I have a 2002 stratus SE previously owned by my parents (first owners) so I know the car has not been run down. It is an automatic transmission with around 86,000 miles.

So I was going to work the other day when I started hearing a sort of winding sound. I guess it sounded like if something was winding up. So I pulled over to check it out and the noise continued. I attempted to accelerate and the RPM's would race to 5,000+ but the car would not move. So I tried shifting to neutral, drive, neutral, drive and lowered the RPM's then suddenly a very hard shift and the car started moving. Since then the transmission would constantly slip and would take about 30 seconds or so to finally catch and would only stay in gear for very short periods of time (30 seconds or about 200 feet) before it would kick back out of gear. I tried the error code trick and got back nothing significant. Does anyone know: A) What exactly the problem might be (aside from the obvious transmission being jacked) and B) an approximate cost to get fixed. I would appreciate any advice with this issue as this is my only vehicle right now and its quite tough getting back and forth from work. Thanks...

 

what fault code(s) came up?

 

check the fluid level? had an old POS mustang with a tanny leak. every time it got low it would start to wine and slip out of gear, and/or take a second to change from park/drive to rev. by the haynes the atx fluid and filter should be changed every 30K, my '02 SE+ is at 75K+ and still running the assy line stuff. prob the cheapest fix is to try the atx filter/fluid change. hope this helps.

 

hey tom, thanks for the quick reply. I had my transmission flushed about 1400 miles ago and the shop also changed the transmission filter. Now I was reading a Haynes repair manual for the stratus and they say:

Problem: Clutch slips (engine speed icreases with no increase in vehcle speed)
Solutions:
1. Clutch plate worn
2. Clutch plate is oil soaked by leaking rear main seal
3. Clutch plate not seated
4. Warped pressure plate or flywheel
5. Weak clutch diaphragm springs
6. Clutch plate overheated. Allow to cool
7. Faulty clutch self-adjusting mechanism

Now I set up an appointment with Firestone to get it checked out in the next couple days. Do you think it will be a expensive job?

 

i rember something about ATX bands (metal belts inside the ATX) needing to be tightened on the older (like '96 MY) autos. no idea with yours, what engine do you have?

although this might make you cringe: ATF is oil just like your engine oil. it also has an additive package that keeps the parts clean and the oil from gumming up (forming sludge). adding new ATF fluid "may" have cleaned all the sludge from all the nooks and crannys. while this sounds like no big deal, all the sludge breaks apart and gets stuck in small passages, stopping the ATF getting to were it needs to go. thus the strange behav of your tranny. my fingers are crossed for you.

just the same, it could be a minor issue. the ATX is an extreamly complex piece. i really do not know enough about them one way or the other unless you can get the codes (any major parts store will read them for free). hope this helps.