Zanzibar

Hello all,

To begin the story: I have a 1996 Lexus ES300. At about 140,000 miles, I started having problems shifting and the check engine light immediately came on. It initially started out as a Shift Solenoid A malfunction, but after another 10,000 miles it ended up being two more shift solenoid codes. To fix this, I had a used 1998 transmission put in two weeks ago before moving to California from Florida by driving across the country. Despite driving smoothly, the check engine light came back on while test driving it. Took it back to have it diagnosed and it was the P0770 Shift Solenoid E code. Left the car in the shop for another week, after which they told me that it was a computer problem and that it was fixed now.

Made the drive to California, roughly about 2,000 miles, and the check engine light never came back on. Assumed it was fixed for good. Took it to get smog tested here and it turns out the car was still reading the Shift Solenoid E code and that the check engine light was "burned out". Came to discover that a wire had been cut and taped to hide it. But to talk more about that would be digressing. I took the car to a transmission shop here and decided to try replacing the solenoid. After driving just six miles with the new solenoid, the check engine light came back on and it's still reading a Shift Solenoid E code.

This issue is driving me crazy, and at this point I have no idea which course to take. Should I get another used transmission from a more reputable shop? Any advice would be appreciated.