i hate my camaro

[dorkins]

ok... my camaro is not running right...
i have no ses light (not sure if it works b/c my lo gas light never comes on eithre)

hard shift from 1st to 2nd, very bad acceleration from a stop (kinda feels like im in 2nd gear until im at around 4k rpm)
im also getting bad mileage (19-22 mpg)

i have a shaved stock lid
k&n filter
and cut the airbox (start of the home made ram air, just didnt cut the shroud yet)

im out to drive it a bit... and hopefully get some more details

thanks for the help!

it is a 98 3.8l

[ May 11, 2005, 05:35 PM: Message edited by: dorkins ]

[Need4Camaro]

When's the last time you've had an SES? Just curious...

There IS no low gas light for a 98 Camaro... and that would be "Check Gauges" light which also doesn't come on for 98's if you're just low on fuel. That came in about 99+ I believe.

Are you hearing a humming sound or whining power steering sound as you're accellerating?

Hard Shift from 1st to 2nd... No SES? How long has it been doing this? You might be getting the P1870 code which you need to get resolved QUICK or you'll fry the tranny.

It works like this...

- You're driving down the highway and get off and boom as soon as you come to a stop and make your turn... BOOM, 1st to 2nd shifts HARD...

- PCM detects a slipping component in the transmission due to a stuck valve body not being able to allow the tourque converter to enough pressure to fully engage...

- PCM stores the code the FIRST time however doesn't set off the SES... It instead bumps the transmission line pressure in effort to lock the converter in place. (This is what causes your hard 1st - 2nd shift and slow accelleration...)

- You come to a stop... turn it off for awhile and boom it's shifting normally for awhile.. This is because the PCM resetted and is out of failsafe mode... until it detects another slip in the converter.

- If you just drive around the streets and never hit highway speeds, chances are your converter won't slip or become hot enough to send a code to the PCM thus keeping it out of failsafe mode (increased line pressure) so you maintain smooth shifting although your tranny is still...sluggish...

- If the slip however occurs AGAIN within THREE IGNITION CYCLES then it will bump the line pressure up again (entering failsafe mode), however this time it WILL set off the SES light...

- After awhile your car shifts fine, the SES goes off, and you have no idea as to what happened... No SES! It must be fixxed... Right? WRONG! It's still there, however if it doesn't detect a slip within 3 consecutive running cycles, the PCM decides it was a glitch and turns off the SES... However you have to normally be at highway speeds for a good half an hour before it will trigger the error...

This is actually a common problem... You'll need a Sonax Valve Body for the Transmission and while you're in there, I reccomend throwing a shift kit in. If you however continue to drive it like this, you will fry shift servo's thus...I'm sorry to say...requires a complete rebiuld...

Even though you have No SES, I say get it scanned... If you have a P1870 code, get it fixxed QUICK! I tricked AZ into thinking my SES was on because it's always on when you leave the ignition on the "POWER" cycle. (No oil pressure)...

Good luck
Hope this helped...

[ May 11, 2005, 06:11 PM: Message edited by: Need4Camaro ]

[SilverBirdSeven]

See what a little fuel injector cleaner will do for you. It smoothed out my acceleration and gave me a little better gas mileage. I only get 19 mpg max, so 19-22 isnt really that bad, although I assume you have a manual so it should be a little better anyway. And no ses light = good.

[Fredless]

sounds like a tranny mount to me.

however, the only way my P1870 code was discovered was by a tranny shop that had a modis scanner, that went into freeze frame mode and discovered it. The only reason it was tripping was due to long periods of me taking my maf screen out, and when you let off the gas, the tranny would surge the engine.

I had the problem resolved, and it still did it, a little. I said you know what, what did I change before this and it was the !maf screen mod. So i put the screen back in, and not a problem since...and i was like well god damn, i burned up that valve body because of the !maf mod, and driving it around for so long with that surging problem...if you have your MAF out, try putting it back in. Before I get flamed, this is just my car and my own personal experience...I've only heard a few reports of the !maf screen mods screwing up the A4 f-bodies.

[ May 11, 2005, 09:39 PM: Message edited by: Fredless ]

[dorkins]

ok, first its an a4...
the light comes on when i first turn the car on, so the light works... but i have never seen it come on while driving...
autozone scans for free, right...?
it has only started shifting hard this past few days...

thanks for the replies and the help!

[96whitemaro]

yeah autozone has free scans.

[Greg94Red392]

Why would you want the SES light to come on?

[Need4Camaro]

Get it scenned

[brink]

let her shift hard, shes a camaro =) unless its slipping i dont see a problem.. replace the tranny mount and see if you still have the same problem..

[brink]

my 98 A4 likes to shift hard too, My SES light stays on b/c i have no cat.. also, i know this sounds stupid, but for christ sakes, check your transmission fluid and get it flushed.

[1DangerousV6]

basically everything Need4Camaro said..also....if you have reason to believe theres a problem..you would WANT an SES light to come on because it can help in diagnosing what it is..DONT just let it shift hard..get it checked out..i had the same exact problem a couple years ago..turned out it was a P1870..after a while the TCC valve in 4l60e trannys can go bad..this causes the tranny to slip..most often on the 1 - 2 shift..and as you let it go longer..you'll start to feel it on the 2 - 3..cost me $300 - $350 to get it bored and fixed..been kickin @ss ever since..get it checked out..otherwise you could be costing yourself an entire tranny

[dorkins]

could it really be bad tho at only 67k milles on it?

and, yea... thats why i wanted the ses light to be on, to help diagnose the prob.

thanks for the help... goin to autozone now

[1DangerousV6]

yup..mine went bad around 60K

[Phillip McCaffrey]

Originally posted by brink:
but for christ sakes, check your transmission fluid and get it flushed.

acutally, that might be the LAST thing you want to do... yes, check to see if u have fluid but if u change it while there is a problem that u dont know u r pretty much begging for a new tranny... tranny fluid is like bleach and if its failing the only holding it together most of the time is the dirt and **** inside (ironic i know) so if u change it u wipe all that out and the bridge comes tumbling down...

get it checked with a code reader and for christ sakes dont change the tranny fluid!!!

[Dizturbed One]

...

Don't say assinine things

New tranny fluid will no way and no how EVER hurt your trans.