1996 Chrysler mini van trans trouble

[AmerilawnOfWisconsin]

Having some transmission problems with the wifes van. It's a 1996 Chrysler Town&Country mini van - front wheel drive with the 3.8 v6 and of course auto trans. 1st sign of a problem was back in November, jumped in the van and took off down the road (without letting the van warm up) went 4 blocks and came to a stop sign. As I come to a stop it feels like the trans popped out of gear and the van stalls. It started right back up and acts normal for weeks. 2nd sign of a problem was several weeks later take off again (van not warmed up long) get up on the freeway a short distance away and the van won't shift out of low gear. I pulled over a few times and ran through the gears with no change. Finally shut off the van and started it up again and it worked fine! 3rd incident, same popping out of gear feel as the first time but no stalling, felt sluggish though as if the trans was trying to take off in a higher gear. 4th incident, a few days ago would not shift out of low again! Shut off and restart the van and it shifts fine. I have checked the trans fluid and it is at the proper level and smells ok. No leaks that I have noticed. Problem seems to happen when the van is not warmed up before driving but not sure if it's coincedence or part of the problem. The check engine light is on but was before these problems started. When the check engine light came on I went through the procedure with the ignition key sequence to get the light to blink it's code. It came up as not warming up in sufficient time (or something similar to that) so I went after the thermostat and replaced it (it was actually broken). I also replaced the battery at the same time. A while later the check engine light came on again but I figured it probably just needed to be cleared by a shop from the previous t-stat problem? Just don't know enough about this stuff to know what is going on. Tranny failing? Electronic problem? Other problem causing it to go in temp limp mode? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks guys.

[Alan]

Is that an overdrive automatic? We had a 93 with a 3.0L (I think) and the OD automatic and it had very $imilar $ymptoms. Not shifting right, then shut off and it would reset itself and be fine for a while. Was replaced once under warranty, went bad again and we finally traded it before it could go a third time.

[wyldman]

Chryslers on-board diagnostics for transmissions are fantastic.You can look at clutch volumes,slippage,etc,all with a good scanner.From this data,as well as any stored codes,you can diagnose both mechanical and electrical problems.

Find a good shop,and have it scanned,not just the PCM,but the TCM as well.Ask them if they know how to look at TCM data,and how to interpret it.A good trans shop should be able to do this as well.

If you do rebuild the trans,make sure they replace the cell pack (solenoid pack),as well as replace or update the TCM.This will ensure the trans work well,and it will last.

[AmerilawnOfWisconsin]

Alan, Yes it is an overdrive automatic. Funny thing is that we were going to sell this van but were just waiting until spring. Guess we waited too long. :headwall We had two other front wheel drive cars with transmission problems before too. Twelve years of plowing and towing on various older Chevy trucks and Blazers and even my 99 Chevy with high miles and no (knock on wood) tranny failures. Go figure!

wyldman, Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. I have yet to find a "good shop". Even my experience with the local dealer has been disappointing. A lot of shops around though so I will do some research to find someone that knows what they are doing. Some day I may have to move by you so I can have a good shop by me. :nodd

[Plow Dak]

The situation your experiencing as far as staying in low gear is in fact "limp in"
To make along story short the TCM has seen a problem which makes the tcm look for a gear it thinks is "GOOD". Default "limp in" is second gear. Once it sees the fault is gives you the tcm gear of choice and rev. When you shut off the vehicle
the TCM resets for a fresh start. So it tries to run through the gears. The check engine light is also tied into the TCM to warn you that there is a problem .(like you don't already know). I will tell you this. There has been issues with the speed sensors in the trans. Primarily the input speed sensor. When you have the tcm scanned you will have more than one fault. No matter what comes up if you have any speed sensor issues in hard codes or in history, change out the affected speed sensor and have them do a quick learn to the TCM again and try it. Speed sensors have a habbit of coming on line and going off line at anytime. more often when cold. You will have 1-2 fault immediatly after shift
type codes. Don't let them try to get you to do a overhaul yet if a sensor code is up. I do a real time drive to see if the sensor drops out before i condem the clutch seals. The CVI monitors will help the tech determin the clutch health. IF it need to be gone through do what Chris said and have the sol pack replaced and the tcm checked for the latest update. And if the trans guy knows his stuff ( and you want it overhauled ) he should rebuild the trans at the tigher specs for the clutch packs ( i sometimes go tighter) as this will really make the trans shift smooth and have a longer life. Good luck

[AmerilawnOfWisconsin]

Plow Dak, Wow, I guess you know your stuff! It amazes me how much info is available on this site and how fast it's available. I really appreciate you guys taking the time to offer your knowledge and advice. Now that I am armed with this info I will start my search to find a shop that can fix me up. Thank you.

[repo_man62]

Rebuild it, and you'll never have another problem!

[wyldman]

Rebuild it, and you'll never have another problem!

Read Mike's post.Do not rebuild until it's diagnosed,and it's not an electronic problem.If you just rebuild it,you probably won't fix it.

[AmerilawnOfWisconsin]

I will definately be having the problem diagnosed before jumping into a rebuild. For now it is parked until I can find a shop with the proper knowledge to diagnose it correctly. By chance does anyone know of such a shop in southeast Wisconsin?