tranny screwed by costco bastards (3-2 solenoid)
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 63
From: Chicago
tranny screwed by costco bastards (3-2 solenoid)
Just wanted to share a recent experience in case this happens to anyone else.
Came to a hard stop. Heard a clunk under the hood. Got an SES light, car started running like crap, started hearing a whirring noise from my car speakers, oh yeah, and I lost 1st and 4th gears.
So, I pull over and look under the hood. positive battery terminal is disconnected. Battery shifted. Wasn't fastened down. I look at the terminal, it is stripped totally. Not even sure how it stayed attached at all.
A week eariler I bought a battery at Costco. They have good prices on the red topped optimas there. Let the guy in the autocenter there install it. Who can screw up a battery install right?
So a scan the SES, its a code for the 3-2 downshift solenoid. I opened the tranny, replaced the solenoid ($26), everything works again. I guess the battery getting unhooked and possibly rehooked while I was slowing fried the solenoid as it was firing. That bad solenoid was causing electrical interferance which caused the 1-2 and 2-3 solenoids to stop firing. It was also causing the whirring noise in the speakers.
So total, it cost about $70, because I changed the fluid, and replaced the filter while I was in there.
Just out of curiosity, I called a local AAMCO tranny shop to ask how much to replace that $26 part. They told me about $400 (if that's the only thing wrong). The guy there said that the 3-2 would never cause what happened to my car to happen. He recommended a rebuild. $1800.
I can't state how much I hate how many people are screwed by people who know what they are doing and people who don't. Makes me glad I am not a mechanical idiot and a member of an awesome online forum. heh. 3-2
Came to a hard stop. Heard a clunk under the hood. Got an SES light, car started running like crap, started hearing a whirring noise from my car speakers, oh yeah, and I lost 1st and 4th gears.
So, I pull over and look under the hood. positive battery terminal is disconnected. Battery shifted. Wasn't fastened down. I look at the terminal, it is stripped totally. Not even sure how it stayed attached at all.
A week eariler I bought a battery at Costco. They have good prices on the red topped optimas there. Let the guy in the autocenter there install it. Who can screw up a battery install right?
So a scan the SES, its a code for the 3-2 downshift solenoid. I opened the tranny, replaced the solenoid ($26), everything works again. I guess the battery getting unhooked and possibly rehooked while I was slowing fried the solenoid as it was firing. That bad solenoid was causing electrical interferance which caused the 1-2 and 2-3 solenoids to stop firing. It was also causing the whirring noise in the speakers.
So total, it cost about $70, because I changed the fluid, and replaced the filter while I was in there.
Just out of curiosity, I called a local AAMCO tranny shop to ask how much to replace that $26 part. They told me about $400 (if that's the only thing wrong). The guy there said that the 3-2 would never cause what happened to my car to happen. He recommended a rebuild. $1800.
I can't state how much I hate how many people are screwed by people who know what they are doing and people who don't. Makes me glad I am not a mechanical idiot and a member of an awesome online forum. heh. 3-2
Last edited by plappo; Feb 20, 2004 at 01:25 AM.
Registered User
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 244
From: CHICAGO
chicago here tooooo!!
Hey, Mr. Plappo
I live in chicago too......
And Im having the same problem..I donty have 1st or 4th gear!!!!!!!It seems to start driving in 2nd gear..WTF....grrrrr
I dont have anything to scan it with , how would I know which solenoid is it????
and where did you buy it?????
Let me guess the costco on Clybourne??
I live in chicago too......
And Im having the same problem..I donty have 1st or 4th gear!!!!!!!It seems to start driving in 2nd gear..WTF....grrrrr
I dont have anything to scan it with , how would I know which solenoid is it????
and where did you buy it?????
Let me guess the costco on Clybourne??
Registered User
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 167
From: Indianapolis, Indiana
Plappo,
Can you tell me the part number for that solenoid? Also, what code did it throw, 82?????
I don't have first or fourth gears either, and this is going to be my next project. How hard is it to take off the pan and find the solenoid and do the reinstall? Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Andrew
Can you tell me the part number for that solenoid? Also, what code did it throw, 82?????
I don't have first or fourth gears either, and this is going to be my next project. How hard is it to take off the pan and find the solenoid and do the reinstall? Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Andrew
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