Truck shifting in an out of gear

Schurkey said:

...and filter, and clean the inside of the pan.

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Figured that was without saying.

Schurkey said:

Connect a scan tool, find out what the computer is trying to tell you.

Not only do you need to verify engine performance, I'd want to interrogate the transmission, too. Fluid temperature, shift adaptation, and anything else that seemed relevant.

Confirm: this is a SHIFTING problem, not a TORQUE CONVERTER CLUTCH problem?


...and filter, and clean the inside of the pan.

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Mine being a 1995 it’s obd1. What kind of scan tool will I need? And I was also planning on changing filter and fluid on my transmission anyways.

Caman96 said:

Figured that was without saying.

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I wish that were so.

Plenty of scammers out there advertising their "Fluid Exchange Machines", where they replace the fluid but NOT the filter, and without ever removing the pan.

And those folk charged MORE than we used to get for a pan-drop fluid change plus filter.

Nw2000 said:

Mine being a 1995 it’s obd1. What kind of scan tool will I need?

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Any REAL scan tool is not limited to OBD2. Plenty of consumer-grade tools are. You just need to source either a proper scan tool, or one of the software-plus-cable/connector solutions that seem to be popular with everyone but me.

I bought a used, professional-grade scan tool from a seller on eBay. Craigslist and pawn-shops are other potential sources.

There is a forum OBD2 Scan Tool.

Schurkey said:

And those folk charged MORE than we used to get for a pan-drop fluid change plus filter.

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"...but that tool is really expensive, and we have to pay it off!"

The selling point on the fluid flush machines was that it changed all of the fluid. We just didn't know back then that suddenly changing all the fluid in the transmission was a bad thing. If you did the fluid flush regularly from day one it was good, but if your transmission was over 100k, you didn't dare use the machine or you'd be buying a new transmission. That hasn't stopped the shysters from selling it as a cure-all. I think we consumers need to bring back tar and feathering.

Erik the Awful said:

"...but that tool is really expensive, and we have to pay it off!"

The selling point on the fluid flush machines was that it changed all of the fluid. We just didn't know back then that suddenly changing all the fluid in the transmission was a bad thing. If you did the fluid flush regularly from day one it was good, but if your transmission was over 100k, you didn't dare use the machine or you'd be buying a new transmission. That hasn't stopped the shysters from selling it as a cure-all. I think we consumers need to bring back tar and feathering.

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Not true, I've purged numerous high mileage transmissions by dropping the pan, doing the filter, sticking the return line in a bucket, and pumping fresh fluid until it comes out clean. Merely exchanging old, nasty fluid for fresh, clean fluid will NOT hurt your transmission. Blowing fresh fluid through at high pressure without dropping the pan is different.

Supercharged111 said:

Not true, I've purged numerous high mileage transmissions by dropping the pan, doing the filter, sticking the return line in a bucket, and pumping fresh fluid until it comes out clean. Merely exchanging old, nasty fluid for fresh, clean fluid will NOT hurt your transmission. Blowing fresh fluid through at high pressure without dropping the pan is different.

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That^^^

The machine we had didn't have a pump on it, just a reservoir of new fluid and a reservoir for the old fluid with a bladder between them. We'd take loose the cooler lines and connect them to the unit. The transmission's own pressure would pump the old fluid into the old tank while that same pressure would pump the new fluid in. We had several transmissions that worked fine for about a month afterwards and then kicked the bucket. Some we personally verified were working fine before they got the flush. Try explaining to your customer that their proactive approach to spending money on maintenance resulted in a transmission failure. It sucks.

MY standard-operating-procedure is to drop a cooler tube, direct the flow into a drain pan, and start the engine. Pumps the pan nearly dry so there's no mess on removal. Shut off engine. Remove pan, change filter, clean pan and magnet. Reinstall pan with gasket. Install (typically 5 on American cars) quarts of fluid. Open another ten-ish, and place them within easy reach. Start engine, pour fluid down the dipstick tube as fast as it'll flow, while watching the fluid coming out of the cooler tube. When the fluid coming out of the cooler tube looks virgin-fresh, shut off engine, connect cooler tube, re-start engine and top off fluid as needed.

I just got my order from Amsoil a few days ago. Enough trans fluid for two vehicle flushes, and a little extra, along with some engine oil. I haven't used Amsoil trans fluid for a flush before...but when I can buy "Multi-Vehicle OEM" Amsoil for LESS than I can buy case-lots of Dex/Merc at NAPA or O'Reillys, it's an easy choice. Around here, a quart of Dex/Merc is over ten bucks with tax. Criminal.

Update: I just replaced my brake switch and it was definitely a pain lol. Will update back when I drive it and conclude whether or not that was the issue.