Car does not go correctly - Torque converter doesn't grab right from stop

I have noticed this today and I think it might be getting worse. My trans will engage all gears and hold them, but when I shift into Reverse and push on the gas, or accelerate from a stop, the Torque Converter doesn't seem to grab right (the engine revs up a little before it seems to somewhat abruptly catch and make the car start moving). On wet pavement this evening I stopped the car, made sure it had gone into first gear, and then floored it and made the wheels spin while going straight ahead (I've tried it many times before since owning the car, and the wheels had NEVER spun out). The engine doesn't exactly rev up very high, maybe just a little bit but it's not that smooth action any more. What happened? How can this be fixed? I've got the trans under warranty, so at least dollars won't be a problem. But I still have to drive to work everyday...

[petesvx2]

I have the same problem. However mine comes with a side order of a rough idle. Hopefully there's a cheap solution as I do not have a warranty

Originally posted by petesvx2
I have the same problem. However mine comes with a side order of a rough idle. Hopefully there's a cheap solution as I do not have a warranty

How long has this been going on?

[svxistentialist]

Garrett, Pete,

The tranny manual troubleshooting page suggests the following:

Lengthy time lag going from Neutral to D

Check for valve sticking and possible faulty forward clutch relief ball or faulty over-running clutch relief ball.

The unit causing the problem could be forward clutch slippage.

Sticky valve is easy-ish fix, valve chest drops from pan without taking out tranny. If one of them is sticking, you would be advised to put in a new full set while unit is out.

I know nothing about forward clutch slippage. However, mine was doing the same as you describe [write a novel while doing a three point turn], and rebuilding the tranny fixed it good.

Joe

[kuoh]

Are these things just some round metal balls or something? I could've swore I saw something like that when I had the pan off and could see in all the holes on the valve body. Besides those balls and the filter, what else in there would be candidates for replacement without taking the car out of commission for days?

KuoH

[Earthworm]

As for the wheels spinning on wet pavement, do they continue to spin until you let off?

Mine will spin temporarily but I believe that is due to a sticky AWD solenoid (Duty C) then the rear wheels kick in.

[petesvx2]

After driving today, i believe that the problem I am having is that my idle is just below 500 rpms and i have to push just a bit more to get her going, its not like the rpms rise before the car moves, it just takes a little more ankle to pedal power. But there is a noise coming from my front wheel area making me think im dragging something but i looked and i didnt see anything.

If I floor it while the car is already moving (with RPMs greater than 1.5K or so), then everything is fine.
If I floor it from a standing stop, either in first gear or in 2nd with the manual button pushed, the engine revs up and the car feels like it's barely connected to the power then the torque converter lurches or whatever and the car will go (and peel out if roads are wet)
If I start from the top of a hill, and put it into 1st and just let it coast down the hill, I have no engine braking at all. I could be coasting 30 mph in 1st gear, with the engine idling.

Please let me know if anyone else has experienced this, and what it entails. I think it's the TC. Could a lack of fluid cause this? I can't tell because my trans dipstick has the noteworthy characteristic of having trans fluid all over it towards the bottom, no matter what the level is. I'll add a quart at home and see what happens.

Thanks,

That's how my tranny went. Exactly the same symptoms. it would not hold a hill in drive either. It would roll backwards. Once the tranny was apart. all of the usual '92 tranny problems were there. The mechanic was more than a little surprised that a guy off the street would know of such things.

Best of luck
Collins
92 pearlie

[CDG]

Just to let you know, I'm having the same problems. I'm taking mine to a good trany guy Wednesday, so when he has a look, I'll let you know.

Originally posted by CDG
Just to let you know, I'm having the same problems. I'm taking mine to a good trany guy Wednesday, so when he has a look, I'll let you know.

Okay, well please do then let me know as soon as you find out something. I've noticed also that whereas, during normal coasting with the Torque Converter locked up, the TC would normally unlock at around 41 mph, but now it's more like 46. Also seems to take longer to lock up. Mhmm.

[CDG]

I'm not sure that the trany will be consistent by locking up at the same speed every time, but I could be wrong.
I did take my car to an inspection station(cause I need this when importing cars from the US) and the mechanic has worked on a few SVX's, and he said the trany feels ok. Keep those fingers crossed.

[svxistentialist]

Originally posted by gcookaustin
If I floor it while the car is already moving (with RPMs greater than 1.5K or so), then everything is fine.
If I floor it from a standing stop, either in first gear or in 2nd with the manual button pushed, the engine revs up and the car feels like it's barely connected to the power then the torque converter lurches or whatever and the car will go (and peel out if roads are wet)
If I start from the top of a hill, and put it into 1st and just let it coast down the hill, I have no engine braking at all. I could be coasting 30 mph in 1st gear, with the engine idling.

Please let me know if anyone else has experienced this, and what it entails. I think it's the TC. Could a lack of fluid cause this? I can't tell because my trans dipstick has the noteworthy characteristic of having trans fluid all over it towards the bottom, no matter what the level is. I'll add a quart at home and see what happens.

Thanks,

Garrett

Lockup clutch in D is a separate clutch in the TC housing that makes a direct connection between the drive from the engine and the wheels.

Gathering up speed in first or second is different. Lockup does not apply to those gears. What is happening here is your reverse clutch is inoperative, or not coming in when required. You have tranny problems I'm afraid.

Best of luck, but my inexpert [but experienced, however unwillingly] opinion is your tranny must come out and get rebuilt.
Joe

[CDG]

I'm not sure I'm ready to replace my trany yet....
You remember the magic 30HP that appears when the power light comes on? Well we need some magic to repair our trany's before we have to take out a mortgage to rebuild them. To top that off, my motor has a bad, and getting worse, bottom end knock

[Beav]

Are you familiar with the TSB regarding the front pump gasket in the transmission? The gasket has a problem of failure, causing noise and/or lack of line pressure (up to 50% they say, probably more in the real world.) This will possibly/probably cause the lag going from P/N to D or R until enough pressure builds at idle to move things around inside the tranny. Once underway a better flow is built up and the tranny should act close to normal.

I've just become familiar with this as I have one in the shop right now with the same problem. I dropped the pan to check the screen and found everything inside covered with foamy ATF - a sign of the pump sucking air. Downside is that by the time this becomes a problem the tranny A) has operated at a reduced pressure for some time and has probably experienced premature friction wear and B) has so many miles that even if the reduced pressure theory didn't hold water it would be silly to spend the money to R&R the trans and only replace the pump gasket, knowing full well the friction material and seals (not to mention the other issues covered by subsequent TSBs) are more than likely to be on their last leg. (how's that for a run-on sentence? )