RPM flips up during highway driving?
 

I am a new owner of a 93 SVX LS-L red.
Today i was driving in the rain on the highway doing about 65, i go to shift lanes and bring up the speed smoothly...but then the engine just revved up to like 6500 and dropped back, and then after that it smelled like something was burned for like 5 minutes.

What is wrong with this transmission?

btw, will removing the resistor behind the battery help this problem, and if so, can someone show me a detailed diagram of where it is. THis is my daily driver and it need it to be running.

THanks

Most likely the transmission shiftingand slipping.
Mine does this at 4k without fail.
Keep an eye on the exact conditions for a better analysis.

Resistor is behind the battery. It's horizontal and kind of difficult to unclip unless you remove the batery.
I don't know about you but mine flops around.

Hello and welcome to the site!

Sorry to hear about your transmission troubles. How many times have the RPM's jumped like this? Is it only on the 3-4 shift?

This is definately a sign to start saving your money because an expensive fix is likely in your future. Make sure to keep us up to date on what's happening!

this has only happened once
ive put like 100 miles on this SVX (at like 109800 now)

it checked out to have a timing belt/water pump and front axles replaced soon, will these help correct the problem?

and does this mean the transmission is shot and there will be an expensive fix down the line without any way to avoid it?

btw, how much do transmissions cost + installation?
and how much is a built auto?

thanks

Dayle at www.motorsport-svx.com sells built transmissions for around $2,700.00 + shipping. Installation $$$ will vary depending on where you live, but as you live in San Fran, CA look to spend at least another $1,000.00 to have a new trans installed.

Good luck!

-Chike

You should also be able to get used trannies for cheaper from non-SVX donor cars (like the above poster, Chike, did).

Good point David. Used transmissions from Imprezas, Legacys and Outbacks will all be a direct plug-n-play with the SVX so long as they are from a '91-'98 model. A good one can be had for ~$500-$600.00.

As your trans may not be shot yet, I'd suggest doing the following ASAP! Have your transmission drained (NOT flushed). Then add some 'Lucas Oil Auto Trans additive' which lowers operating temps and reduces slippage.

-Chike

P.S. Let me re-emphasize my above point though - under no circumstances allow your mechanic to flush your transmision. This will cause particles that are settled in your 100K+ trans to move around. A high number of SVXers who had had a 'flush', have had their transmissions completely fail within the next 1,000 miles or less. ;)

where would i get the stuff to add to the transmission+ how much? how would i make sure the mechanic is draining and not flushing?

what about getting a transmission cooler from motorsport warehouse? how easy/hard are these to install?
http://store.yahoo.com/svx-motorspor.../trancool.html

thanks

De Ja Vu
 

I don't type this to worry you but in the two days before my transmission died I was seeing RPM flare between shifts. By the third day I was cruising on I-5 in Seattle @ 65-70mph when the flare turned into a total loss of enagagment of 4th gear (freewheeling). I depressed the pedal to engage 3rd and was moved quickly as there seemed to be no problem w/ 3rd. When the car tried to shift back into 4th I saw loss of engagement once again. Less than 60 seconds later I was coasting off of the interstate. When I checked the ATF level, the car was over 3 quarts low on ATF. Upon inspection, the clutchpack for the 3rd - 4th gear was toast (metal on metal) and the band was cooked as well. I had the transmission flushed (bad idea) and level checked less than 30 days prior.

I reccomend keeping a VERY close eye on your ATF level.

I sincerely wish you the best of luck!

Don't panic!
 

Don't get into a total sweat.

Don't drive it in4 with the car revving, this is slipping the brake band and the clutches, burning off friction material.

Drain and refill with new oil and an addititive as advised above.

Also, the brake band can be adjusted. See the End Wrench article here:

http://endwrench.com/images/pdfs/4EATFWD.pdf

You need Acrobat on your machine to view pdfs, free to download from the Acrobat site.

Print off the article and give it to the technician in your tranny place. A little adjustment now might stave off paying a fortune for a new tranny for a while.

Joe:)

PS A tranny cooler installed will help a lot, particularly if you drive a lot of traffic or hills. The other things you mentioned will make no difference.

Flaring at highway speeds (especially while using cruise) is more often a bad TPS than a bad tranny. The TPS will send a faulty signal so the torque converter unlocks and the car tries to downshift but the TPS signal returns before the shift completes so it feels like just a slip.

Doug

You can pick up Lucas Oil products at most Auto Parts stores - Advance Auto Parts, AutoZone, etc. Runs about $6-7 a quart. All you really need is just one and some fresh ATF in your trans.

You will know that your trans is being drained and not flushed by a difference in price of about $50-$60! Plus the mechanic will probably come back and suggest that you have it flushed - don't do it.

Best way to know that your trans is being taken care of properly is to do the work yourself. If you can change your engine oil, you can change the trans fluid.

-Chike

sounds either like the faulty TPS signal as previously mentioned, or a bad torque converter. if you smelled burning, i'm guessing that'll lead more towards the torque converter side of the spectrum.

take it to a mechanic and tell them exactly what has been going on, how it has been driving, and maybe even take them for a drive to duplicate the problem. there's a very good chance they'll recommend to have the tranny oil changed, filter changed, and have it flushed. i most definately would get all of these done. they'll drain the fluid before doing the flush, and most likely find plenty of particles. there would be a lot of metal particles left in the coolers, reducing their effectiveness. flushing the coolers will allow for them to cool the tranny fluid much better.

A bad TPS is not going to allow the tranny to slip all the way to 6500rpm! The clutches are slipping or the tranny is low on oil (or pressure)