Jason F

Well, I got Tranny Woes Max back on Thursday, after spending three weeks in the shop again. Get this...

So right at the first of August, the car wouldn't move in 1st gear or reverse. It was as if the car was in P, it'd roll a few inches, then stop. Hmmm....but, if you put the car in D, or 3, it'd start, though you could tell it was starting in 2nd gear, not in first. Strange. Call the mechanic (the car only has 400 miles or so since it got out of the tranny shop, after replacing some clutches and the brake band, and getting a new radiator). He says check the fluid, check it, it's fine. Hmm...

So I begin to investigate on my own.

Check the levels again the next day, it's ok. Play with the tranny and conclude that it's only not working when it's trying to use 1st or R. Hmm....

I borrow an ECU and tranny ECU that Craig B had laying around (thanks Craig!!), and swap those in place of mine. Still nothing changes. Hmm....

Finally, I give up. The mechanic calls a wrecker, and the wrecker hauls the car off to the tranny shop.

A few days later I get a call.
(imagine this is from a big fat redneck mechanic, quite a burly guy) "Boy, you trying to play a trick on me?"
Me: "Uh, excuse me? Who is this?"
"This is J.R. Are you trying to fool me?"
Me: "Uh, no sir (bad habit, I say sir and ma'am to everyone)...why?"
"Because one of the connectors to the transmission is unhooked, and it can't come unhooked on it's own. Someone had to unhook it. Either you're playing a trick on me and wasting my time, or someone's playing a trick on you."
Me: "What connector?"
"There are four connectors that hook the computers to the transmission...one of yours, the one that sends the signals for 1st gear and R, was unhooked and set aside, like someone unplugged it and forgot to put it back in."
Me: "Uh, J.R., you were the last one under the hood of the car other than when I checked the tranny fluid level when you asked me to. Is it possible it rattled loose? Or could I have accidentally snagged it with the tranny fluid dipstick and not noticed?"
"Nope, they can't come apart on their own, they connectors lock together. Someone unplugged it. And no, it's nowhere near the tranny fluid level dipstick."
Me: "Well, I have no idea what happened, but you're saying it's ok now?"
"Yep, come pick it up."

Picked it up that night....

The next morning, 40 miles on the car since it left the shop, the tranny slips when shifting from 1->2. Uh oh. Next light, it happens again. Happens all day. Call J.R. as soon as he opens. Take the car to him in the afternoon....he opens up the tranny the next day to replace the brake band (which controls shifting in 2nd and 4th). Declares he can't cover this under warranty, we're doing something to beat these trannies to death every 6 months.

We have no choice, we pay the man. He puts in yet another rebuilt transmission. Had the car 4 days now, no problems. Still haven't crossed that 400 mile mark yet though...and after that, there'll be the 6 month test to see if it passes that (none of the other 3 trannies in the past 18 months have lasted more than 6-7 months).

So, I'm back on the road. Only problem is the stupid redneck put my two front tires on reverse...so now my directional Dunlop SP8000's are pointing the wrong way. Didn't have time to rotate the wheels this weekend after I noticed it (no wonder it was riding rough).

Ugh...but the net result is, I'm back on the road, in my Maxima, and I'm happy (so long as the tranny holds up!).

It sure does feel good to have my car back again!

JJW95SC

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Jason F

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