TTAC Commentator SupremeBrougham writes:
Hey Sajeev, I decided that I want to try my hand at throwing a Piston Slap topic your way: my grandparents gave me a 1995 Mercury Mystique LS that has been passed around our family since new. The car has 121k on it, but the motor (V6) has about 40k fewer miles and the trans (auto) now has around 15k total.
Here is my issue. When pulling out from a stop, the engine revs to almost 5000 rpm before shifting gears, regardless of how gentle I am with the gas. I want to have it looked at, but here is where it gets tricky for me. My grandfather, who worked for Ford in Transmission Engineering, and my uncle decided to take on the task of replacing the engine and trans in this car four years ago, as a final hurrah for my grandpa, as he is getting up in years. It took them six months, but they did it. The car went on to two more uncles before coming back to my grandparents, and then on to me. My grandpa gave me the car with the stipulation that I was not to put any more money into it. And if anything was to go wrong with it I am to bring it back for repairs. But I live almost 200 miles away, so that isn’t so easy.
What do you think might be causing the trans to wait to shift? Oh, and once under way, if I have the need to “floor it” to get it to change gears, it won’t do it. It feels like it turns into a CVT.
Finally, my grandpa also says that I shouldn’t drive the car with the OD engaged around town, as it will mess up the Overdrive band. I have no idea about that one. Perhaps you might???
Sajeev Answers:
Richard, any trouble codes present? You need some time with an OBD-II code scanner (free at many parts stores) before I can go any further. Of course, your 1995 Mercury Mistake (sorry, Mystique) probably has OBD-I, and very few places scan those for free. Luckily, the scan tools are either cheap (about $30) or free (a paper clip inserted in two specific pins on the test ports).
You take no action without scanning for codes, but the horror stories of transmission rebuilds failing shortly after their 12 month warranty expires are far from uncommon. And if you didn’t buy an upgraded reman transmission from a reputable brand (Ford, Jasper, etc) or installed a junkyard part of questionable heritage, I suspect you’ll fall prey to that of countless others: a mechanical problem inside the Mystique’s transaxle that is so labor intensive, so painful, that another rebuild is in order.
The end of the world? Hardly. Given your family’s history, your TTAC handle and passion for American Iron, the Germanic-Midwestern charm of a Mercury Mystique is easy to understand. The car looks pretty in the pictures, so time to do the right thing if the codes give you no clarity: get another transaxle. But this time, do your research on the company/person in charge of the rebuild to make sure it’s a good one. Take it from the guy who owned a hi-po Ford AOD that everyone thought was absolutely amazing, getting the right rebuild makes even a junk design look like a superstar.
Send your queries to mehta@ttac.com. Spare no details and ask for a speedy resolution if you’re in a hurry.
Before you even bother scanning for error codes, be sure you’ve appropriately checked the transmission fluid level.
Tough, very tough, Amigo. Sajeev likely has the best advice. I’ve found that because of their ubiquitousness any transmission shop can generally rebuild a GM unit to standards and do a good job. Many other makes however, I’ve seen many less careful and reputable shops struggle with.
You’ve got two choices. Find a shop that can do it right and get it quietly done so the old man doesn’t find out. Or you can tell Gramps what happened and ask him if you can find someone reputable to purchase a rebuilt trans from and install it together. Or option 3 (FTW) go to a junk yard, find a manual transmission V6 SVT model, purchase the trans and the pedal set up and then you and the old guy can turn your Mistque into a proper three pedal set up.
Oh, the thought has crossed my mind! But other than the fact it’s an auto, the car is still a lot of fun to drive. One of my aunts bought the car new, and my first chance to drive it was back in 1995, and after only having slow econoboxes to ride around it, that car was a revelation. It’s why I still care about it, and why my grandpa decided to give it to me.
I only suggested the manual because this is the sort of car that seems like it would be happier with it. Just like a 307V8 Olds and a 3800V6 Buick is happier with a 4speed auto and a torque converter.
My father says the same thing about not using overdrive in town, and only turns it on when he is on a road trip. I think it must date back to the cars of the 40’s and 50’s he grew up with that had a separate mechanical overdrive. I figure he might be saving a little wear and tear on his transmission, but more than making up for it in extra gas and engine wear (our suburban roads are typically 45mph posted speed limit, and not that much stop and go), but hey, if it makes him happy, so be it.
