aw4 jeep cherokee tranny problems

I just bought a 96 cherokee country. It has an unusual problem. When you put the tranny in drive it slips and and barely wants to move forward but if you pull it back to 1st it takes off like a brand new transmission. Once you shift it manualy it works fine but when you come to a stop it does the same thing over again. It feels as if it is in 3rd gear trying to take off but im not sure. Also it does not down shift when your driving even if you step on it. Ive heard a TPS can make a tranny do wierd stuff but ive never had any experience with jeeps. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

I just bought a 96 cherokee country. It has an unusual problem. When you put the tranny in drive it slips and and barely wants to move forward but if you pull it back to 1st it takes off like a brand new transmission. Once you shift it manualy it works fine but when you come to a stop it does the same thing over again. It feels as if it is in 3rd gear trying to take off but im not sure. Also it does not down shift when your driving even if you step on it. Ive heard a TPS can make a tranny do wierd stuff but ive never had any experience with jeeps. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

That is weird. I have a feeling that the tranny itself is fine because it shifts fine manually. The TPS does create some strange issues. I would do something simple before I start replacing sensors though. Take a look at the kickdown cable (TV cable) that goes from the tranny to the trottle body. It connects to the front of the throttle body right beside the throttle cable. It sounds like the TV cable may have come loose or is not moving. The TV cable is responsible for telling the tranny when to downshift in relation to the throttle position. That would explain why the tranny wont downshift when you give it throttle. It may also explain why it stays in 3rd or OD when you take off from a stop but Im not sure about that.

And while your at it, drop the pan and look for signs of anything unusual (ex. metal chunks in the fluid.)

The AW4 is electronically controlled through a Transmission Control Module, you may have a wiring problem between the TCM and Trans.

I just bought a 96 cherokee country. It has an unusual problem. When you put the tranny in drive it slips and and barely wants to move forward but if you pull it back to 1st it takes off like a brand new transmission. Once you shift it manualy it works fine but when you come to a stop it does the same thing over again. It feels as if it is in 3rd gear trying to take off but im not sure. Also it does not down shift when your driving even if you step on it. Ive heard a TPS can make a tranny do wierd stuff but ive never had any experience with jeeps. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Ray is right about the TV Cable, it could need adjusting. You may also try checking the Vacuum line that runs from the Throttle body to the MAP Sensor and test the Map sensor. My son's 89 did the same thing, it turned out to be the MAP sensor went bad and feeding the wrong information to the Computer and the Transmission Control Unit. New MAP sensor fixed the problem.

Mike

Thanks guys I really appreciate your help. Im gonna try a few of the things you mentioned and hopefully it will fix the problem. I will let you know if it takes care of it or not.