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Buick Century Transmission

jenmoore5jenmoore5 Member Posts: 2
in Buick
the transmission wont go into 1st gear or
over-drive. other than that i can still drive it. can anyone tell me if this is a switch problem or need new trans?
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Comments

  • Karen_SKaren_S Member Posts: 5,092
    You might want to search thru Buick Century: Problems & Solutions for transmission issues.
  • jenmoore5jenmoore5 Member Posts: 2
    i searched buick centruy solutions and problems and didn't find any related answers to my problem.
  • jburchfieldjburchfield Member Posts: 2
    I have had the same problem with two transmissions. After 40 to 50K miles, and after traveling for 1 to 2 hours at 65 to 75 mph, the transmission slips momentarily after stopping. Some times the slipping continues for a while and then goes away. Starting the next day, the transmission is fine. I had the 2003 transmission flushed after 75K and the problem went away for about 20K miles and returned. My 2005 transmission is now doing the same thing at 70K and I am getting ready to have it flushed. Has anyone else had this issue and does anyone know what the cause or cure might be? Your help would be greatly appreciated.

    Joe B
  • scotts1955scotts1955 Member Posts: 1
    How Hard Is It To Replace And Does The Sub Frame/Cross Member Need To Come Off In Order To Get The Tranny Out
  • fordfan_17fordfan_17 Member Posts: 175
    be sure when you have the trans flushed you have the filter changed too most problems surrounding slipping or neutraling when coming to a stop will relate to a restricted filter or low fluid level if the company that does the flush will not change the filter too consider finding another shop to do the work since flushing does not clean the filter of restrictions
  • fordfan_17fordfan_17 Member Posts: 175
    yes the subframe will have to be removed and depending on what style the subframe is engine support may be required to keep the motor stationary during trans out of car time
  • csendrescsendres Member Posts: 1
    Hi
    Im new here. I am replacing my tranny this weekend and wanted any advice anyone might be able to throw at me.

    Thanks :shades:
  • juliewhitneyjuliewhitney Member Posts: 1
    Had rebuilt transmission put in about 3,000 miles ago. 2001 BUICK CENTURY.
    Today, trying to start from traffic light, it didn't go forward in DRIVE. PUt it in next dear and still didn't move. Then in low gear it went forward. It also goes into reverse. I drove slowly and it took me home.
    Guy who put it in no longer in business.

    Also trac off light and service vehicle soon and anti lock lights have been coming on and off for the past few weeks. Had it scanned and all systems passed.

    Also passenger side window stopped moving a few months ago.

    TRANNY is my main concern. Any ideas or opinions? Called transmission place and he said he'd have to take the whole thing apart. Didn't even see it.

    IDEAS?
  • zef4hillzef4hill Member Posts: 1
    THE CONVERTOR DOESNT LOCK UP AT 50 MPH FEELS LIKE ENGINE IS SKIPPING BUT IT IS NOT PEDAL TO METAL AAND SHAKING GOES AWAY EASY FIX OR TRANS CHANGE ZEF4HILL THANKS :cry:
  • bay718bay718 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 96 buick century..

    I jus recently bought da car and i drove it 4rm atl to savannah well half way b4 it cut off..
    Some veterans dat helped me told me dat my fly wheel broke then wen i got it towed da mechanic told me i have to get my whole transmission rebuilt..

    When i start da car n put it n drive it makes this loud noise but it goes in reverse..
    Can yu tell me wat may be the problem could it be my gears are stuck etc
  • whitebread64whitebread64 Member Posts: 2
    Can anyone tell me what transmission came in the 89 Century with the 3.3L 3300, FWD?

    Thanks.
  • blade_24kblade_24k Member Posts: 1
    I was havein the same porblem with my 2003, it would slowly accelerate up to about 35-40 and then when it goes to shift it would sit in nutral and the engine would just rev, and the next day when i drove it to the shop it drove fine and they drove it and nothing. Then eventually i carfaxed my car for the fun of it, and in it, it said that some 2003 buicks have had the problem where the 2nd and/or 3rd grear shifter, or something like that, would stick, and that it would be about a $600+ or so fix.
  • johndominicsjohndominics Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2003 buick century that I bought(for $475) with a known transmission slipping problem. It would not go into gear for several minutes after placing the shift selecter in drive. It slipped between gears and sometimes down shifted hard when coming to a stop and then pulling away. Most problems went away after it was driven for a while. The transmission shops quoted from 1600, 2200 and 4000 to repair the problem. I heard so many solutions to the problem online that I decided to drop the motor/transmission myself and replace what seemed to be the solution online that had the most concencus....replaced the the 4 solenoid switches($250 for the parts).
    That solved the problem 70%. Then I tried the well advertised solution of adding a can of seafoam transmission treatment. That solved my problems up to 90% of the time. Now what? The next solution was to use dexron VI instead of dexron III because gm dexronVI says on the bottle that it can be used in older GM vehicles to prevent transmission shifting problems. So I put dextro VI in the transmission with one can of seafoam and guess what. I have no more problems. My 2003 Century has 345,000 kms(x taxi) and runs like new. I just wished I had tried the dexron VI before taking the transmission apart first.
    Let me know how you resolve your problem.
  • fire51fire51 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2006 century with 23000 miles.
    The dealer said it was time for a transmission and power steering flush.
    to the tune of almost 300.00
    I do not have a manual or i would have checked the service interval.

