For the past month, the shifing of gears in my 2002 TL has not been working quite the way that they normally do. The car is a bit more sluggish than usual and when I accelerate, for about 3 seconds the engine revs very hard before shifting to where it should be. I thought that I was maybe becoming a victim to the infamous tranny issue, but never had the check engine light come on, took it to Advance twice to check the codes and both times, no codes appeared. I spoke with one of the countermen about my situation and he suggested that I try Seafoam Tranny Tune to clean out the possible gunk build-up. I figured that it could not hurt. Yesterday, I put the Tranny Tune into the Chamber that has the red cap and says "Power Steering". I put in about 1/3 of the can into this chamber. I drove about 5 miles and my gears started to jerk whenever I would shift. This morning, my car started off fine on the back roads, but the jerking started as I merged onto the highway. From the posts that I've read, this jerking sounds common with a transmission issue, but it certainly scared the heck out of me -- esp. with a 3-year-old in the back seat. I also have noticed that when I put the car into reverse, it does not immediately go into reverse, but rather coasts forward for about 4 seconds, then jerks, and will then go into reverse. I can't imagine that adding the Tranny Tune could promote the jerking, but the timing certainly says that it would. I'm taking my car to the dealer in 5 days to get this looked at, but has anyone ever experienced this when using the Tranny Tune? Thanks!

 

Ok. the red cap is for Power steering only. It doesnt mix with the tranny and had nothing to do with the way your car is acting now. You have the symptoms of a bad tranny (there doesnt have to be a check engine light on or any thing for ti to be going bad) Bring the car to the dealer right away, dont wait 5 days.

 

I was afraid that would be the answer. I thought that it was a bit odd that the Seafoam would cause those problems (esp. since I didnt even put it in the transmission chamber). Thanks for your quick response - very appreciated.

 

What year is your TL and mileage ? Have you ever change your A/T fluid ?

 

Just curious why you put foam intended to 'clean' your tranny into the reservoir that holds your power steering fluid. ?

 

I bought my 2002 3.2 used, and at this time has around 65K. I did a car fax awhile back on this car just to see if anything was mentioned about a transmission change and there was nothing listed. I was at Midas over the weekend to get the tires rotated and car aligned and had them check the transmission fluid and filter to see if that might be the issue -- they said it looked fine. I had someone else check too and they agreed that my filter and fluid looked good.

It's interesting because when I bought the Tranny Clean, I intended to use it for the transmission chamber. but this product can also be used for the power steering (so the directions say). Since I was not able to easily find the transmission fluid chamber, I decided to still use the product for it's power steering benefits. It just so happened that the timing of when I put this stuff in the power steering chamber, and then 5 miles later, the jerking thing starting, is just coincidental (oddly enough). I figured that I I misread something on Tranny Tune directions and did something really bad, but fttysys has made it clear to me that it's unrelated, and I just need to get this car to the dealer. Thanks for all of your help and expertise. I have found this site to be an excellent resource!!!!

 

Also for future knowledge, the TL doesnt have a servicable tranny filter. They have a small one built inside that cant be changed.

And i would think about changing the fluid in the PS system after some time with that in it to get some fresh new fluid. Its very easy to do(works best with 2 people). Pull the lower hose on the PS Res and let drain into a container. Once drained into container, have some one start the car and turn the wheel from lock to lock and continue to drain the remainder into the container. Once all the fluid is out, shut motor off reattach the lower hose and fill the res. Start the motor and turn lock to lock a few times again to expell any air and top off the res.

 

yep... fsttysms1... my transmission has officially died. When I called the dealership after seeing your note not too mess around, nobody could get me in. Now I'm hoping I can drive 16 miles to the dealership on the back roads without getting into a serious accident. Ugh.

 

if it dies, park it for 15-30 min to let it cool down and try again (if needed) be carefull

 

You could always tow it there with roadside assitance ex:AAA , if you have it. They might charge you extra if 16miles is over what your service provides.