No Reverse, Dunno what car

A coworker of mine, knows nothing about cars, has either a 96 or 98 saturn sedan and her automatic transmission won't shift to reverse. What car do you think it is and what could be the problem? Transmission fluid? Gears? Valvebody?

it is not uncommon to have a clogged valve body causing reverse problems on the S-series auto trans. search Saturnfans.com for a howto on reverse slam cure. very rare does this problem evovle to no reverse at all, as such the simple "cure" may not work. also, reverse problems with a delayed/harsh engagement into drive may be the cause of a loose input shaft nut.

and of course i'm forgeting the basics: check fluid level/color, see if the trans was recently serviced. check reverse lights(long shot, but it is an electionicly controled transmission, its not impossible the problem is electrical), any SES light?

New tranny time! doesnt matter if it 96 or a 98 both got the same tranny. I had that same problem about 3 years ago with my 95. Let a girl drive it one time and brought it back with no reverse. cost $1200 to repair or call a junk yard and get one for about $300.

As for the reverse slam cure go buy your specific brand transmission reconditioner. Make sure it says that it will shift smoother or like new. Add it to your transmission fluid don't worry about over filling. Just add reconditioner, then chock all the wheels or just put it up against your fence or house. Then start car, put it in drive, pull e brake and go inside your house Leave for about 10-15 minutes and turn car around and do it again, but this time in reverse instead of drive. Thats it! i know this works because i changed out mine tranny and it shifted harder than a th350 with a shift kit! and now you can't even feel this car shift at all!