N/T Auto Trans Slipping: Options?

[Arrow_Runner]

To my knowledge the tranny fluid in my car has never been changed, now with 140k miles on it.

It's started to slip about once or twice a day and the tranny fluid looks really black.

I've heard that if a tranny is slipping, changing the fluid is just going to make matters worse. Have you heard similar things? It makes sense that changing the fluid could force dirt to move around and settle into different spots and make things worse.

Please give an explanation to your choice because I would like to explain this to a few people who have also heard that changing the fluid after so long is a bad idea.

Should I:

A: Change the fluid and filter.

B: Pay someone to flush it professionally

C: Save my money for a 5-speed and hope that this one doesn't break until I can do a swap at a convenient time?

 

[dsmgrimreaper]

put transtune by seafoam its in a red and white can with a screw in cap, if that dont work your shit out of luck.

 

[Arrow_Runner]

Where can I find transtune and seafoam?

And what would I do with transtune? Drain old fluid and replace filter and then use it?

 

[talondude4]

Where can I find transtune and seafoam?

And what would I do with transtune? Drain old fluid and replace filter and then use it?

I get mine at napa, you dump it into the transmission. You dont need to drain it, just add it to your fluid.

 

[WMD]

Sigh, it might be to late. Change the fluid and see if it works better (lack of fluid will make it slip). If there is no improvement, the the valve which allows the tranny to shift may be toast, or the clutch packs might be burnt out too, this would make it feel as if it were slipping. My mother never had her tranny fluid changed on her 93 escort and when we finnaly changed the fluid a 120k, it was to late. The valve would stick and not allow the car to shift, and it got so bad we just scrapped the car.

 

[1991GSXAWD]

Drop the transmission pan and look for small pieces of clutches, if you don't find any than you might be able to get away with changing the filter and fluid, if there is a lot of metal in the bottom of the pan than most likely it will start slipping more after you change the fluid as the metal particles is what keeps the clutches from slipping, don't waste your money on a transmission flush, most people don't understand that you have to change the transmission fluid and filter just like when you do an oil change by following your factory scheduled service, many new cars don't require transmission service till 100K or ?

 

[WMD]

1991' has a good point. when we took of the pan on the escort tranny, the magnet was buried in metal shavings.
But keep in mind, all autos will have some shavings on the magnet. Its just a matter of how much there is on there.

 

[Arrow_Runner]

Ok, so I should drop the pan and look for shavings, if there is a lot then would I putting myself in a worse position since I would obviously have to change the fluid?

 

[xcelr8n]

You can either do nothing about it, and let it get worse and worse, or hope for the best and change the fluid and filter. If it gets worse, well hell it was probably going to soon anyways. I vote for you changing the F & F yourself... Pick up a haynes manual first though =)

 

[Carter97GSX]

I used to work at a tire store, and we would not do a tranny flush on cars with high mileage and dirty fluid because they almost always shifted worse or even started slipping after we did it. I would not spend a dime on that tranny, and just save up for a 5 speed. You can get one for like $300 + shipping on ebay, and then all you would need would be the hardware from a junkyard to make it work. Good luck, but keep in mind that these things almost never get better once they've started slipping.

 

[vintagemuscle]

I used to work at a tire store, and we would not do a tranny flush on cars with high mileage and dirty fluid because they almost always shifted worse or even started slipping after we did it. I would not spend a dime on that tranny, and just save up for a 5 speed. You can get one for like $300 + shipping on ebay, and then all you would need would be the hardware from a junkyard to make it work. Good luck, but keep in mind that these things almost never get better once they've started slipping.

what he said^^. there is a slim to no possibility that changing the fluid will help you if it has never been changed. chances are that it will make it much worse. how bad is it slipping? make sure it is full of fluid. can you smell burning trans fluid? if so, your driving on borrowed time.

 

[grntalontsi]

Once it starts slipping it's most likely too late. My talon is auto and awd so that's alot of strain on the trans. Mine went at 66,000. Luckily it was under the original warranty, so I brought to Aamco and they did a whole new trans plus a shift kit for $300. Now it's under an additional 50,000 mile warranty by Aamco.

If you can hold out until a 5 speed do that. There's no way that trans is going to get any better. According to the owner's manual you're supposed to change the trans fluid every 75,000 miles. You're almost twice that. Good luck whatever your decision is.

 

[Arrow_Runner]

Thank you guys for your help, hopefully she'll hang in there until summer break.

It slips I would say 10 times a week, give or take.

I'm babying the car now, hopefully that will help some. It's just weird accellerating so slowly...

 

[napkinthief]

hows that aamco tranny holding up?


I just added some lucas oil stabilizer into the tranny fluid dipstick tube, and added about 1/2 a quart of fluid ontop of it, then drained fluid until I was at the right level on the stick. This really seems to have helped my tranny, as sometimes before I had done this, I would put it into D and it would go nowhere and just free rev to around 4k rpm then catch like I dropped the cluth for a burnout.

 

[grntalontsi]

My aamco tranny is awesome. The shift kit they installed is amazing. It pulls really hard when it hits second. And when I roll up to a light or sometimes slow down because of traffic, it downshifts like a manual. It launches really good at the track too.

 

[Arrow_Runner]

Just an update, Tranny blew today going up a hill. Slipped, free revved for a second, when it came back it jerked really hard and wouldn't move on it's own.

 

[91Bomb]

Go to aamco -OR- save some time and agravation and flush all your money down the toilet

 

[91Bomb]

bump

 

[beating4g63s]

I used to work at a tire store, and we would not do a tranny flush on cars with high mileage and dirty fluid because they almost always shifted worse or even started slipping after we did it. I would not spend a dime on that tranny, and just save up for a 5 speed. You can get one for like $300 + shipping on ebay, and then all you would need would be the hardware from a junkyard to make it work. Good luck, but keep in mind that these things almost never get better once they've started slipping.

wow sir, just wow, I've got two autos at the moment one with 220,000 miles and another with 140,000 my 200k miles started slipping and after searching I just changed the fluid and filter and now that cars shifting better then it ever did no leaks and no problems and my 140,000 mile one started slipping last week changed fluid and filter no leaks and shifts like butter. and before I forget I have a auto 96 geo tracker it started slipping with 90,000 miles on it and I did a tranny flush and filter and oil change and it now has 130,000 on it now and never had a problem. with any of them shifting at any speeds from 0-100 havn't taken any past that. and all the fluid before I changed it was dirty as I don't know what

edit: before I forget when your tranny is slipping 10 times a week, it's like doing a neutral dumb for autos which is realllyyyy bad, which can actually cause your tranny to go out faster, so it's better to actually take your chance if any with changing the tranny fluid and filter then having the tranny keep slipping and going from whatever rpm your at and catch that bump noise that occurs stresses out your tranny.