shakey acceleration

i recently bought a 95 caprice and just drove it from connecticet to school in south carolina. on the trip i noticed that when trying to accelerate through the 50's and 60's mph range the car really did not want to move. it was shaking and very hesitant and finally it would down shift and start accelerating fast. anyone have any ideas on what could cause this?

It sounds like the TCC doesn't want to disengage like it should.

what is a TCC?

Torque converter clutch.

At cruising speeds, in 4th gear only the torque converter clutch (TCC) will engage locking up the torque converter. This reduces engine speed and helps with fuel mileage, but accellerating with it engaged is very hard for the engine to do.

found the problem and it was the fuel filter...it was so glogged up i couldnt even blow through it...thanks to all that replied

Figures... one of the most simple things. The same thing happened to my car before, except it's practically die anywhere past 40 MPH. I thought it was some sort of sensor or maybe the carb, but I should have gone with the most simple thing first... the filter. Sure enough thats what it was.

ya i was wrong because it is still doin the same thing...filter def needed to be changed but it was not the problem...how much wout it cost to fix the TCC if this is in fact the problem?

Well, there's an electronic TCC control module which can be revealed by removing the transmssion pan. Before doing that though, look under your hood and try to find the vacuum sensor. This sensor is what helps the computer determine whether the TCC should be locked or released. If this unit is subjected to a vacuum leak then it can throw the computer off and may account for it not wanting to engage. In the mean time, when you're cruising and want to accellerate with your left foot quickly tap the brakes. When the computer senses the brakes being engaged it instantly releases the TCC. This should allow you to accellerate better until it locks back up again. You also have the opion of downshifting from (D) to Just plain D, which brings the tranny from 4th gear down into 3rd gear, also releasing the TCC.

Where would I find the TCC control module? I think I might be having the same problem.

It's behind the transmission pan.