AnErin

First time I owned an import. anyways with this CL, here are a few things I noticed and wonder what advice one can offer...

transmission - Every time I look up stuff about this car, transmission problems come up. Great, that is why I am not driving my 99 mercury cougar (2-4 band broke, for those familiar with the cougar/mystique/contour automatics)
Anyways with the CL, the 1 - 2 shift is a little sloppy. Almost feels like I am hitting the brake for a split second. 2 - 3 is the same but not as harsh. 3 - 4 and TCC lockup are smooth. No leaks, engagement delays, or slips. Impending doom? Are trans failures inevidable?

Engine Idle - Usually it does alright but sometimes it revs up and down between 800'ish and 1500'ish. IACV was cleaned and that seemed to help but it acted up this morning. Not sure if this matters but it seems when I disconnect the vacuum hose to that module between the engine vacuum and cruise control, it smooths out.

Dash lights - some of the climate control lights seem to go in and out if I hit a bump. Would removing the controls and checking/fixing bad connections be practical?

Keyless entry - I did not get a FOB with the car. How would I know if this car is RKE equipped? Maybe like a number/letters somewhere that would indicate?

Power seat - it does not go forward or back but everything else is fine. Does the motor often fail? I actually had to remove the seat and disassemble some stuff to reposition it so it was not fully forward.

ABS - the light for it is usually on but sometimes not. the reservoir for the ABS was empty when I got the car. I filled it. Is there a "most common failure" link in the ABS system?

The car has 261,000 miles and I have no history on it.
If anyone could advise with any of these questions, it would be great.

Showmeyourtints

Unfortunately these cars with auto trannys seemed doomed to failure. The IAC valve is definitely the main culprit for any surging idles. The rest of your problems I don't have any answers to. Sorry.