Jerky transmission on '94 Corolla

I am looking to buy a used Corolla and tried out a '94 with about 148k miles on it today. It has automatic transmission. It was in generally good condition, with one odd thing: right after starting the car, I shifted from park to drive and found that it took close to a full second for the transmission to kick in, and when it did it the car shuddered. No noise, but definite movement in the car. The same thing happened shifting from drive to reverse. No such problem when it shifts on the open road, at least nothing noticeable. Took the car to a mechanic and he seemed thoroughly unconcerned by it -- said that these cars often have a delay / slightly harsh shifting mechanism. Is that true? I don't know this particular mechanic, so I wanted a second opinion before deciding whether to buy.

Does not sound like a good sign to me! There should not be very much of a hesitation at all, a second or less, and it should be smooth, not a jarring crunch! Guesses? Tranny mounts, motor mounts, CV joints, or Tranny internals. Obviously, the mounts are fairly easy to check.

Did y9ou look at the tranny dipstick? At 148K, if it has been maintained properly, the fluid should be a light red or, at worst, a slightly darker shade of red. Brown is bad, and black is Right Out. (Black indicates severe neglect and the fact the clucth and brake packs are on their way out.)

You could get 50,000 miles out of this vehicle with no trouble, or you could get 50. And here's a hint: IF the tranny fluid is a nice translucent red, nice and clear, it probably means the guy either changed all the tranny fluid or flushed it...not a good thing on a vehicle this old. If this is the case, the tranny is almost definitely on it's way out...with nice clean fluid it should be running smoothly.