My A/T Saga - Saab 9-5 Bulletin Board - Saabnet.com
The banner above is an advertisment - if it asks you to download software, please ignore.
Site News - 4/9 Saab Owners' Convention Day Pass Raffle | 3/26 M Car Covers (by State of Nine)
[General | Members | C900 | 9000 | NG900 & OG93 | 93 | 95 | NG95 | 99 | Sonett | Vintage Models | Clubs | Other Cars | FAQs | Gifts | Member Photo Galleries | Member Directory | Classifieds | Manuals | *Buddy Registry | *Mileage Registry | Polls | What's New | Raffle | Photo of the Month | Sponsors]

95 Bulletin Board
1999-2009 [Subscribe to Daily Digest]
(Search Author's Posts: e.g. Keyword:username)*Members Only

[Main 95 Bulletin Board | BBFAQ | Prev by Date | Next by Date | Post Followup ] Member Login / Signup - Members see fewer ads. - Latest Member Gallery Photos
My A/T Saga
Like This Post: - Subscribe to Daily Digest for this Bulletin Board
Posted by DnstrDan [Email] (#1361) [Profile/Gallery] (more from DnstrDan) on Tue, 28 Dec 2021 16:32:43 Share Post by Email
In Reply to: Transmission advice needed, MacDuff, Tue, 28 Dec 2021 06:57:53
Alert me when someone posts in this thread:
Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup

My '99's four-speed automatic transmission first showed signs of failure at 207k miles in 2018 (occasionally slipping when hot at slow speeds; sometimes accompanied by a low pitched grinding noise).

Drive Cycle:
• characterized by routine stop-and-go L.A. freeway commuting over many years

Maintenance:
• regular ATF changes at 115k mi. (2007) and 155k mi. (2012).
• three-cycle ATF drain and fills at 170k mi. (2015)
• three-cycle ATF drain and fills at 206k mi. (2018). Note: this was done shortly after the onset of failure symptoms as noted above. I commissioned an ATF analysis by Blackstone (results shown below); at this time I also switched to Castrol Transmax Hi Mile ATF.



I got nearly twenty-thousand additionally trouble-free miles out of it, until the problem resurfaced in 2020 at 226k mi. Given the results of the Blackstone analysis report, this was not a surprise. But this time, the symptoms were much worse. It clunked when pulling into a parking spot; reverse gear momentarily disappeared. I took it to Anders for a diagnosis: he confirmed a mechanical grinding noise in first and reverse gears, with the first gear bearings likely failing. To fix would require replacement of the automatic transmission with a known good used unit, and about $1800 labor for engine/transmission/subframe removal and reinstallation. I decided that it was not economically viable to fix it and sadly parted with the car.

Conjecture:
My thinking is that routine ATF changes were instituted way too late in the life of the car (eight years into ownership), which had been subjected to a stressing use case (L.A. freeway driving, warm to hot climate). By the time I did a proper flush and fill (using three change cycles), the transmission had already begun to incur damage, even though that did not come to light until ~36k mi. later.

Advice:
If records exist, take a look at the A/T maintenance history of your prospective purchase. An expedited ATF analysis as part of your PPI is advisable if the seller will give you the extra time to get it done and turned around.

Coda:
When I purchased my '04 wagon, I did an ATF change cycle shortly afterwards. The 5-speed A/T is reputedly a better unit; hoping for the best. I actually prefer the A/T for commuting, BTW.


->Posting last edited on Tue, 28 Dec 2021 16:44:25.
_______________________________________
'04 9⁵ Aero Sedan (m/t)
'04 9⁵ Aero Wagon (a/t)
---
'99 9⁵ SE (LPT) - donated in '20
Posts in this Thread:
Alert me when someone posts in this thread:
Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup
Post a Followup

No Site Registration is Required to Post - Site Membership is optional (Member Features List), but helps to keep the site online
for all Saabers. If the site helps you, please consider helping the site by becoming a member.

Name: Member Login / Signup - Members see fewer ads. - Latest Member Gallery Photos
E-Mail: (Optional)
Re-Enter E-Mail: (Confidential & Secure - Not revealed to other users!)
Note: Please check your spam folder for BB responses.

Subject:

Posting rules are simple - No for sale/wanted ads may be posted here - use the site classifieds.
You may not cross-post your message to multiple BBs.
Not permitted: political/religious topics and being disrespectful (personal attacks, insults, etc...).
 Site Members do not see any red text, inline ad links, bottom of page anchor ads, box ads, or anti-spam check.

Message: (please no for sale/wanted classifieds - post those in the Saabnet.com Classifieds)
Links are now automatically made active, no need for any special code (or use the Option Link field below) - don't put links in () or end with a '.'
To add inline images to your post, use [img]http://www.domain.com/img.jpg[endimg] (or use the Optional Image Link field below).

Links are now automatically made active, no need for any special code (or use the Option Link field below) - don't put links in () or end with a '.'
To add inline images to your post above, use [img]http://www.domain.com/img.jpg[endimg] (or use the Optional Image Link field below).
Optional Link: (e.g. http://www.saabnet.com/)
Link Title: (Optional)
Optional Photo/Image Link: (e.g. http://www.saabnet.com/img.jpg)
Photo/Image to Upload: (Please be patient while file uploads)



StateOfNine.com
SaabClub.com
Jak Stoll Performance
M Car Covers
Ad Available

The content on this site may not be republished without permission. Copyright © 1988-2024 - The Saab Network - saabnet.com.
For usage guidelines, see the Mission & Privacy Notice.
[Contact | Site Map | Saabnet.com on Facebook | Saabnet.com on Twitter | Shop Amazon via TSN | Site Donations]

Random Saabnet.com Member Gallery Photos (Click Image)
This is a moderated bulletin board - Posting is a privilege, not a right. Unsolicited commercial postings are not allowed (no spam). Please, no For Sale or Wanted postings, SERIOUSLY. Classifieds are to be listed in The Saab Network Classifieds pages. This is a problem solving forum for over 250,000 Saab owners, so expect to see problems discussed here even though our cars are generally very reliable. This is not an anything goes type of forum. Saabnet.com has been a moderated forum since 1988. For usage guidelines, see the Saabnet.com Mission and Purpose Page. Please remember that you are not anonymous. Site Contact | Site Donations | Other Sites by SP - Poverty2Prosperity.org | Run Club Menlo Park | ScreenBot


Site Members do not see red text instructions, bottom of the page anchor ads, or box ads.
Click here to see all the Site Membership Benefits!