Shifting erratic

Hi! I have a 1992 Ford Taurus GL 3.8L V6 with an automatic transmission. Now when I got this car half a year ago, the seller claimed the transmission had been rebuilt. But just this summer, the transmission started acting up. First it had slow shifts between first and second. I then changed the fluid and filter, and that kinda fixed it. Now it makes burning smell when it is at normal operating temp. and it sometimes won't shift down into first, or shift into third gear at normal temp. When the transmission is cold however, it shifts wonderfully, and it performes just how I like. I have not gotten it tested as I don't have much money, and I was told the governer gear might need to be replaced, but I'm not sure there is a governer gear. Please help me! :banghead:

This is typical of a bad temperature sending unit. Tranny shifts good when cold then when warm has erratic shifting because of fluctuating valve body. Replace sending unit.

Hmm all I can find is the engine coolant temperature sensor. Is this what I need?

Yes.

Did the 1992 not have a Transmission Fluid Temperature (TFT) sensor? Seems like the TFT would be a more likekly culprit thant he Coolant Temperature Sensor.

-Rod

Well I will get a E.C.T and see if that helps. thank you for the help so far, I will post my findings with the E.C.T. within the week.

I'm not sure if it has a TFT or not. However, I've learned from past experience that a faulty ECT will cause this problem as the ECM gets a false temperature reading telling it the esystem is cold and causing havoc with the valvebody. This would be a cheap fix if this is the problem.

Also, if a tranny cooler hasn't been installed yet it's a good idea to install one as this transmission is known to run excessively hot.

Well I installed the E.C.T., it has first and third gear (forth too) but when it's hot, it now doesn't have second gear. Also when I come to a stop at a light or something, it goes into neutral for 3-5 seconds. So the E.C.T. was bad (completely corroded) and the new one fixed the initial problem, but it no longer goes in to second when hot. Would a transmission cooler fix all these problems?

Something is wrong because this tranny shifts 1,2,3 and 3,2,1. It shouldn't shift from !st to 3rd or 3rd to 1st. I doubt a tranny cooler would resolve that problem.

It feels like it's not grabbing the gear. Think this could be bad bands in the transmission? It only has these problems when it is hot, so maybe the fluid isn't getting curculated throught the radiator (gear pump bad?) I just want this car to last at least a year so I can get a different car.

Well I added Lucas Oil Transmission fix. It is freaking thick ( I had to bring the fluid to 160 degrees just to get it out of the bottle in a resonable amount of time) I'm hoping that its extreme vicosity will allow the gear to grab. I havn't drivin it to normal operating temperature yet, but I will post my findings. Thanks for the help to all those who responded.

well the lucas oil seems to help quite a bit.

I doubt the Lucas product is good for much of anything, except emptying your wallet..two things I would do.. First, get a code reader, obdI, for your car, 30 bucks or so, look for trans codes in the continous memory, you'll learn what that is when you read the manual.. I've found that most trans codes, will not set the check engine light to come on, however there will be a code set by the pcm if it is not shifting when commanded to do so, or if your shifts are not in correct order..Second, find a local reliable trans repair shop, not national brand.. some will run rudimentary pressure tests and so on for free or nominal charge.. part of diagnosis.. 92 probably had some version of the well-known troublemaker ax4s trans, axode whatever by any other name.. the code reader, if you're planning on keeping this car, is probably the best 30 bucks you can spend..

I doubt the Lucas product is good for much of anything, except emptying your wallet..two things I would do.. First, get a code reader, obdI, for your car, 30 bucks or so, look for trans codes in the continous memory, you'll learn what that is when you read the manual.. I've found that most trans codes, will not set the check engine light to come on, however there will be a code set by the pcm if it is not shifting when commanded to do so, or if your shifts are not in correct order..Second, find a local reliable trans repair shop, not national brand.. some will run rudimentary pressure tests and so on for free or nominal charge.. part of diagnosis.. 92 probably had some version of the well-known troublemaker ax4s trans, axode whatever by any other name.. the code reader, if you're planning on keeping this car, is probably the best 30 bucks you can spend..

While agreeing with some aspects of your recomendations I disagree with your assessment of Lucus Transmission additive. I bought a 94 Taurus which was slipping and had soft shifts. I changed the fluid and filter twice with out much success. I added one bottle of Lucas Tranny treatment and I've driven over 8000 miles now with no slipping and good firm shifts.

It is not repair for damaged hard parts but it definately helps with slipping bands and sticking valves. That's my opinion anyway.