I think it's time for a new Tranny...

Back in March of this year I had the transmission serviced...flush, filter. At the time it just had sort of rough shifts and was rough coming out of park. It never slipped or missed a gear, so I did the flush as sort of a precaution. Well after the flush, the transmission started acting "funny" slow acceleration, which progressed into a slip into overdrive. Last night driving home and hour away from home I seem to have lost overdrive completely. I was in 3rd gear doing 65 MPH on the highway at like 2500 RPM. SO I set the cruise to 60 and limped home. At this time the SES light came on, when I got home, i plugged in my scanner and got the same code for my boost solenoid I got a couple weeks back (which hasnt been fixed, dude to lack of cash) What do you guys think is wrong with the transmission. I'm at 98K on it, and I'm assuming its the original motor and transmission. Could it really just be time for a rebuild or could it be a solenoid in the tranny?

Sometimes, if a transaxle hasn't been serviced in a long time, flushing the system can cause problems. Instead of only replacing the fluid, a flush introduces pressure and detergents, which loosen debris in the valvebody, clogging passages and causing solenoids to stick open or closed. I have experienced this myself, though not as a result of a flush, imo. Sometimes, due to old age, this can happen anyway.

When you say you lost OD, are you saying 4th gear is gone, or are you saying the TCC won't lock up? If you cannot drive in 4th gear at all, I say it's time for a rebuild or replacement. Or you can drive in 3rd and try to milk the trans until it dies... shouldn't hurt the engine to do this for short drives.

If you are able to drive in 4th, but TCC won't lock up (No overdrive), you could keep driving in this condition for quite a while at slightly higher RPM. Mine has been operating in this condition for a couple months now. I don't get optimum fuel economy, and trans fluid is hotter than normal, but at speed it stays cool this time of year. Actually, gas mileage is much better than I'd expected. Sometimes, the solenoid actually will catch and TCC seems to lock for short periods. Otherwise the trans operates normal in my case.

I don't think the code you see is transmission-related, but I'd get it fixed first just to see. I like to eliminate obvious problems first, then trouble shoot. Being a Series I, the trans uses vacuum to change gears, so maybe it could have something to do with it. Maybe a vacuum leak is causing both problems? And you never know, the transmission problem may heal itself. Sometimes debris can shift in the valvebody, allowing the system to work again. Or, it could self-destruct the next time you throw it into gear. It's really hard to tell with no codes or without tearing down the unit.

Currently, I've been driving around, saving up cash. When it dies, I'm getting a new one. Until then, I'm going to milk it for as long as I can.

I'm having the same problems with my 95 riv but I want to know what's the going price for getting a transmission rebuild

I was quoted about $2200 from INTENSE Racing for a rebuild on my Series II.

shit I love my 95 riv sc but I would just get a new car for that price and I only paid 2100 for my riv but I was quoted for a new tranny from aamco between 1500 to 1800

I think Ed Morad has a few for less $. Not a bad deal from Aamco, though. Most of what it costs for a rebuild is labor. If you're going to pull it out, might as well replace with new or reconditioned, imo.

1500-1800 for a brand new tranny sounds pretty good to me. If you're a good shadetree mechanic you can probably replace the unit as a whole yourself.

I did a transaxle swap on a '95 for my brother a couple of years ago, it was a little more than a one day job, for me anyway, but it is doable. The shop manual was a good thing to have for sure. I think he got it off of eBay for around $250 including shipping, from a 60,000 mile car and it worked until he quit driving it?

flushing most likely disloged some dirt that's making a solenoid valve slow to react, 95-97 used a 4T60 transaxle and 98/99 went with a more robust 4T65 but not to worry there are a number of 4T60's with well over 100k with no problems but the valve body sucked air...I have a feeling that changing the valve body assembly will solve your problem for around 400 bucks so before you go with a complete new transmission, look into it...they can be changed out without removing the tranny from the carand it's not that hard with the correct manual so you know just what bolts to remoove, having a pro do it might cost a little more but it's the r&r that costs the big money...good luck!