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Comments
Best Regards,
Shipo
Given the fact that we have two kids in braces now and college for two looming on the horizon (with a possible stint in a (not even remotely cheap) prep school for one of the two), we are looking at keeping both DGCs for at least another year or two (and if the prep school thing happens, even longer). Since we are driving over one thousand miles per week, split almost evenly between the two vans, two more years equates to another 52,000 miles per vehicle. Even with the rising gas prices, and even though we would both love to drive something more sporty and economical (thinking Audi A3 2.0T 6-Speed here), the reality of the situation is that we can buy thousands of gallons of gas for our current cars and still come out ahead dollar wise as opposed to trading them in.
Oh, and as for GM cars, no thanks. Not my cup of tea.
Best Regards,
Shipo
If a shop did the work, seems they should be liable for proper repair. If you did it yourself, mybe it is time to get it to an expert, at least for a diagnosis.
Could it be you are having some other issue, like your brakes dragging or a stuck parking brake cable that is adding resistance to your vehicle down when trying to move? Bad CV joint, or wheel bearing? Did you use the right type of transmission fluid?
Is there any way to know if my '05 T&C LX 3.3 has a cooler?
I am unable to check and my wife doesn't understand.
Best Regards,
Shipo
(where the heck did you get that name from?)
Those transmissions for the 3.3 and 3.8L engines are actually strong an sturdy transmissions, but they have to be treated with respect!
You shouldn't go with the 2.4 (4cyl) and 3.0 L engines
The othe rones are way more reliable.
You never know when a transmission goes, but when you buy the vehicle it should shift nicely, up and (kick)down.
Once you own one , you shouldn't spin the wheels (hard here in Canada in wintertime, unless you have wintertires and traction control.
You also want to sevice the transmission according to the mfr's specs. I bring it to the Chrysler dealer for the appr. ATF + fluid every 50000 Km's (30K Mi) That's it
My van has almost 300.000 Km's on it now and the tranny goes lovely!!!! Love my T & C
Willem
Second, the overdrive will constantly be engaging and disengaging in city driving. It should be turned off unless you can maintain a constant speed over 40 mph.
As others have said, if you don't use a dealer for service (I don't) you must know the correct fluid, ask for that fluid and ask to see an empty container after the service. Roy
you must know the correct fluid, ask for that fluid and ask to see an empty container after the service.
I would add this:
Don't use equivalent fluid, only use Chrysler ATF fluid that you can buy at your Chrysler dealer.
Even Chryslers don't depreciate THAT fast!
Some people confuse "hundred" with "thousand". I'm sure this is what happened, since they bought it from a dealer. Even a salvaged '02 (wrecked and rebuilt) with a blown tranny and missing seats is going to be worth more than $1,200.
Thanks,
:sick:
Also how helpful is it to get an extra cooler for the transmission?
Thank you
Most folks would not necessarily agree with that statement. Think about it, your van managed 130,000 on the original tranny (and mine lasted 109,000), is that so terrible "bad"? Said another way, every single Honda Odyssey owner in my neighborhood (where we now have four families with Odysseys) would absolutely LOVE to get 130,000 on their transmissions. My next door neighbors have actually had the best luck, they managed nearly 50,000 on their first transmission, nobody else has even made 35,000.
Also how helpful is it to get an extra cooler for the transmission?
There is a fair amount of empirical evidence to suggest that a tranny cooler will in fact extend the life of these transmissions. How much? Unknown.
Regarding "Synthetic" transmission fluid, that might be the very reason why our transmissions failed. Consider the following:
- In June of 2001 DC issued TSB: 21-006-01 which stated that the new fully synthetic ATF+4 transmission fluid was to replace the previous semi-synthetic ATF+3 effective immediately, EXCEPT for 1999 and older minivans. Per this TSB the reason for staying with the older ATF+3 was that "Torque Converter shudder" was a potential issue.
- At some point DC started phasing out the production of ATF+3 and supplies started dwindling
- Nearly three years after the first TSB (and after what one would assume was a considerable amount of further testing) in March of 2004 DC issued TSB: 21-004-04 that reiterated that ATF+4 was not to be used in 1999 and older minivans.
So far so good right?
- In 2005 I started hearing reports stating that DC dealerships had finally run out of ATF+3 and that ATF+4 was now the only transmission fluid stocked by DC dealerships.
- In October of 2005 I had my 1998 transmission serviced (and my dealership used ATF+4)
- Then in April of this year, DC issued TSB: 21-010-06 which states that ATF+4 is the only transmission fluid that should be used in 1999 and earlier minivans.
- This Spring (within a few weeks of this latest TSB) the transmission on my 1998 DGC 3.8 failed, exactly 9,000 miles after it had been serviced.
