So I recently purchased a 93 SC300, it's in good running condition. The only issues I'm having is when the car is initially started, warmed up for 3-5 minutes, and I shift into reverse it's a hard shift. Also when I start driving in the forward "D" gear the car won't upshift untill I lift my foot from the gas pedal.

All these symptoms go away after the car is driven for a few minutes, then it shifts into reverse super smooth and upshifts with no issues.

I have no leaks, I checked the tranny fluid and it was on the "cold level" when it was hot so I topped it off with the proper fluid and these symptoms persist. Any ideas?

Anyone have any insight?

Was the car on idle when you checked the fluid?

when was the last time you changed the filter? The fluid could have something to do with the problems, but a dirty filter will cause more issues than dirty old fluid.

Yes it was on idle, I followed the procedure to check the fluid that's listed in the owner's manuel

I just purchased the car about 3 weeks ago and a tranny fluid change is the only thing the previous owner didn't mention was done recently.

I'm sceduled to go have the fluid done next week, but I'm posting up the symptoms here to see if anyone has had a similar experience

The symptoms your describing are the same issues I was having with my 5.9l Durango (I know completely different vehicle), but a simple fluid/filter change fixed everything. I have a strong feeling its just a dirty filter, but keep us posted.

Hmm I sometimes have this problem well just it not changing gears. Where is the filter located at exactly? For sc300

Thanks for the input, this is my first automatic car out of the 8 I've had the pleasure of owning, so my knowledge on auto trannies is a big fat 0.

In the transmission. Simply drop the pan after draining the trans fluid. Changing transmssion fluids and filters is almost as easy as changing your oil.