Hi all, I just bought a 99 neon w/ the 2.0 sohc 3 speed auto tranny. I am just wondering if this situation is normal:
The car really struggles when trying to go uphills, i floored it on a flat stretch of road and it shifted into second at 20 mph then shifted into third around 35 mph, then it just stays in third and slowly creeps up to speeds. So when i am going up a hill, its in third trying to get up the hill and barely does.

Is this a normal thing to be going on for the 3 speed auto's? If not, anyone know what I could do to fix this? Thanks for any help in advance.

 

Nope. That is not normal.

When was the last time the transmission was serviced and had the bands adjusted?

If you don't know thne I highly recommend having it done.

 

It should stay in 2nd a little longer than that. I am not exactly sure but more like 40-50. I would have the trans serviced, bands ajusted.

 

I have no idea when the tranny was serviced or bands were adjusted. I'm guessing this should be under the powertrain warranty i have with the car. If not, is this an expensive job at a tranny shop? Thanks for the replies.

 

Are youg etting it from a dealer? If so make sure it's done before you take delivery of it. Refuse to take it if they do not service it.

And as for doing it yourself. It is quite involved. You need to remove the transmission pan. Drain the fluid. Replace the filter.

You can do it but if you don't have the tools then it's quite impossinble.

But if you do take it to the shop be prepared to spend between $80 and $200 to have it serviced.

I've got a how-to somewhere around here I'll dig up for you.

 

I did purchase the car from a dealer the other day, and it has a 1 month 1,000 mile engine/tranny warranty.....If they don't do it, i'm sure I could do it myself...i've changed tranny fluid filters on a few cars before. instructions would be great! thanks.

 

Brian, I would have the dealer do it. If it is under warenty why not? When you take delivery of the car it should be right. You can do it yourself, but if I remember right it is somewhat involved and you do need some special tools.