second seems to shift into third way to early as well. It’s a little hard to know exactly when the shifts happen because they are so incredibly soft. This is also true when the kickdown works. It only downshifts from 3 to 2 for a second or two before returning to third. And when doing so the shift is also very soft. The shifts are barely perceptible when driving normally. So, first I want to clear up the whole adjustable modulator thing. So many posts claim this adjustment will make a difference with the shifts points. From what I understand this is also not true. It only adjusts the shift points by like 2-4 mph and won’t make a very noticeable difference. Is this true as I understand it ?
So if my kickdown is working and my modulator isn’t the answer what should I be looking at for possible solutions to increase the time the car holds the gears before shifting ? The transmission is custom built and made to sit behind a high HP engine. I did recently switch from a 3.08 rear to a 3.55 rear without making any other changes to the car. (other than working on the efi tune). Maybe it was built for soft smooth shifts ? Is that possible ? It’s been in the car for over 5 years and has always behaved like this. A friend suggested the cable linkage could be off, but it seems to check out to my limited knowledge of the subject. Hopefully I haven’t been abusing the trans for some time now by not having it set up correctly. The receipt I have for the trans rebuild is cryptic but it does say that it has a “shift kit” without specifying any details. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. I suppose it’s even possible it’s working correctly and I just don’t understand what’s going on.