Yup, even the Neon had essentially the same 3 speed until the 4 speed
became an *option* in 2000 as I recall, then standard in like ~2003. It
of course had lockup torque converters from the early '90s-on.
It's a strong little unit that can take a lot of power (Some drag Neons
used it). The 4 speed, especially the early ones used on the minivans,
were prone to reliability problems. This was somewhat exacerbated by
the switch in fluids (ATF+, ATF+3, ATF+4 vs Dextron) and the fact that
the transmission was set up for soft comfy shifts that traded comfort
for durability. They also had solenoid pack problems that resulted in
many, many good transmissions being rebuilt instead of the solenoid
packs replaced by less than reputable and/or knowledgable transmission
shops.
A lot of people made a lot of money buying minivans with "dead"
transmissions. They'd change the solenoid packs or even just drain the
transmission fluid and refill with the correct fluid and they'd be fine,
and they'd re-sell them.
Could be worse, I have a co-worker dealing with a Isuzu Rodeo that has a
"sealed transmission". No filler neck, no way to check the fluid. You
just have a drain port and a fill port on the underside of the
transmission. The problem is they're also known for cracked/leaking
servo covers that leak all the fluid out over time. It's so bad that
they've had trucks with less than 35k on them come in almost bone dry.
They also have range sensor problems that while driving makes the little
electronic indicator flash randomly through gears like a christmas tree,
and severe drivability problems.
And people complain about Chrysler transmissions...
M.B.
> >>> Wow, that's a new one on me too! 3 speed???? Did some quick
> >>> google searching, and apparently there are some vehicles out there
> >>> with these transmissions. I guess the overdrive was an option and
> >>> some folks were too cheap to spring for it? Very strange, especially
> >>> in the 90's where overdrive had been commonplace for nearly a decade!
> >>
> >> Chrysler was just late to the party. The '93 or '94 Acclaim I had for
> >> a year or two only had a 3-speed in it, probably the same in most of
> >> the minivans since it was the same platform.
> >>
> >>
> >
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