Is it possible that getting rear-ended can damage the transmission?
94 Mercury Sable, wagon.The car got rear-ended at a stop sign, enough to bend the bumper. About a week or two later the transmission refused to shift above 2nd gear. Added transmission fluid - too much as it turned out, and it poured out for a while making clouds of black smoke. Drove OK after that (about 100 miles - had to get home). Would not go above 2nd, but drove fine.
Now the transmission started slipping, and the car is not drivable. It seems to be stuck in 2nd, but I'm not sure.
Took it to a transmission place and the mechanic said something about the hydraulics, and need a new transmission.
Also, the service engine soon light went on when it first happened, but not after, but the only codes that were read were 172 and 176, the mechanic didn't know what they are.
I looked them up and they seem to be about the oxygen sensors, which doesn't make much sense - why would the light go on, and the transmission fail at the same time, yet the code be about an oxygen sensor?
Can anyone help me either diagnose the problem, or tell me if it was caused by the accident? If it was the accident, then it should be an insurance claim, but I need to know if they are related.
-Ariel