[2wheeldeal]

Hi All,

I just bought my first acura, it's a 1990 Legend L w/174K. I got the car for 1200 bucks which is relatively cheap for the bay area.... so I'm a little suspicious.
The problem: The Auto trans has 4 settings, D, S3, S4 and 2. The car takes off the line pretty good in 2. However, any other gear and it's real slow to get going. Pressing on the accelerator initially just revs the engine and then it eventually gets going, but it's nothing compared to puting it in 2 for the 0-30mph test.

Do you think this is just a sliping transmission, could it be improper ATF?

 

[cigarettcancerman]

when a trans slips the rpms will just keep going up and the car will move little or nothing at all. do you mean the trans is slipping in D, and in 2 it doesnt? 2 basically is D except it wont shift past 2nd gear. 2 should be the same up untill about 3k rpm or around 15mph then it will put out more power since the RPMs just keep going up. kinda like a manual trans, except its bad for your auto.

I would think if the car slips in D it would slip in any forward drive gear. every forward gear uses D just they make it shift at different times or not shift at all.

maybe your shift linkage is out of adjustment and the car is only half way in D.... try seeing if your car will start in any other gear than park or neutral.

also try using s4 instead of D and see if it does any better, s4 basically is drive but the shifts are delayed to get more hp out of every gear.

Oyea, dont drive in any gear over 3,500rpm with your auto tranny for more than a mile or 2 or your trans will start to overheat and cause damage in the long run.

Improper ATF will usually cause more of a rough shift, usually wont slip unless you put an extreme amount of friction modifiers or somthing.
they may not have put Honda ATF in it but you would have to be retarded to put anything besides dex 3, which our cars can run on fine although not reccomended

 

[arcinguy]

2 is not the same as drive, 2 puts it in second gear to start, drive starts from 1st... :werd:

 

[jmm67]

Hi All,

I just bought my first acura, it's a 1990 Legend L w/174K. I got the car for 1200 bucks which is relatively cheap for the bay area.... so I'm a little suspicious.
The problem: The Auto trans has 4 settings, D, S3, S4 and 2. The car takes off the line pretty good in 2. However, any other gear and it's real slow to get going. Pressing on the accelerator initially just revs the engine and then it eventually gets going, but it's nothing compared to puting it in 2 for the 0-30mph test.

Do you think this is just a sliping transmission, could it be improper ATF?

Thats because in D, S3 and S4 you are starting off in 3rd gear but when you put it in 2 you are starting off in 2nd gear. You have clogged shift solenoid screens which you will have to clean to get proper shifting back. My car had the exact same symptoms before I cleaned my solenoids. Once you get first gear back and proper gear kickdowns you will notice a huge difference in speed and performance!

 

[2wheeldeal]

You guys are awesome! I've never used a forum before and this is some great help. I'll get on cleaning up those solenoid screens and let ya know how it turns out. So reading these forums, it seems that flushing them out with carb cleaner works best?

 

[jmm67]

You guys are awesome! I've never used a forum before and this is some great help. I'll get on cleaning up those solenoid screens and let ya know how it turns out. So reading these forums, it seems that flushing them out with carb cleaner works best?

That will work, I used wd40 because that is what I had handy. Good Luck!