[marcpilot1]

Hi all. Got a serious question here and hope i dont get the bad news im thinking im gonna get. My sister has the 98 sebring conv with the 2.5 v6 and today she called me to come get her. She was 10 miles from home. 8 miles was freeway. She said the car was reving up on the interstate doing about 60 and not pulling. I asked her if it had just started doing that and is that why she pulled over. She said no that it had been slipping like that since she had left house. I asked why she kept going of course and she said this- "i thought maybe it hadn't warmed up yet". Typical. Anyway, I get to the car and its low on transmission fluid. I put a quart in and now theres too much. So i crank it up and put it in reverse and nothing but reving to 3 and 4k rpm's. Then all of the sudden it snatches itself into gear and starts backing up. I stop and put it in drive and nothing. 4k rpm's. Then again, bam, it goes into gear and goes forward. It does same in all gears. D,L,1,2,3 and reverse. I should mention its the auto stick. The instrument cluster doesnt have the auto stick showing, it has the same as a regular transmission. Weird. But anyway, thats what the details are. Im having it towed to my house as I type you all this. As always, any help, advice and direction is always APPRECIATED, thanks, Marc C.

 

[marcpilot1]

Valient67, I think youre saying what I was hoping not to hear. So the trans is shot? If after I do check these couple things and determine the trans is shot, whats the chances I can drop it and put in one from you pull it? Theres about 9 of them down there. And if thats a viable option, how do I go about picking the best one or the best way to choose one from the yard? Theyre only a hundred bucks down there. I hope I get some encouraging news. And thanks for the reply already. Very swift, thanks!

 

[marcpilot1]

Ok. But I dont think you can sheck for miles at u pull. No car out there has a battery. I guess I could take one. Or is there a trick im not thinking about to get the dash to light up at u pull? Checking bottom of pan this morning and will be posting results as soon as done. THANKS Imperial, Chuzz, Valient.

 

[marcpilot1]

You all saved the day once again! I did the fluid change. I unclogged the filter by simply putting a new filter in. When i drained the fluid as Imperial suggested, I noticed that what was left wasnt really that bad. In other words it wasnt black, burnt looking or nothing like that. Was pink. So as imperial suggested i diagnosed first. Valient said the filter might be plugged. Chuzz said to change the fluid and filter. So I did. Imperial said to look at the bottom of the pan. So I did and saw that there was no evidence of metal shavings, black fluid or anything that seemed out of the ordinary. After a new filter, dexron4 fluid change and repairing a tiny nick in a little black hose at the top of the front of the motor, on the left, the 4 inch little rubber hose that transitions to metal right before it drops down towards the bottom, the car started shifting again! It took a half of a mile of driving and it was starting to shift like new. After driving around for 15 minutes I brought it home and its back to normal. Saved a trip to repair shop and possibly a 2800 dollar transmission. So this is why I never do anything before seeking your replies. From Imperial to Chuzz to Valient to every single one of ya'lls input, I know i've saved myself many dollars and just as important, peace of mind and spared myself all the stress that comes with car problems. As always, THANKS ya'll!! Marc C.

 

[marcpilot1]

10-4! My mistake. I just finished draining the Dexron and putting in the atf+4. Sorry! Wow, after all the good luck I just had with this transmission i'd hate to have ruined it simply by putting in wrong fluid. And for anyone that wants to know, theyre exactly right. ATF+4 is mandatory. My bad. Almost a big boo boo. Thanks for the swift response ya'll. Thanks a lot.

 

[marcpilot1]

I sure will Chuzz and now I wonder why the fluid even has anything to do with the trans messing up. Isnt trans fluid simply transmission fluid? Theyre all reddish pink and have the same ingredient dont they? Ha!! I know theres more to it than the color but I still wonder why they can be so different that they can destroy a transmission just by putting the wrong kind in one. But you can bet I'll never put the wrong trans fluid in a car ever again. Ya'll caught it right on time and I learned but it almost costed me twenty something hundred dollars for this learn. Thxxxx ya'll, Marc C.

 

[marcpilot1]

That actually is an excellent way to flush a transmission. Because it def flies out of that little hose up there at the top left of the radiator, the trans cooler area. So all you have to be careful is that you keep filling the fluid I guess. Dont get behind on that and yea, after about 3 quarts or 3 gallons its good and flushed? Im sure its not 3 quarts. When the trans is empty i think it takes about 5 to 7 quarts to fill it up. Depending on what kind of car you have. But I do like this way quick way of flushing the transmission. Thanks lot!

 

[marcpilot1]

Ohhhh, crap. I had my quarts and gallons confused there for a second. Now i got it Mr. Lincoln. Maybe i need to go back to and take some classes other than a/c and trans info. But thats a good way to flush your trans because thats right, that little hose is right at the top beside the radiator. Something a lil easier easy to get to for a change on these cars. Wonder why they made almost everything so difficult to get to on these cars?