I just bought a 02 town and country van with 77k on it looks mint. the problem just started… from 1st to 2nd it has a little jolt to it. could it be trans fluid, low on fluid, torq conv. or??? help
It could be low trans fluid - this is always the first thing to check, so do it. Make sure you consult the owner’s manual for the proper procedure (general one is, hot engine, van running, set brake, shift thru all gears pausing in each, leave in park, wait a minute or so, pull the stick, wipe it, reinsert for a few seconds. The fluid should end up in the hash marks somewhere near the “hot” indicator). In addition to checking level, look at condition - color should be a nice clean red. If it is fairly brown looking then the trans is overdue for service. If it is very dark/black and smells burned, that is bad and it should go to a trans shop for evaluation right away.
Either way, have someone do a pan & filter service as cleaning up the fluid may help clean up passages & sticky parts. (Of course it also might not).
If the problem gets worse or spreads (e.g. to other shift points), have a specialized trans shop (local - NOT a national chain) hook it to a scanner and check it for codes.
IS the check engine light on?
thank you for the lesson, no lights on, it just started to do this. hopefully thats all it is. i cant afford a big repair bill. thanks again. cb
Good advice you got here. I would do a quick test on the transmission fluid by putting one drop of it on a paper towel. It should expand to the size of a silver dollar, and be evenly pink in color. Any brownish tinge or dark deposits mean excessive wear is taking place and you should immediately take it in and have the fluid and filter changed and the unit inspected.
I agree with Cigroller, the first thing that anyone with trans problems should do is to check the fluid level and condition. If all looks good here, I would have a diagnostic run on it. This transmission can be scanned and a number of things checked such as CVI values and limp condition, and with you just buying it and not knowing the history on it, I think this would be the route to take.
transman