Not shifting / gaining speed initially

Hello,

Last few days, my 98 Honda Accord has trouble gaining speed/shifting gears.
I press the accelerator, but it just does not get going.

First couple of times, the problem went away after 1-2 mins. Today, it took longer (6-7 minutes). But after that it ran fine.

*Previously*, the check engine light kept turning on and off intermittently. The code was for faulty oxygen sensor (P1164), but I did not get it repaired.

Today, after these recent troubles, I took it to autozone again, and got some new codes:

P1164: Failed H02S (Heated Oxygen sensor)
P0700: Indicates transmission fault-check other codes
P0740: TCC not engaged (probable causes: Open or short circuit, poor electrical connection, failed TCC system)
P1456: EVAP emissions control system leak detected (fuel tank system). Probable causes: loose fuel cap, vapor canister saturated, failed vent solenoid, failed purge solenoid.

I will take it to the mechanic to get it checked. But any thoughts would be really appreciated so I can be better prepared.

Thanks a lot !

Any thoughts, anyone ?

Did your mechanic see it?

I would check O2 sensor for starters.

Good luck,
Sam

I just took it to a mechanic yesterday.
He did not check anything yet, but just mentioned something along the lines "due to the cold, the piston compresses, and so something .. "

He said he can do some tests for free (fluid pressure, fluid level, etc), but he believes there would be some real issues with the transmission, which can not be uncovered/repaired till he opens it up. If it is repairable, we are looking at around $700, else around $1300 to re-do the transmission.

So I just thought if I could get some thoughts here, would help me understand things somewhat better, before I go back.

Btw, thanks for your reply. You believe the O2 sensor could have something to do with the shifting problem as well ?

I do not know if O2 sensor my cause the transmission malfunction but this problem is easy to detect/fix. Once eliminated you may concentrate on other and be sure that the sensor does not cause the problem.

Sam

I took it to a couple of mechanics today. Both of them drove it for 5-10 mins, and pulled out the codes. They got the same codes as I listed above. The main one is P0740 (torque converter).

Mechanic 1 (AAMCO) said: He can start off by doing some pressure test, to get a better idea of the problem. This would cost around $ 200, and then he will take it from there.

Mech 2 (Eagle Transmission): He was sounding very confident that the Torque conv would need a change (he mentioned 98-02 accords have had this well known problem). He said he can replace it for ~ 700, and also check on the rest of the transmission. If a complete overhaul is needed, we are looking between 14-1800.

Any comments ?

Does the fact that I got the code 0740 necessarily imply that the torque converter is gone ? Could it be a simpler problem (e.g., I was reading somewhere that a malfunctioning solenoid can also cause these issues, and takes about 400 to repair)?

I personally had a very bad experience with AAMCO. But they are all independently owned and I cannot talk about all of them. They cheated me in San Jose, CA. Yours might be different. The price range is so big that I would try to seek another opinion.

Good luck,
Sam

I can't recall the code, but I also had a shifting problem with my '02 Accord a while back. I think the code was one of the tranny ones in the 700's. My mechanic had told me that those transmissions run off of hydraulic pressure, and once that pressure is gone, the tranny needs to be replaced/rebuilt. I asked if maybe the solenoids just needed to be replaced and he said, "I've had plenty experience with people having this problem, that I would hate to replace the 2 solenoids at $300 a pop, only to confirm that the hydraulic pressure is still the problem".

So I opted to just replace it with a rebuilt tranny for $2300 and a 1 year warranty. My car had 180K miles at that time. Odd thing though, is that after a couple of days of getting it back I experienced some hard shifting from 1st to 2nd (initial symptoms before it just would not shift out of 1st). Took it back, and he replaced the solenoids (which I figured were new with the rebuilt tranny, but could not confirm) and then that rebuilt tranny ran flawless for 226K miles. I never did a service on it either. My engine crapped out at 406K, and so I don't know how many more miles that tranny would have given me.

My mechanic works on Honda's only by the way.