    Can anyone advise.
  • hoodlatchhoodlatch Member Posts: 255
    23k is still like new. leave it alone, and find a new shop to get trusted advice. 300 bucks would put a lot of beans and cornbread on the table. :)
  • regalgs241regalgs241 Member Posts: 4
    what this actually is, is the torque converter solenoid stuck on or open, which contributes to a P1811 code if you havent already did a diagnostic with a scan tool. but did you check the trans fluid? because its suppose to be a red color, but if its brown or black that means you got to flush it but im assuming you did also be sure to listen for a whining noise coming from the car. this means that the trans is slipping.
  • kingster1999kingster1999 Member Posts: 1
    Have an 89 Buick Century 3.3L V6. Stopped at a stop sign and then car would not move. No problem before that car ran fine. Fluids are good but when you shift into any gear does not feel like the transmission engages. Anyone have any ideas I would appreciate it. kingster1999@yahoo.com
  • oceanside_joeoceanside_joe Member Posts: 1
    I had my transmission rebuilt and they corrected numerous issues. A new failure has shown up recently (still under warranty, but repair shop is not trying to fix my issue). When the car is cold (ie overnight, or sitting at work on parking lot for 8hrs), I frequently notice that when in 1st and when I need a fast takeoff (ie blind curve exiting work parking lot) that the transmission will slip, then I can begin to feel the clutches start grabbing and moving me forward. It's a bit unnerving to have that happen if you really need the power. The repair shop says I need to let the transmission warm up before going. Never did that before and he's had the transmission out 3 times after the rebuild. Can you say 4 times? I've already been to BBB on the last repair, I think it's time for Dept of Consumer Affairs and small claims. Anyone have a clue as to what is wrong with the transmission? I'm ready to take it to another shop that knows what they're doing. Thanks! Joe
  • pipestonesimonpipestonesimon Member Posts: 1
    I bought this car when it had 22K on it and it now has 140K. Been very happy with it as the engine runs great and is very quiet and smooth--I often get 30mpg or sometimes even higher on the highway but have recently developed a hard shifting problem. When it upshifts I get a hard clunk as if the shift is delayed and then finally catches. I had the transmission fluid changed at a national quick service chain. Shortly thereafter the problem, which is intermittent got bad enough to take it to a local repair shop. Of course they couldn't get it to do anything out of the ordinary on their test drive but they did recommend that I put a new filter in the tranny thereby wasting the 100+ dollars I spent at the national chain as they only flushed and changed the fluid. Problem is still intermittent and mostly after the car is warm. I am just trying to get an idea of what cost the repairs might be as I may just trade the thing off if it likely going to be a major repair.
  • gmcustsvcgmcustsvc Member Posts: 4,252
    pipestonesimon,
    I apologize for your frustrations. Thank you for taking your time to explain your experience. If you would like to work with a GM dealer for your concerns please feel free to email me. If you have any questions comments or concerns please feel free to email me.
    Christina
    GM Customer Service
  • century_2001century_2001 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2001 buick century and I have lately been having a problem where at around 30-35 mph, it feels like the car won't shift into the next gear and then after it speeds up it won't slow down or anything without me putting on the breaks, even when on hills, and sometimes it even feels like it speeds up on its own without my foot on the gas at all. Does anyone know what this could be and/or how much it would cost to fix it. I am poor and in college and I have had soooo many problems with this car that I am thinking of trading it in to a dealer and getting a different one that hopefully won't have as many problems. If this repair would cost too much I would just trade it in for something else.
  • carfunmichcarfunmich Member Posts: 1
    My 2005 Buick was absolutely perfect until I had the trans fluid flushed, then it began to intermittently shift hard, mostly 2nd and 3d gear, usually when warm. The quicky oil change place I had it done at says they did everything right, put in the right fluid, and didn't use any cleaner, just extracted the old and replaced with new fluid. I had to have the dealership diagnose and fix the problem, it cost me $1,100 to have the PC solenoid replaced.

