91 sentra auto tranny won't shift

Well I bought a 91 nissan sentra xe [1.6L] with an automatic transmission about five years ago. It had about 30,000 miles on it; I drove it about a year with no problems. The transmission started to not shift out of first gear when I tried to take off from a stopped position at a high engine speed (RPM). I have to take my foot off of the gas and then slowly push it down before it will shift. If I take off slowly it shifts fine though! when I get up to highway speeds there is no problem shifting either. I had the filter replaced in the transmission and the transmission flood changed at a repair shop. That didn't really help at all. I drove it about a year like that and it didn't get any worse or better. I didn't hear any strange noises coming from it or anything. After a year of no change I assumed that it wasn't too bad but I parked it for two years until today. Today it still did the same thing. sorry for the long story but can anyone help me get my baby shifting normally again? Oh! it now has about 90,000 miles on it.

I have a 92 XE that wont shift from low at all. It'd be about $900 to have it rebuilt so I said f*** it and started looking for a 5spd setup to swap out. My auto lasted to 250,000 so I'm not complaining MUCH. :)

Thats not to say you should try this (5spd swap) because its difficult and hard to find all the parts needed.
In my case it fits. If you start to look for a used auto keep in mind this failure to shift is a very common problem for this car and may be the reason one is sitting in salvage. Be smart and find one thats guaranteed or any work done to yours is warranted.

thanx for the advice. I know a lot about cars but my problem really has me wondering is it really the tranny? I have been told some of these could cause this: vaccum modulator, faulty vaccum line, electrical controls, and throttle linkage needs adjustment. I'm not sure if my car even has some of those things so I'm not sure where to start.... any ideas? THANX AGAIN!

In my case the tranny is shot, your scenario is a little different so I dont want to tell you yes its your tranny. The best thing to do is take it to a tranny shop and have them check it out for free. The only fee you might encouter is for a new seal after they pull the pan off.

I hadn't thought about that but it seems like a good idea. I guess you can't go wrong when it's free! I am going to try that; any good places you know of to take it?

I dont know of any national chains, i live in KS so I couldn't really say. Just check the phonebook and call several shops. Make sure they do free diagnostics and dont try to charge you. Remember they're in the business to make money so dont get taken.
You really should find out for sure whats wrong, find out how much it'll cost to fix it and then decide if the car is worth it. Don't get me wrong I'm the last guy that wants another Sentra to bite the dust but if the car is beat up or wore out it may not be worth it, something to consider. I only say that because mine isn't worth fixing but I'm thick headed and have a lot of history with my car so I plan to fix it up

OK! well i'll find somewhere that is really good. I don't care what's wrong it'll get fixed; I love that car. It was kept covered in my garage mostly so it is in great shape. If you didn't know your cars you could easily mistake it for being brand new. I had the windows tinted and bought 15" rims for it not to mention a body kit that I'm about to order. so yes it's well worth it! I forgot to mention the flawless black paint job and great sound system. Thanx for the great advice and if anyone needs help with things other than a tranny just post a forum or e-mail me: [email protected] I know a lot about 91 sentras although I'm only 16 I've had mine for about five years already.

before u try anything i had that problem, what happened is that the ecu got confused and thought its manual and never shifted waiting for u to shift... what u do, turn the car off. take off the black harness wire off ur battery, or red doesn't matter, wait 10 miunutes then put it back in and try it !!!!its worth a try .... it worked for me

I think my throttle pressure cable needs adjusting but I don't know where exactly to find it or how to adjust it. Does anyone know where it is and the proper technique for adjusting it?