2000 LS neck breaker!

My sister has a 2000 LS w/V6 automatic. When the car is cold (within a couple of minutes of starting it up) and you put it in gear, the thing jerks so hard (twice, she says) that it hurts your neck if you're not expecting it. She also says that she has to really apply the brakes or the car will take off when leaving the driveway to go to work. She took it to a Ford dealer and they told her that she needs cylinders (?) replaced to the tune of $800. Anyone else ever have this problem, and if so, what was the correct fix?

They don't replace cylinders. I'm sure they said solenoids. You describe the classic symptoms of a failing solenoid assembly in the transmission. $800 is about the right price for that if you get someone to do it.

Did they say "cylinders" or "solenoids"? I suspect they are predicting that the shift solenoids in the transmission are sticking. This was a common issue accelerated by the use of incorrect transmission fluid or the lack of the correct additive. It seemed to be most common when shifting to reverse from what I've read.

The "take off when leaving the driveway" comment has me wondering if the real problem is a high idle though. With the car in Park what does the tachometer show the idle speed to be?

-Rod

After talking with her on the phone, I believe that it is the solenoids. Pretty much only does it when shifting into reverse, although she did say that it seems to shift kind of weird when driving down the road. When cold, the tach
registers just below 2000 and drops to just above 1000 after warm. Guess she's going to have to bite the bullet on this one. Thanks for your input, fellow AFers!

After talking with her on the phone, I believe that it is the solenoids. Pretty much only does it when shifting into reverse, although she did say that it seems to shift kind of weird when driving down the road. When cold, the tach
registers just below 2000 and drops to just above 1000 after warm. Guess she's going to have to bite the bullet on this one. Thanks for your input, fellow AFers!

When warm it should be just below 1000, at about 750 RPM. Her IAC may be sticking, another common issue.