While I have absolutely no proof that the ATF+4 caused my transmission failure only a few months after it was introduced to my original transmission, I believe that there is a potential issue with the new ATF. Why? Well, I know for a fact that my transmission didn't reengineer itself to suddenly become compatible with ATF+4, and by all accounts, ATF+4 is still ATF+4, so what changed? While I don't happen to be a conspiracy theorist, I do find it ironic that roughly seven years after the last 1999 minivan (with a 7 year / 70,000 mile warranty) was sold, DC issues a TSB that is an absolute “about face” to what they'd been saying for the previous five years. Am I the only one that finds that little issue odd?
For me at least, I opted to buy a "Factory Remanufactured" transmission, which happens to be built to the 2000 model year standard and as such is by all accounts "good to go" with the ATF+4.
FWIW, oddly enough I'm reasonably happy that my original transmission lasted 109,000 miles, and as such am not at all upset that it failed. What bugs me is that I believe that had ATF+3 still been available last October, my transmission would not have failed.
I don't know if this helps, but there it is.
Best Regards,
Shipo
It will be interesting to see, if over the next year or two we start seeing a spate of pre-2000 minivan transmission failures occuring a few months after ATF+4 is introduced for the first time. Should that come to pass, well... You get the idea.
Either way, I no longer have to worry about it as I now have an ATF+4 tranny in both of our DGCs. ;-)
Best Regards,
Shipo
Thank you.
I have replaced the transmission filter and oil. No difference. The check engine light is on all the time.
When we looked at the codes It says "Transmission control system malfunction" Does anyone know what this means?
Should I replace the Transmission Control Module-TCM? or the overdrive module?
I would like to resolve this transmission problem soon, any help is appraciated...
With the age and mileage you have, I would start preparing for the worst. From what I've read 100 to 150 thousand miles is pretty much it for these trannies.
Thanks
Mike
by any means. Good luck.
overhauled at 115K miles and again recently at
142K miles, becasuse of planetary gear failure.
Rebuilt torque converter installed.
Now the torque converter comes unlocked at high
speed (70 mph) when there is a very slight
increase in power to pass, on the interstate.
Transmission gets hot enough that I can smell it.
I do not recall the old tansmission doing this.
Shop says this is normal for new torque converters.
Is this NORMAL? What is the problem.
Tnx
1) I don't remember where I heard this; however, I heard somewhere that a number of aftermarket belts have been known to cause problems. IIRC, the only belts that I've heard that work well are Mopar, NAPA and Gates.
2) Introduce enough water to the pulleys and even the best of belts will squeal.
3) You may have a pulley or accessory that is binding (i.e. not turning as easily as it should) and that is putting undue strain on your belt. If this is the case, then a short belt life is guaranteed.
[Soapbox]
Entirely too many mechanics simply treat the symptom (i.e. the failed belts) in this type of repetitive scenario and not the cause (i.e. a bad pump or pully). My counsel to you is to find a mechanic who will find the cause and use quality replacement parts to fix it.
[/Soapbox]
Best Regards,
Shipo
These 3.3 and 3.8 L engines are more sensitive to issues such as this as there is one long belt driving everything, however once setup properly and with a quality belt, will go 50-60K with no issues.
Chowbuick, you should also check to make sure no one removed the big black plastic shield that protects the lower engine pulleys and belt on the passenger side of the engine. I could see a lot of water splashing up on the belt if this is missing.
NEVER AGAIN A PLYMOUTH DODGE OR CHRYSLER I HAVE LEARNED A LESSON AND DONT TRUST DEALERS
Didn't you post sometime back that you bought this van with over 120,000 miles on it, and with an unknown and/or questionable maintenance history? If that's the case I honestly don't understand how you can come to the conclusion that your car is a "lemon". FWIW, any car that is poorly maintained for over 120,000 miles is going to be fairly unreliable, regardless of whether it's a 1998 Voyager or a 1994 Century.
As a contrasting point, we have a 1998 DGC and it has suffered only three squwaks in its nearly 120,000 miles of service life to date. Given that we bought it new and I know how well it's been maintained, I have absolutely no doubt that we can get and easy 200,000 to 250,000 miles out of it before it's ready for the bone yard.
As far as your issue with the "oil filter gasket", ummm, which engine do you have? The filters for the 3.3 and the 3.8 liter V6s (and presumably the 2.4 liter I4) are made with a built in gasket. Hmmm, that only leaves out the 3.0 liter Mitsubishi mill. Does that thing use a separate gasket for the oil filter? I'd be kind of surprised if it did.
Best Regards,
Shipo
http://www.allpar.com/ed/tips/trans.html