my 88 AOD trans in my unibody is feeling slippy. The TV cable was set up and adjusted by the local trans shop right after install last summer, so I count on it being correct. Seems the 1-2 shift has been weak, the other night leaving my diveway and going uphill I nealy lost forward movement before 2nd gear caught in. Fluid is full, nice and pink, smells like trans fluid, not burned. The part that scares me is when I wipe the dipstick on a white paper towel I can se metalic residue. Is my trans gone? I know the mechanic in a can route is a bad idea and a band aid, but I'd do about anything to keep it going for the rest of the summer before tearing it down again. How screwed am I ? Any band aid fixes?
Seeing metallic particles when you wipe the stick would indicate internal problems. Pull the pan, that way you will lnow for sure if there is an excessive amount of metal in the pan. I would guess if you are seeing metallic particles on the stick, you will find a mess in the pan
Also verify the TV cable position didn't slip or move. Get a pressure gauge and read online on how to adjust the TV pressure. It is a relatively simple task. The metallic residue may just be from the clutch disks slipping (i.e. the TV pressure is too low), if there isn't a mess in the pan, you maybe OK.
There shouldn't be any slipping when your in 1st gear. If it is slipping then most likely there isn't enough pressure being applied to the clutch disks. It could be low overall pressure (i.e. a TV cable out of adjustment). If it is the TV cable do not drive the car any more until it is repaired, it takes a very short period of time for the transmission to be toast driving it with low pressure.
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