93 Escort Trans Trouble? HELP!!!

Ok this is my gfs car. it is a 93 escort wagon auto trans and the 1.9 L engine. Has 78K miles.

This is the problem.

When accelerating and hitting appx the 20 mph mark (2nd gear) if you dont let up on the gas it will not shift and the engine will just rev. It used to do it once in a while and now it has been doing it more frequently. If you pull over and shut the car down for a minute or so then try driving again it is fine. I am at a total loss it shifts alright for the most part. Does this sound like some sort of electrical problem?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Ryan

I have a 94 escort with a similar problem. You put it in drive and sometimes it whill shift fine, other times it won't shift out of second gear. Let it sit and it works fine again. Had the transaxle flushed and filter changed but no improvement. I suspect something electriical. The car is in very good condition with many new parts so I tried to sell it "as is" for $300 but everyone ran away from it.

Had it checked last week (didnt reply because I have been on vacation). The problem was a missing speed sensor

Ryan

Thanks for the reply. How did you determine it was the speed sensor? I have a wiring diagram for the transaxle and it has a diagnostic connection but my mechanic wasn't sure his reader would work on something that old and without the OBD. He suggested changing the throttle position sensor since this has input to the trans. electronics and also ties into the coolant temp. sensor. My escort seems to shift fine from a cold start but won't shift after the car is shut off and started again with a hot motor. Anyway, I appreciate the reply and will continue to look for something electrical. By the way, I did go to the local Ford dealer and spoke with the service manager. He said to put a new transaxle in. If I followed his recommendation I think I would have ended up with the same problem with the new transaxle.

I am having a simalar problem with my 93. My wife went to her parents house and her dad changed the oil and all that stuff for her, he also washed the engine down with degreaser and now the car will downshift all the time. The electric fan will not work and neither does the temp guage. I can deal with the temp guage not working and if I have to I can hook up the fan to come on when the car is started but I dont know why it keeps downshifting. I can manually shift it to drive and then back into OD and it will shift but within 10 seconds it will downshift again. Any ideas?

My gf took her ar to aamco transmissions. The first test ride it didnt do anything. Later that day they took it out again and he knew right of the bat (my gf was in the pass seat) it was the sensor. I dont know how he knew but he did. It cost like $100 to change (sensor was like $60)

Thanks again for the reply. I need to find someone like the aamco guy. I took it to a transmission shop. They had it for a day and the car ran fine for them. At least now I think the problem is one of the sensors. Throttle position, engine coolant, or speed.