2G Spyder Auto Tranny Won't Go Into Gear

[MrChallenger360]

Okay guys, picked up my 3rd dsm the last week for uber cheap (it's a 98 spyder gs-t in case your wondering). The bad news is it won't go into gear.

When talking to the previous owner he told me the following when I do not fully believe but here it is anyway.

He was driving it like he usually does with the o/d off but he was gonna get on the freeway so he switched it on and then the tranny stopped working. He told me that it needs a tranny selanoid.

So that's what I got from him. I brought the car home, checked the fluid level and it's good. So I started it up and gave it a try. Well it didn't go into gear. I did notice that when I put it into a drive gear I heard a fast clicking noise like something it trying to engage but not working. It does that in all the drive gears with o/d on and off.

I was reading through my service manual about a/t and it had a list of codes that the car could throw so I decided to hook up a obd2 reader to check it out despite the fact I had no cel. Unfortunately no codes came up so I'm back at square one.

I've been doing some research in the a/t forum but I can't really find an answer. The only thing I got from it is limp mode or whatever. I don't know what that is or if that's my problem so if you can explain that 2 that would be cool.

Thanks guys.

 

[motomattx]

You have internal damage - wasted converter, bad pump, or a hard part broke.

 

[Isaiah_isgod]

Try unplugging your tcu and see if it moves if you give it some throttle.

I have the same problem, but when disconnecting the tcu and applying the throttle it makes an attempt to move. What do you think it could be?

 

[1990TSIAWDTALON]

Old thread but your TCU is in limp mode. It will start out in 3rd (drive) gear only and should still have reverse and of course neutral and park. If it has all of those, that is the issue.

 

[Isaiah_isgod]

Old thread but your TCU is in limp mode. It will start out in 3rd (drive) gear only and should still have reverse and of course neutral and park. If it has all of those, that is the issue.

So then it would only be my tcu itself that is the problem?

 

[1990TSIAWDTALON]

Does the car go into gear but seem like it barely wants to start moving? Does it still have reverse? If the answer to those are yes and yes then it is pointing at the tcu being in limp mode. Unplug the tcu and if it is exacly the same (yes the car can still drive...but don't do it) then it very well can be the transmission computer. They have capacitors that go bad too just like our ecu's. I have one bad tcu and 2 good ones. You can build a box to manually shift it very cheap with a couple toggle switches and a hobby box but it is all manual and you shift it to all gears except park, neutral and reverse.
Try to back up (use reverse) a few feet and put in into drive and pull it back into place. It WILL move in 3rd gear but just limp it back into place so you don't burn up a clutch pack. If that all works, it is a tcu that is dead or in limp mode.

 

[motomattx]

Driving in limp mode doesnt hurt the clutch pack, its kinda hard on the converter though.

 

[Isaiah_isgod]

Does the car go into gear but seem like it barely wants to start moving? Does it still have reverse? If the answer to those are yes and yes then it is pointing at the tcu being in limp mode. Unplug the tcu and if it is exacly the same (yes the car can still drive...but don't do it) then it very well can be the transmission computer. They have capacitors that go bad too just like our ecu's. I have one bad tcu and 2 good ones. You can build a box to manually shift it very cheap with a couple toggle switches and a hobby box but it is all manual and you shift it to all gears except park, neutral and reverse.
Try to back up (use reverse) a few feet and put in into drive and pull it back into place. It WILL move in 3rd gear but just limp it back into place so you don't burn up a clutch pack. If that all works, it is a tcu that is dead or in limp mode.

Thanks for your replies, my car can reverse and go into drive but only third gear. I'll try locating a tcu, can I use one from any year?

 

[1990TSIAWDTALON]

Best to just try to find the exact same year and model TCU. What year and FWD or AWD?

 

[Isaiah_isgod]

Best to just try to find the exact same year and model TCU. What year and FWD or AWD?

It's a 95 gst

 

[1990TSIAWDTALON]

I will see what I have.

 

[Isaiah_isgod]

I will see what I have.

md756600, is the tcm part number