96 Grand Cherokee Transmission Shift Problem

[Pintle]

My first post!! Any ideas on why transmission delays up shifting between 2nd and 3rd, at about 40 mph. Engine revs because trannie seems to become disengaged. By backing off on accelerator, 3rd gear then engages. My daughters vehicle, and she has been living with it for some weeks. Anything I can do short of complete disassembly?

[oljeeptek]

Originally Posted by Pintle

My first post!! Any ideas on why transmission delays up shifting between 2nd and 3rd, at about 40 mph. Engine revs because trannie seems to become disengaged. By backing off on accelerator, 3rd gear then engages. My daughters vehicle, and she has been living with it for some weeks. Anything I can do short of complete disassembly?

Get it good and warm and make sure the fluid level is correct. Are you sure its going into 3rd after letting up, not directly into overdrive?

I would have the trans scanned for codes and check service bulletins before tearing anything out. Is the fluid burnt?

[GregA]

Originally Posted by Pintle

My first post!! Any ideas on why transmission delays up shifting between 2nd and 3rd, at about 40 mph. Engine revs because trannie seems to become disengaged. By backing off on accelerator, 3rd gear then engages. My daughters vehicle, and she has been living with it for some weeks. Anything I can do short of complete disassembly?

First - Welcome to the forum!

I had a similar problem on my wife's '92 Cherokee with the 4.0 liter in-line 6 cylinder. It didn't seem to "slip" like you have described (engine revs), but it took a long time to shift between 2nd & 3rd, and WOULD SHIFT if I let up on the gas pedal.

After some testing with a voltmeter, the problem ended up being the Throttle Position Sensor. I seem to recall that the voltage at the center tap of the sensor should be about .5 volts when the throttle is closed, and about 4 volts at full throttle (tests are done with ignition ON and engine OFF). The voltage should change smoothly as the throttle is opened and closed.

Anyway, mine would only go down to about 2 volts at the bottom end. Replacing the TPS fixed it. I would recommend TESTING before replacing any part. Check the link below for instructions and some pictures:

http://www.autozone.com/servlet/UiBr...3d80152424.jsp

Once I replaced the TPS, I also did the "Throttle Cable" adjustment procedure shown at the link below. It took a couple of times to get it right, but after replacing the TPS and doing this adjustment, it now shifts real smooth.

http://www.autozone.com/servlet/UiBr...3d8015406a.jsp

Let us know what happens.

Take Care,

[Pintle]

Thanks for the items to check. Yesterday morning was my first time driving it on the way to work. After sending my post, I did some other checking and got some ideas similar to those you listed. On the way home, I played with it a little (manually shifting, hard downshifts, etc.), and seem to have made the problem go away. Amazes me that my daughter has been experiencing this for a couple months, and I can make it go away in a day. I'm thinking it's dirty/worn out fluid. Maybe a sticking solenoid or valve?? I'm headed out this morning to check it and seee if it comes back when cold. My guess is the fluid has never been changed (115K miles), so I'm likely going to change it and the filter. BTW, its a V8, so according to my investigations, I guess I'm going to find a 44RE transmission.

[freddyj]

I'd like to chime in on this as well - if anyone has any new information, please share!!

My 96 Grand Cherokee (V8, 163K miles) is experiencing a VERY similar problem. When the vehicle is cold, the transmission is very hesitant to shift from 2nd to 3rd gear. Sometimes the engine revs in excess of 3500 RPM before shifting. By letting off the accelerator and "coaxing" it a bit, I can get it to shift. Once the engine is competely warmed up, the problem goes away. There does not appear to be any slippage, just a frustrating hesitancy to shift. This is especially disconcerting in early morning freeway traffic.

Does this sound like a TPS problem? I'd rather not have my dealer tell me I need a new transmission if I can avoid it. :-)

Thanks!!

[Pintle]

freddyj - Well, I wish I had good news for you, but I don't. Your problem is exactly the same as where I ended up in trying to fix my daughter's JGC shift problem. Initially, it had the 2-3 updhift problem all the time. I started out by changing the trans fluid and filter, then the TPS, and finally adjusted the throttle valve cable. All these things seemingly together reduced the problem to only happening when cold. I think changing the TPS and adjusting the throttle valve cable helped the most. What's interesting is that I had nearly identical voltage readings on the TPS between the new and old one, but the shift problem was really bad with the old one, and only occurs when cold with the new one. We took the easy, but costly way out of selling the JGC and buying a new car. Somewhere along the way, I read a thread, perhaps on another site, that there is a worn seal internal to the transmission that causes this problem.

[xj31]

It is very common for the front clutch seals to wear out.The rubber seems to get hard and if you take it apart the piston just falls out of the drum,like there is no seal on it.I assume that it gets more pliable when it warms up,so it starts to seal,then it shifts.

[trannyman52]

adjust the tv cable,,,to "pull" a bit harder,,,,this should give a more decisive shift,,,,,If this thing slips,,,or delays in reverse,,,,{same clutch apply} then suspect direct clutch damage,,,,may then need some internal work

[freddyj]

Thanks for the tips! I may still be forced to visit the dealer after all, but at least I'll enter the conversation with a few ideas. :-)