Well I think I may need my transmission rebuilt or another one. I was going to lunch today and after taking off from a stop light fairly slow, it shifted pretty hard and then my check engine came on. I didn't check the codes because, my car doesn't have any sort of emissions, except some giant mufflers that don't do much. On the other hand if I take off at WOT the transmission shifts pretty smooth. In the mornings, when its pretty cold, the transmission doesn't shift into OD until the cars temperature gets to about 1/4 the way up. I am thinking another inclination that the trans it on its way out. I might pick up some trans fluid and see what the fluid looks like, tomorrow. Any and all advice is always greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

Well before you condemn the transmission there are a few things you can try. You should pull you codes just see if there is any info you can use to help fix it. First of course check your fluid level then draining and filling with new fluid. The transmissions are known to have shift solenoid issues as well. Last but not least check your motor and trans mounts .....yes I know it sounds strange but I have seen really bad mounts cause transmission problems. I just changed my mounts the other day and what I thought was a hard shift or slip is now completely gone!!! You can get all 3 mounts for under $100 and shift solenoids for about $90 for all 3. I ordered Beck and Arnley mounts from Rockauto.com and they have OEM part numbers stamped on them so I would say they are good quality. After you do fix your trans or replace it I would recommend installing the biggest trans cooler that you can fit in there too. BTW its normal for it not to go in OD until the car gets to operating temp. Hope that helps!! Good Luck!!

 

I will look into the mounts. I know I need differential bushings, but haven't looked at the trans or engine mounts at all. I thought it was strange that the car wont shift for about 5 to 7 minutes after starting the car. It stays at about 3200 rpm until it shifts then its back down to 2800ish at 70 mph. I will let you know what the fluid looks like and what my mounts look like.

 

Definitely change the filter and fluid out. You can only do 2 quarts or so but just change it every few hundred miles to get as much of the old fluid out. Or you can go to jiffy lube (one you can trust) and they can swap all your fluid out in one go with their machine. I did that and they put 18 quarts of fresh fluid in and it drove perfect after that.

 

Well since I changed my fluid out a few months ago, it should be fine and I confirmed this today. Some of my mounts could be replaced, but none of them are completely broken just cracked.

 

Some pics of the motor, trans, and differential mounts/bushings. The last pic is the color of my trans fluid. The picture doesn't really pick it up, but it was a light red color not a brownish like the picture shows. Going to post these in my build thread as it will reference to a before and the I will post pics when I get new mounts/bushings and then post an after.