Our 1993 Astro Van
Transmission Bucking Problem
Well,
here's our pride and joy, our 1993 Chevrolet mini Astrovan. We bought the
93 Astrovan from a used car dealer in New Haven CT called A1 Auto, paid $4,500
for it in Oct. of 2000.
It came with a three month warranty. It drove perfectly for 3 months. Then after the 3 month warranty expired, it got a thump in the automatic transmission when switching from first to second gear.
We drove it around like that for a couple months, till we couldn't stand it anymore, then I took it to Stellers in Shelton CT, so they could run a diagnostic. They said there was a couple parts that needed to be replaced in the transmission, and they changed them.
It didn't improve the shifting at all. Total cost for parts and diagnostic, $350 dollars. They recommended that the transmission needed to be rebuilt, and sent us to Astro Transmissions in north New Haven. Astro Transmission gave us an estimate of $1,500 for a rebuilt transmission. Which is not a bad price, but why did all this have to happen after the warranty expired?
So, we left the van there a couple of days. I actually had to take a bus from Shelton to New Haven to get there. I did alot of standing around and waiting. After three days he said the van was finished, and took me for a ride in it. He said he put a patch on the transmission that Chevrolet came out with, (there was some kind of a bulletin released on the tranny and was a common occurrence in the 1993 - 1994 vans.) I didn't like the sound of that.
Well, Astro Transmission gave me a 12 month warranty. The patch lasted exactly 1 month, and started bucking again. I took it back to Astro Transmission. The van was there for a week. He got us a rental car, which was a nice gesture, till he finished the transmission again. He said he went through everything, and couldn't fix the bucking. His conclusion was that it is in the wiring harness, and he'll replace that for us for 500 bucks.
Nah, I don't think so, then what if it still doesn't work? So we drove it around with the bucking till something strange happened. Our daughter was working in Ansonia CT, at the PeaPod Stop and Shop upstairs, as a shopper. She left work and the van wouldn't start in the parking lot.
We had it towed to a small gas station, that also did repairs. They said it needed a new starter, and then called back and said it needed a new water pump. So they changed both for 600 bucks. The strange thing was, that the van quit bucking. We couldn't believe it, and enjoyed the fact that it wasn't bucking for 6 months.
We were also wondering why we had the transmission rebuilt, if it wasn't the transmission, but something else. And what did the gas station workers do to make it quit bucking? Move a wire?
Update May 2005 - The van was running really bad and Emissions is coming due. Here's a list of parts we replaced.
Oxygen Sensor
Map
Sensor
Carburator jets
spark plugs, wires
changed oil
lost the gas
cap, so replaced it
Amazingly after changing all these parts, the van passed emissions with flying colors.
Update June 2005: The brakeline
developed a leak. Fixed it. Air conditioning not working. Backed into a tree and
broke the taillight lens. Bought some paint to paint the "peeling off paint"
on the roof.
Update July 13, 2005: The van started bucking again, the
door lock on the passenger side broke too. Still bucking slightly, but van still
has power.
Update: Oct 14, 2005 - The van is still running good, hope
it makes it through the winter. The Check Engine Light is still on, even after
doing the suggestions of unplugging the computer and plugging it back in, and
disconnecting the battery for 5 min.
Update: Oct 29, 2007 - So how's
the Astro van doing you ask? It's doing amazingly well. First of all we moved
from Connecticut in May 07 to Southern
South Dakota, and decided to take the Astro van with us. We put our 750 Virago
in the back, packed it up with tools etc. from the garage and drove it 1500 miles
to Tripp, So Dakota.
We had zero problems with it, even though now the odometer says 186,000, it didn't
use any oil, it didn't need any antifreeze, and the bucking problem has all but
disappeared. The Check Engine Light is still on though, haven't been able to figure
it out.
One thing for sure it loves South Dakota because it's so flat around here, straight highways and no sitting in traffic.
More Information
Okay here's some more information I came across, read what this guy says. This may be our problem right now because our service engine light is still on. (But I think the hubby cleaned the EGR valve.)
"I've got a 93 Astro that shows 223,000 on the odometer, but I think the engine has had some major work done on it. The van ran like a top when I got it, but I eventually had to replace the EGR valve due to rough idling and the check engine light coming on. After replacing the valve, the van ran great again. It is again idling rough, and has been for about 2 weeks now. The van runs great in all areas except idling. It's not as bad as it was before I replaced the egr, and the check engine light does not come on at all.
I bought new plugs and wires which I haven't put on yet. I don't know if the plugs are bad or what. It's strange that the van smokes when you crank it after sitting all night or all day at work, but it doesn't ever seem to be using any oil. I guess these are bad valve guide seals, because it doesn't smoke one bit after the initial long sitting start. When the egr valve was bad; it finally got to where it would try to cut off at a stop light,ect,. this time doesn't seem as bad, and no check engine light is on. Does the van need a tune up or is it possible that the egr is again clogged? I was advised that after putting in a new egr that it's been known to clog again on some folks."
New Pages
Everything
Made in China? - How is it that everything in my house has a Made in China
tag?
Prepare for a Recession? - A list of
some things we are going to do to try to prepare for a recession.
We
Put Solar Lights in our House - Why not put outdoor solar lights "inside"
the house?
Wind Turbine Test - We started thinking
about how we could build a wind turbine to generate our own electricity.
Magazines
for Toddlers - I wanted to send some magazines to the grandbaby for something
to do during winter.
