I have a 1996 Lincoln Continental and am totally frustrated by an intermittent problem. When at a stop or driving under 10 MPH, it will feel like it's shifting into neutral. It feels like I'm not in gear at all, I can even hear the point at which it changes/shifts. If I give it throttle, the engine will surge as though in neutral, then it feels like it drops in gear at about 2000 RPM. If I put it in neutral, then into drive, I get about a 6-second window where if I get the car up to
10 MPH it'll work fine until I have to stop again.
Now here's the funny part, if I let the car sit for a while (more than a couple of hours), it'll work fine once I start up again. The transmission feels fine, even under stress. So far, this has only happened after driving a couple blocks after the car had been off for
4-5 hours (on the way home from work) so I'm not sure that heat has too much to do with it.
I've had a mechanic recommend rebuilding the transmission but I'm worried that it's a computer problem. I haven't been able reproduce the problem in front of a transmission expert or the dealership.
What do you guys think the problem is? Will a transmission rebuild fix it or is it a computer or other problem? Would you take it to a transmission shop or will the more expensive dealer option prevent a wrong diagnosis?