Quote:
Originally Posted by WindstarMommy
serge_saati...I thought you could only pull codes when CEL was on? Before I bought my own scan tool everyplace I took it to told me "we can't read anything if the CEL is not on (Autozone, Mechanic Shops, etc) so are you saying it is possible?
I will drop the old fluid and replace it. That seems easy enough for me but first I will research the forums, do the gear test that Mark told me to do and hold onto the info that MARZBX157 gave me tomorrow. Thanks, guys.
I'm off to bed now...it's 1053pm. I will check the boards before I go "mechaning" in the morning. Good-night, fellas.
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Windstar,
You are correct. There are no codes unless the CEL is on. (Although a code that cleared would still show in the history, even though your CEL isn't on)
Not to start overriding other's suggestions here, but just check your tranny fluid first before you start doing flushes/change outs etc. A tranny low on fluid would act very similar to what you're describing. Solenoids failing would mean your engine would run at very high RPMs because the transmission would never engage the higher gear. (Similar to driving down the road with your car in L1 or L2)
Not to toss fear around, but let me tell you my experience. I bought a 2000 w/ 3.8l and thought it was a good idea to put new fluid in the tranny. (This is something most people NEVER do and it's supposed to be done regularly). I threw down for the Mobil 1 synthetic "good stuff" and put it in. I drained what was in the pan and replaced the filter. Filled it back up and drove it around. (Doing it this way does NOT get all of the old fluid out because approx. half it resides inside the tranny and not in the pain, but if you do it frequently, you'll be fine) Anyway, less than 2 weeks later, my transmission started acting terrible. I had hell getting it to shift gears when you driving. If it ever did make it OD, it'd be fine, but sometimes I couldn't make it up to OD.) Anyway, I took it in to a transmission shop and had them diagnose it. It was a busted band in the transmission (or so they told me.) The repair was around 2k w/ only a 6 month warranty. (AAMCO) I was able to get a new tranny from Pep Boys for around $1600-$1700 and I installed it myself. This is a MAJOR swap. I'd never done a transverse mounted tranny swapout, but it was murder. The entire subframe came out and the engine was held up by an engine hoist. (The subframe is what your wheels/suspension and everything else under the hood is connected to.)
Autozone had it for quite a bit cheaper (~$1300), but it wasn't in stock.
Hopefully your problem is easy. I'd hate for you to have such a good success and then be thwarted by an unrelated tranny problem.