Initial motor rattle and tranny slippage 97 Taurus

[shutt22]

The engine on my 97 Taurus rattles like an s.o.b., when I start, especially upon initial acceleration. This rattle subsides when the car warms up.

As for the tranny, when its really cold, it will slip (major), when I pull out of my drive and stop the first time. Then it seems to improve and, except for minor knocking, it's fine. Brought to a tranny shop and they road tested and said all I needed was a fluid change. Does this make sense?

The car has 210 km on it, and the tranny was changed by a previous owner, although I don't know when.

thx,
shutt

[sfontain]

Originally Posted by shutt22

The engine on my 97 Taurus rattles like an s.o.b., when I start, especially upon initial acceleration. This rattle subsides when the car warms up.

As for the tranny, when its really cold, it will slip (major), when I pull out of my drive and stop the first time. Then it seems to improve and, except for minor knocking, it's fine. Brought to a tranny shop and they road tested and said all I needed was a fluid change. Does this make sense?

The car has 210 km on it, and the tranny was changed by a previous owner, although I don't know when.

thx,
shutt

On the transmission--a fluid change is a (relatively) cheap way to determine whether your transmission is dead. Consider that you're probably looking at anywhere between $1500-$3000 to get another one installed. I assume the transmission shop checked the fluid level, but if not, you should do it yourself and make sure it is full (with the car warm and running). If it ends up turning into a $2000 repair, you might think about selling the car in favor of a newer one.

For the engine rattling... No idea. We need more information. The best I can suggest is possibly a bad engine mount, but if it goes away once it warms up then that's not likely. If you have some time, I would try starting it and looking/listening; or have someone else start it and look around. Is the rattle inside or outside the engine?