93 grand am shakes badly, dies after slowing down

[aceofspades749]

i have a 93 grand am
i frequently drive to and from college via the thruway
and recently, upon slowing down
more specifically, after the car hits 30 mph ONLY WHEN SLOWING DOWN
it will shake very badly and the ABS brakes barely work, and the car will die
upon starting it back up, it will start up ok but as soon a si shift it into drive, it dies
after about 5 minutes, it will be ok and able to be driven, but the problem will resurface after slowing down beyond 30 mph
PLEASE, any help is greatly appreciated!
~justin

[gserve]

Sounds like the TCC clutch is sticking. Unplug the wire that feeds it. It is located on the outside of the transaxle in the front probably on the drivers side.

[achievasc92]

yep, I agree its the TCC solenoid, either get it replaced or unplug it until you have time/money to get it replaced.

[aceofspades749]

how will unplugging the tcc effect the cars driving abilities? any "side effects"?

[achievasc92]

You will see a slight decrease in gas mileage. I know of people that have driven with the TCC solenoid unplugged for 10,000 miles without adverse effects. If you have the money handy (I think the solenoid is around $200, but don't quote me) I would just get it replaced, but you can drive with it unplugged for a while

[aceofspades749]

thanks a lot for the advice
i talked to a mechanic and they agree
they also say it may just be the solenoid
that needs to be replaced
and they will check it out in a week
thanks again

[atothetapi77]

Mine did this too...The mechanic I took it to said I needed a new engine...so thats what I did...worked for a little while, but it is back to doing it again...

Originally Posted by aceofspades749

i have a 93 grand am
i frequently drive to and from college via the thruway
and recently, upon slowing down
more specifically, after the car hits 30 mph ONLY WHEN SLOWING DOWN
it will shake very badly and the ABS brakes barely work, and the car will die
upon starting it back up, it will start up ok but as soon a si shift it into drive, it dies
after about 5 minutes, it will be ok and able to be driven, but the problem will resurface after slowing down beyond 30 mph
PLEASE, any help is greatly appreciated!
~justin

[dober-man]

Originally Posted by atothetapi77

Mine did this too...The mechanic I took it to said I needed a new engine...so thats what I did...worked for a little while, but it is back to doing it again...

From what you are describing, I too would call out the TCC on this one. Your symptom probably feels like you are driving a manual transmission and forgot to depress the clutch before stopping. This is the torque converter trying to lock out on you. Replacing the TCC should do the trick. I just had this job performed on my daughters 1993 for $230 out the door.

[tempacct]

Does anyone have a picture of where the TCC is located? I'm having trouble finding it to unplug it.

[scaviola]

On my 93 grand am 4 cyl, the wire to the TCC solenoid is on the top of the transmission on the driver's side. I was able to easily see and remove it by removing the air filter & intake ducts. It's a blue 4-pin connector with 2 or 3 wires in it.
At my car's age and mileage it's not worth the money or work to repair, so I've left it disconnected and it's fine.

[chake1]

say is that 4 pin wire have 2 real small wires to it? i looked for that wire on a 91 an i think i found it but not sure it has a 3 pin wire an it faces to the front of the car on the drivers side..do u think that is the right one??