If I’m driving at 45-55 mph, and speed varies a bit, my anemic Explorer will hunt between 3rd and OD. So I’ll flip it off to stop the annoying hunting.
Even on my ’00 Contour, I’d drive with OD off at the same 45-55 mph just to eliminate it hunting. and the slushbox for these cars is weak to start with.
1st off, check the fluid level, and quality. This transmission doesn’t really have that fine of a filter like most other automatics. Then put a big oil cooler for the transmission on it. as the V6 puts a fair amount of heat underhood, and it’s already pretty sandwiched under there. Mine had the DOHC four and was reasonable underhood, but that little Zetec needed a 5 speed for me to row to be really fun.
also check all your sensors, one of them may be thinking that the engine is at WOT and shifting accordingly. I can’t remember if the CD4E has a cable controlled TV valve or if its all computer controlled. I do know that it’s the most dimwitted transmission I’ve ever sampled. it makes the 4R55E in my Explorer seem down right snappy, and neither one is a joy to flog compared to my well-sorted TH-350 in my ’70s land yacht.
It would seem to make sense that today’s electronic transmissions would be made to just leave in OD, but seeing how my grandpa worked in Transmission engineering at Ford I figure he must know something that the rest of us don’t.
In my town there isn’t a lot of stop-and-go traffic so I usually just leave it in OD. And besides, the car tends to say in third gear and cruises through town at around 45 without me touching the gas…too bad the speed limit is only 35…
Go see your Papaw, man. Talk with him :)
I’ll be seeing him at Christmas.
First thing to check (or get checked) is the throttle valve cable and linkage. This is the mechanism that changes the shift points (and feel) according to how heavy your foot is.
As for converting it into a manual, this frequently requires boring a hole in the end of the crankshaft to install a pilot bearing. Normally done by taking the crankshaft to a machine shop. Easier and cheaper to trade the car in.
Could be as simple as a TP sensor. I believe you have a cable throttle system and a bad TPS could fool the trans into thinking you’re at the dragstrip and delay shifts.
Yeah, I once broke my TPS while replacing another sensor (pulled out the TPS thinking it was something else when putting it back on I twisted it hte wrong direction). If I didn’t know I’d broken the TPS, I’d have sworn my transmission was toast…extremely late and rough shifts.
I’ve worked on some pretty poor excuses for cars, but I’m not sure I’d admit to working on a Ford transmission.
Thanks guys for all the advice!
FWIW I tend to drive like a retired Floridian, so I’m not one to be hard on a car. If the car has power I save it for when I really need it and then I enjoy the daylights out of it! I say all that to say that I had heard that the transmissions in these cars somehow “learn” your driving habits and control shifts accordingly. I guess mine is a slow learner :P
The trans in this car was new. You see, back in the nineties, whenever someone in the family would buy a new Ford of some sort, my grandpa would use his connections and purchase directly from Ford brand new transmissions and store them away in case we needed them. That’s what he did with this one. I wonder if its’ being stored away in the garage all those years has anything to do with the problems it’s having.
Despite it’s quirks, the car is a blast to drive, and I really hope I can get the bugs worked out of it and enjoy it in it’s twilight years :)
And yes, the picture above is my car :)
Thanks Sajeev, and the rest of the B&B. I’ll keep you updated…
I drove a ’95 mystique until I got my saab last year. I loved that thing – electric seats, nice fabric, pretty quick. It felt really quick until the Saab…
I got mine from my grandfather, too – but I had to wait for him to die first, so I could drive it however I wanted. In this case, that meant thrashing the hell out of it, and lifting+shifting the autobox through 1-2-D-OD. First and second lock up the converter, so it feels great.
Never had a problem with the atx from 28k until 101k. Went through two alternators, a tps, two fuel pumps, and the hvac blower switch died right after I got the Saab,, though.
I don’t know what difference there was to the Contour, but the mercury had damn nice interior materials for the price, and it even had lit door handles!
Fancy seeing this post today.
Gonna hit 310,000 miles tonight on my ’95 Mystique V6 5 speed manual.