89 Caprice transmission trouble.

[ijasond]

The transmission is smooth until it's hot(usually after about 25-30 miles of driving) then it begins to hesitate/slip & is rough downshifting, mostly in the lower gears. I don't know if this is a related problem, but the service engine soon light periodically comes on after about the same amount of driving. The transmission is consistently a problem,the service engine soon light only comes on every now & then. Any thoughts?

[ijasond]

Odometer shows 83,000 miles which i believe to be accurate. I recently had the transmission flushed, which seemed to help for a while, but now the problem is back as it was, possibly even worse.

[Cyrix_2k]

Try unplugging the torque converter lock-up plug. It fixed that problem for me - and my tranny guy said it shouldn't hurt the car too much since a large, low stall converter was used in the Caprice. You'll lose some gas milage and (quote) "5% transmission life at the MOST." I got two opinions on this as well as I have heard that unplugging lock-up converters can burn them up - he said this is true with smaller cars/engines that need a high stall rating for extra torque.

[bobss396]

My converter lock up has been unplugged for around the last 60k miles with no problems. It does USE a bit of transmission fluid, comes to maybe a quart a year that I have to add.

Bob