I started my car and it would not shift out of 2nd gear. On my way home I stopped for some groceries, started my car, and the transmission worked fine. Is "limp mode" an intermittent thing?
If I need to replace my transmission, can you guys suggest the best course of action and how much I should expect to pay to fix the problem? My car has 146,000 miles on it. Thanks.
It can be, if the sensor that's causing it is failing intermittently.
Unlikely. Would the speedo happen to not be working while it's in limp mode?
--Geoff
Don't get talked into a new AT. Probably one of 2 sensors or just a connection gone bad.
The speedo was working. What sensor are you referring to?
Which sensors are you referring to? Where are they located? How much do they cost? Thanks.
There are two sensors on that transmission that might be pertinent to your problem (and there may well be more, but two I'm aware of). One is called the 'output' speed sensor, one called the 'input' speed sensor.
If your speedo wasn't working while the trans was in limp mode, it's a clear indication of a failure of the output speed sensor. I paid $26 for mine at the local Autozone, and after about an hour's worth of jacking up the car, finding the part, finding the tools, etc., I was back on the road with no trouble since. Easy fix, and cheap, too.
Your problem is probably *not* the output speed sensor, but may well be the input one, or it might be a problem with the connection or the wiring harness. I don't have my FSM handy right now, so I can't tell you for sure what the diagnostic procedure is, but I imagine the part is similar in cost to what I paid for the output sensor, and I can tell you for certain that swapping it is similarly easy. Both are located on the driver's side (in an Intrepid) of the transmission, one is slightly forward and below the other.
I'm sure others on the list can fill you in with the details about the input sensor.
Good luck,
--Geoff
Probably easiest way to get full instructions is to go to
problem?
This thread on the 300M ezBoard may help:
You'll need a 1" socket - may need a deep well depending on the length of your particular socket. My standard socket barely reached the hex grip of the input sensor on my Concorde (same sensor as yours), but it worked. Another brand of socket might be slightly shorter and not work. An easy 20 minute job for the first time DIY'er.
BTW - Koller Dodge referrenced in that thread no longer does internet sales. Might try
Bill Putney (to reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with "x")
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