We own a 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix GT with 90,000+ miles on it. We started having problems accelerating after slowing almost to a complete stop and noticed a noise in the engine while accelerating. We noticed that there were spots under the front of the car and when we checked the transmission fluid the dip stick came up dry (yes, we checked while the engine was running). A neighbor recommended putting Lucas Transmission Fix in along with regular transmission fluid, and that seems to have stopped the leaks. Now that that is the case I am wondering if we shouldn’t have done that. We need the car to last another 2 years at least and so I feel i need to bring the car in to have this looked at by a professional. Now that it is no longer leaking will they be able to identify a problem without dropping the transmission? Do I basically need to wait until it starts leaking again before taking it in? Since the tranny fix stuff is masking the leak do i now have to worry about internal damage to the transmission (assuming there wasnt any to begin with)? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
There was no trans fluid? It can’t hurt to have the tranny checked, but not much anyone can do. Have the trans pan dropped and the filter changed and fresh fluid put in. There maybe some evidence of damage based on the stuff sitting in the trans pan.
If you take it to a chain transmission shop they will recommend a rebuild for sure. You might need it, but an independant trans shop will give you more options.
If you’ve never had the transmission service and fluid changed over the last 90K miles on the car then the transmission could be in bad shape. No maintenance and run dry of fluid is the textbook method for killing a transmission. Adding the Lucus stuff didn’t help anything either.
If you don’t want to spend any money, just drive on and be prepared to get another car when this one conks out. It might last 2 years, but it might not.
The noise and acceleration problems have only been there about a week/week and a half. As far as the fluid the stick was dry but it took only 3 quarts to get it back to full (it holds 10 so there was definitely some left in there). But we did flush it back at 35K miles. So there has been some stuff done. I don’t mind spending money so long as it is well spent.
If the transmission isn’t damaged yet and you want it to last, then an additive “fix” is absolutely not the way to go. I would find a good local non-chain shop and have it evaluated - esp for where the leak was. Tell them the story. They can check out its general health, and if all seems ok I’d have them do the pan & filter and then maybe even flush to get all of the additive out and leave only the proper trans fluid.
Please dont listen to your neighbor again… You should never just throw any kind of additive in your transmission without first checking it out with a pro. You and your neighbor, if I read this right, put Lucas fix in your trans to stop a leak, a leak you never searched for… What you should have done is refill the trans and took it directly to a trans shop to see where it was leaking. It could be something as simple as a cooler line, fixable in an hour or less. What I would do now is take it to a trans shop like cigroller said, have the pan dropped, filter changed to get that gooey Lucas mess out of there and see if they can find any evidence of where the leak is/was.
transman
Thanks for the tips. I checked the mechanics files here and found one nearby who isnt with a chain shop and I’ll drop it off with him. I’ll admit it was bad to put that junk in, but don’t i get credit for rethinking it and coming here before doing anything else? 