Transmission troubles (strange stuff)

[esmartuek]

first, I'd like to express my anger about those who rebuild transmissions improperly..... I am REALLY pissed off!

okay, now that I've said that, here's the situation:

I have a 1991 Mitsu. Eclipse GS 1.8L Automatic.

3 or 4 years ago I had my transmission rebuilt for roughly $1400... (some place in Cameron Park, CA [northern CA])
and thats when all the problems arose.

1 year ago, the driveplate (some call it the automatic's flywheel or flexplate) broke because of a loose bolt (which in turn tore huge gashes in the bell housing and ruined a few other things)
I replaced it and it broke again (lower tranny-engine bolt was missing)
I replaced it and the starter moter refused to catch the torque converter's teeth... so I went and got a oversized starter motor... which, just today, finally connects correctly.

After 1 year of buying boxes of ATF to handle a constant leak in the vicinity of the Torque Converter (1 quart/week) I decided to fix the problem and replace the front end seal.
Just yesterday, I bought a new seal from the local Mistubishi parts dealer and proceeded to tear my car apart according to Haynes instructions.
I didn't want to tear the driveaxles apart and since they're made of really thick steel, I let the tranny hang buy them... I lifted the engine and took out the TC to replace the seal and just today put the thing back together.

Before today, the vehicle shifted just fine (except when low on ATF)
after today, it won't leave 3rd gear (after tweaking with ATF amounts, it went into 2nd, only to go back into 3rd and get stuck again)
I know it's not really an ATF problem cause I've dealt with too much and too little before and this doesn't feel like either.

btw, it performs park, reverse, and neutral just fine.

so, here's the main question:
why won't it shift into another gear (especially when floored)?
could my leakage be because of an improper TC? I haven't had the chance to look at ones from shops.

my thoughts:
I have no f***in clue about the stuck gear, but the problems with the leak, starter motor (might help to use the kind desinged for my car), and problems in that area are probably cause the idiots in Cameron Park used the wrong kind of TC.

any thoughts greatly appreciated.

btw, I'm trying to sell it.

[enginerd]

If it will not shift properly, you've probably overlooked something like a vaccum line.

[esmartuek]

I suppose I failed to mention that I spent 2 hours looking at every wire and hose that connects to the transmission... they all look okay (but I didn't have any tools to really check them)

Being that the vehicle is mostly computer controlled, I think the only hose that connects to the transmission is the oil cooler hoses.

[enginerd]

Well, the basic fact is that the trans will not act properly since you do not have the correct torque convertor. Is it an aftermarket convertor or at least designed for the car?

[esmartuek]

I doubt it...
It's nothing like the one in the Haynes manual... aside from that it has gears on the outside (for the starter motor..... but not on the edge... where I need the gears to be.. they're a full 1/4" away from where they're supposed to be.

It's too small in thickness... when I put it in the bell housing and match that to the engine, it's about 1/16" away from the driveplate... when I bolt on the driveplate, it pulls the torque converter out 1/16" causing a gap between it and the seal.

[enginerd]

Well, you really should replace it with a proper Mitsu convertor, then see if the problems persist.

[nerone]

esmartuek......i have a leak from the front seal too, but i dont have a manual how to change it. would u tell me how many things i have to take appart to change that seal. i would really appreciate it. and whenever u changed it did the leak stop?