Transmission concerns
 

I have a 92 LSL, great car! except the tranny is a bit tired. There is a bit of a hesitation when I first put it into drive, but the worst thing is between 2nd and 3rd gear there is a delay of about 2 seconds. I had the dealer check it out and they said I need to replace it and that the AT fluid was burnt. I doesn't smell burnt to me? I want to put off replacing this transmission as long as possible. The bottom line is the car still drives fine. Although, I know I will eventually need to do it.

My questions are:

Will it help if I change the fluid?
(I could put in sythetic, or an additive to standard ATF)

Should I add a cooler NOW or wait til the new tranny?

I know you don't have a crystal ball, but I'm thinking I may get 6 months or longer with the present tranny. What do you think?

Thanks
_Ken_

Same as me
 

I had the same issue. (We also have the same color and year)

I found that if I shifted the car myself it drove fine but if I let it shift on it's own I got that "flare" you're talking about. It seems to be a fairly common issue with our tranny's.

I tried all sorts of thing to avoid a replacement or rebuild. Nothing really worked. TPS check, tranny flush, friction modifyer, resistor mod. The only thing that came close to stopping the flare was the resistor mod. Car shifts awfully ulgy from 1-2 though.

I finally had mine rebuilt. (If I had the $4000 I'd get the manual conversion done) I spent $2700 for rebuild 2 yr 24000 mi warranty, synthetic fluid, tranny cooler.

If you really want to put it off just try the manual shift and see what that does for you. Mine would probably still be going if I didn't just HAVE to have it fixed. I hate broken things on the car.


Randy (Explaining tranny and my bad financial status in one post) ii

Randy ii,

Thanks for the info. Is the "resistor mod" thing your are talking about, mean just checking that resistor behind the battery (that I have read about in other posts)?

I think I will just keep driving it and check all my options, so I am ready to do a rebuild when neccesary. Better yet having a 5-speed sounds like a great option, for only another grand (not they I even have the first 3 or 4).
I checked out online SmallCar.com inTacoma, WA - they do the conversion for about $4000. Do you (or anyone) know of anyone competent to do a 5-speed conversion on the east coast?

_Ken_

If rebuilding, add TransGo kit
 

I added a TransGo kit when I had my tranny rebuilt, makes a huge difference in shift feel. Much sportier than stock without being harsh.

Check them out http://www.txchange.com/transgo.htm

Just make sure the tech knows what he's doing. This requires careful assembly.

As always, add a cooler and consider an in-line filter as well.