    The oil change place uses DM3, which they said is the right stuff. But when I looked this up online, it said it was not approved for use by GM cars that called for Dextron III. My owner's manual says it needs Dextron III. Should I go after the oil change place?

    Thanks for any advice
  • nappanappa Member Posts: 1
    The car will shift harshly at times, slip at times like many other Buick Centurys. The problem lies in the transaxle position sensor (on the opposite side of the throttle position sensor on the throttle valve after the air intake )
    It will stick. You can either replace it, instead of all the other crap they try to sell you or pump the gas pedal a few times before you start it. best when engine is cold.
  • abouttowne1abouttowne1 Member Posts: 3
    edited February 2013
    I have a 2000 Century that had intermittent transmission trouble. The check engine light would come and go. It would start to surge and hard shift. Sometimes would not go into 1st gear and would stay in overdrive. I did some research and found that the cars tend to have electrical shorts in the wire harness that plugs into the transmission, drivers side above the tranmission housing. There is a plug that has about 20 wires. They can break internally. You can try unplugging it and cleaning the connections. I did that and it corrected for a short period of time. Eventually it no longer worked. A new harness runs about 70 bucks. I went to a junk yard and cut one out of another Buick for $5 bucks. Was a pain to splice all of the wires, but I have driven it for 2 days with no surging, no shift problems and no check engine lights. The wires on the old plug were smashed and twisted where they go into the plug.

    Try that first, I see that the fix the repair places want to do is rebuild or replace the transmission and the problem seems to come back. The real problem was the connection. Good luck and try that, it is better than replacing the transmission if it is not the problem.
  • lakesidekevlakesidekev Member Posts: 1
    1995 Buick Century 3100 v6 145,000 miles
    My 95 Buick Century acts like the parking gear is stuck no matter which gear you shift it into even neutral. It feels like it shifts into gear but wont move. I had to rev the engine in neutral and drop it into drive and it popped, then I could drive it, but as soon as i shift it into reverse or park then it sticks again. I checked the fluid and it looks fine and is at the proper level.
    I ran my scanner on it and it didn't show anything. Any ideas?
  • abouttowne1abouttowne1 Member Posts: 3
    Need to check electrical connector at transmission on drivers side. Wires go bad. Picked up one out of a junker and spliced in. Took care of mine. That is why people who have the trans replaced are having the trouble recur.
  • deedeej50deedeej50 Member Posts: 1
    Friends replaced transmission about a year ago. Today the transmission won't shift into any gear. Dip stick is dry! Saw transmission fluid leaked out under car. (Just drove over 100 miles yesterday!) Since replaced a year ago it still whined, shifted roughly after warmed up at around 35 mph, so my question is do we replace the transmission or check for other things first? (Like wire harness gone bad, filter, transaxle position sensor, 4 solenoid switches and use seafoam transmiss. treatment with dexron VI) My son and ex are willing to go at it again!
  • mikem41mikem41 Member Posts: 1
    Hi, I'm looking for some guidance for the issues I'm having with my Century.

    I have been experiencing shuttering and slipping in first gear even after a rebuilt transmission was placed in it by a reputable shop that we have had no issues with in the past. (These problems were happening before the swap as well).

    I've also experienced what seems like a lag in full traction in my transmission. I'll be in first gear speeding up, or even second gear as well, and it will feel like my car has power and it is accelerating, though slower than normal, and then a few seconds later it will feel like it catches full traction in the transmission and be back to normal. Sometimes there will be a thud or at least a noticeable noise or feeling.

    When we brought the car in initially to have the transmission replaced the torque converter passed the test it had done on it. I'm wondering if this part is the issue at all?

    Also, for many years I have not completely stopped when switching from R to D. I've been switching gears at 2-3 mph, but I'm curious if that has some effect on the performance of the transmission.

    Any suggestions you might have as to why I'm having this problem and any possible solutions would be much appreciated!

    Thanks,

    Mike
  • tslettentsletten Member Posts: 1
    Ok my buick has 130,000 on it and if i drive it for 20 mins or so down the highway the transmission overdrive kicks out and i lose 10 mph on the speedometer so it says im doing 50 but im really doing 60 with everybody else. I replaced the speed sensor yesterday and still the same thing. Other than that transmission shifts nice and smooth
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