1994 cavilier stalling problems

[DamianTek]

I was driving down the thru-way today and when i got off on the off-ramp the car stalled. it sarted right up again and when i put it into drive it stalled on me agian. just before the car stalls it shakes and then stalls out. i can start it up fine but it stalls when i put it into drive.

[92hatchatack]

sounds like a bad celinoid in the auto tranny---what ui guys think????- i had a car that would stall cause the car wouldnt downshift properly, and when u slow down to much, and the auto dont shift it would stall out----then u got to put her in nuetrsl---rev like a mofo and drop her into drive

[Pikachoo]

This is a very common problem with the automatic J-bodies. If you car stalls as mentioned, restarts fine, but then stalls as soon as you put it into gear, the problem is most definately the TCC (Torque Convertor Clutch, or Torque Convertor Lock-up) Solenoid. The TCC "locks up" your tranny when in 3rd gear, which lowers the RPM's, so you get better gas mileage when traveling on the highway. When the TCC solenoid goes bad, it won't unlock when it is hot (once it cools down, it will usually unlock), so when you come to a stop, your car is still stuck in 3rd gear. This is just like driving a standard tranny and trying to start out, or slow down in too high of a gear, the engine will bog and die. You need to replace the solenoid and all will be fine. The electrical connector for the solenoid is located on the top of the tranny. You can locate it from above by looking for a 4 wire connector in the area below your air filter. As a temporary fix, you can just unplug this connector, but then the tranny won't lock up at highway speeds, and your gas mileage will suffer. You should be able to get the replacement part for under $30, and the installation is pretty straight forward.


Steps:
Step One
Loosen the lug nuts on the driver side front wheel and then jack the car up. I would suggest putting both sides up on supports because you will need the jack in a minute

StepTwo
Once jacked up take off the wheel and remove the lower part of the wheel well gaurd. Mine was in front at the bottom. Now you can see a little part of the casing. Inside is the valve body and the PITA TCC. Remove the bolts from the cover . I had a problem with my A part of the unibody get in the way so I would jack the engine up a little by putting it on the front driver side mount or torsion strut. Whereever it gives you about 4 inches. Once the bolts are removed remove the pan but don't count on the gasket from around the side pan to crack up. Replace it or get a forma gasket high temperature stuff. Remove the pan with a little manuvering.

Step Three
The TCC is on the lower back side of the valve body with a bolt holding it on. There are also a series of wires going from it to your left and right. Do a swap wire for wire. I didn't and had to redo it.

Step Four
Now the hard part was getting the plug in to the connector on top and behind the valve body. Remove the connector and try slipping the connnector through. The plug in on the TCC will be marked + and - so try matching it up and it has a little ridge on the top of my new one which tells me it's the top. There's only two ways to put it in and only one is right. The wires are atleast color coated to help you.

Step Five
When finished just put either the forma gasket on the caseing or the new gasket and very slowly slip the panel back on and tighten the bolts.

Step Six
Make sure you check the fluid level and top it off if needed and have fun. Mine doesn't act up at all.
Complete!
The total cost of the repair may be about max 60 us bucks depending on wether you get a new gasket and if you need a little fluid to top it off. I keep some extra around as well as forma gasket which has never leaked on me so I suggest the forma gasket and so It only cost me for the TCC and that was 45 US dollars from the dealer.

[bowtiebandit]

As Pikachoo stated you can unplug it for a TEMPORARY fix only. If left unplugged the trans will overheat and cause you even worse headaches. I recommend changing the trans filter also, gets rid of any debris in the trans

[deadBird]

Mines been unplugged for about 9 months. Before that it was running and stalling for about 10 months where the mechanics were stumped with the previous owner. Now it's unplugged, and I'm a ferocious speeder on the highway. Yet, my transmission is in good condition.