OT: Mazda auto transmission problem

A long time ago my wife bought a vw. Shortly after she bought it , it developed a problem with shifting into reverse. The dealer changed the ATF to synthetic ATF. So there are magic potions.

In her case, it did not help. Some of the linkage was loose. The dealer took a good look after my wife left it for them parked in front of their garage door and they could not get it moved.

=20 Dan

move to FL?

I'd think to drain and replace all the ATF. At least, that's my gut sense as to what will help.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

.

This only happens when it's cold - in the summer it still does it, but not as much, and once you've driven it for a bit, it's OK for the rest of the day. In the winter, the delay is longer, and it goes back to delaying much faster as the trans cools.

Other than that problem, the car runs fine. Starts right up, goes where you point it, and stops when you step on the brake. I don't ask much more than that from a car. But it would be nice to not have to wait for it to start going forward in the morning.

We've had this car about six years, and it was doing this cold- transmission routine since well before we bought it (from my brother). At the time, I asked a Mazda mechanic about it, and he said that "Some of them do that, and not to worry about it." Well, I suppose he was right, because the behavior really hasn't gotten any worse over the years and miles, but this year, for some reason, it's really annoying me.

Any thoughts about an EASY fix for this? Is there some magic potion to mix with the ATF?

One vehicle I had, didn't dependably shift into park. Which was a serious problem, as it would tend to roll, if parked on a hill. I took it back to Aamco, they had just rebuilt the TX. They gave me a song and dance about the linkges being stretched. I went home, and had a look. Sure enough, the shift arm went to a clamp, and the TX had a rod. So, I loosed a bolt, slid the clamp down about 3/8 of an inch, and the problem was cured. Aamco could have done that in a few minutes. They had a lift, and mechanics. I had ramps and a driveway.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

.

A long time ago my wife bought a vw. Shortly after she bought it , it developed a problem with shifting into reverse. The dealer changed the ATF to synthetic ATF. So there are magic potions.

In her case, it did not help. Some of the linkage was loose. The dealer took a good look after my wife left it for them parked in front of their garage door and they could not get it moved.

Dan

Well you could try some Lucas transmission additive. I have had it help this problem in many cases. The actual cause is usually sticking servos or pistons in the valve body. The Lucas seems to free many of them up.

He better hurry, we've only got three opening left for Snowbirds this winter and reservations for next year are almost gone! ;-)

Replace the filter.

I have absolutely no idea if this will be of any help. But, we have a Toyota Sienna van that had some very worrisome transmission problems, mostly slipping and maybe some slow to engage when cold trouble. It turns out that the dipstick doesn't work worth a darn. What you have to do is pull and wipe the dipstick about 20 times to get all the oil off the walls of the tube before you get a correct reading. So, it turns out the transmission was probably run a quart or more low for many thousands of miles. My system now is to fill it so an immediate reading looks a quart high.

A transmission shop charged us $89 to tell us the transmission was pretty well shot, the seals were leaking really badly and we might get 1500 miles out of it before it blows completely. Well, that was about

89,000 miles AGO! I have to add fluid to it about twice a year, now, and it behaves just fine.

Jon

This is a common problem in older transmissions. The seals get a little old and stiff. DO NOT race it into gear. You can easily live with it by starting the engine, putting it into reverse for 30-60 seconds, then relesing the brakes & shifting into drive.

This will circulate and heat the ATF as well as spinning the torque converter. It gets warm FAST with all that engine output turned into heat.

It's possible synthetic ATC would help.

I have this with a Ford van right now. Has a Mazda tranny, too. Have to drive it an hour before pulling the dipstick or the level isn't correct. A pint of ATF makes a real difference in how it acts when cold. Also shifts the level from off the end to Full. When low, it'll shift into reverse, but just sits there when shifted into drive until it finally warms up. I just got the thing a few months ago, when I drained it, the fluid looked like tan paint. I'll be draining it agan in a few hundred more miles when the weather is decent to get the rest of the crap out of it. It's been really good since the fluid level was corrected and it's had the fluid and filter change.

Stan

OK - I tried that this morning, which was, at 22F, the coldest we've had this season. I sat idling in reverse for two minutes. Shifting into drive was much better - pretty much instantaneous. That pretty much convinces me that it's not a linkage problem. I'll also check the fluid level carefully. If it's low, I'll try to track down some of that Lucas additive Steve W. recommended to top it off.

Thanks, guys.

Glad to hear that helped. It always did for me.