Tranny stuck in third gear - could this be electrical?

[twinbopilot]

Howdy fellas,

There is an LS here being advertised as "stuck in third gear - transmission shop says likely a loose ground".

Dash shows "E" where it should show what gear the car is in...

Is it possible that a trans could get stuck in third gear from something as simple as a loose ground, or other minor electrical problem?

Seems bogus to me.

Thoughts, anyone?

 

[joegr]

You already know the answer. There's more to it than just an electrical problem.

 

[Outkast]

how do they know its in third? unless its a stick, then thats more than likely a shift fork...hmm wierd

 

[Lincoln Jealous]

check the wire harnesses and connectors

 

[twinbopilot]

The car is at a transmission shop right now. I'll see what they have to say about it about report back...

 

[twinbopilot]

Turns out its the owners "buddy" at the tranny shop who was going to diagnosis it for free, but he got busy and hasn't checked it yet. Owner said he had the codes pulled and it showed all the transmission solenoid error codes. He also said sometimes the car drives fine, then other times all he has is Park, reverse, and third. Car is only $1600 but still may not be worth messing with cuz it needs a front bumper cover and a hood repair from where the old lady he bought it from drove into her husbands toolbox in her garage. I might throw him a lowball offer and see if he bites...

 

[1LoudLS]

if it was just as simple as "a loose ground" it would have been fixed by now

 

[owlman]

Well, if the price is right, you could do a decent amount of around-town driving in 3rd

 

[joegr]

Turns out its the owners "buddy" at the tranny shop who was going to diagnosis it for free, but he got busy and hasn't checked it yet. Owner said he had the codes pulled and it showed all the transmission solenoid error codes. He also said sometimes the car drives fine, then other times all he has is Park, reverse, and third. Car is only $1600 but still may not be worth messing with cuz it needs a front bumper cover and a hood repair from where the old lady he bought it from drove into her husbands toolbox in her garage. I might throw him a lowball offer and see if he bites...

It doesn't pass the smell test at all. If it were likely to be a simple problem, they would have fixed it and be selling it for more. They went far enough into it to figure out that it was a serious problem, and now they hope to fool someone into taking what seems like a good deal.

 

[twinbopilot]

Well the shop said today it was blown fuses! I test drove it and it drove fine, but it did take about three seconds to drop into drive. Tranny shop says thats due to low fluid. Anyway, now that it goes through all the gears and has no "E" on the dash, the seller upped his price to $2200. I told him he could keep it. It still may be a money pit what with the trans issue, bodywork needing to be done, and a pop coming from the front suspension. 141K, just not worth it to me.

 

[rainjacks]

No, it's bogus. The fuse was blown and the solenoid errors where there because there is something wrong with the tranny. Those are symptoms not causes in my opinion. Add the cost of a rebuilt tranny to what he is asking for the car and decide if it is still worth it.

 

[joegr]

No, it's bogus. The fuse was blown and the solenoid errors where there because there is something wrong with the tranny. Those are symptoms not causes in my opinion. Add the cost of a rebuilt tranny to what he is asking for the car and decide if it is still worth it.

Yes, fuses blow for a reason.

 

[drag214]

Yes, fuses blow for a reason.

+1
I had the shift silinoids going bad in my transmission a few years ago. It wouldn't go into reverse and had a delay when shifting. I got the "E" a couple of times. When I turned off the car, it would reset. My problem was the solenoid block ($375 for the part) I fixed it early.

I'm not saying that is the problem here. But it could be. It's a big gamble. There is no way of telling how long the car was driven in 3rd or how hard it was handled.
Plus, from the sounds of things, the guys at the transmission shop just replaced the bad fuses and reset the computer. Temperary fix. The problem is still there.
On top of that it's got body damage and if the air bags didn't deploy, could there be something wrong with the crash sensors?

All things considered, not a good investment.