2000 LS2-mysterious tranny/service light problem

I decided to start this thread anew since the previous one sort of got
hi-jacked.
My local (non-Saturn) mechanic just gave up on this.
My 2000 LS2, with like 260,000 miles, has been acting oddly in the
automatic transmission category.
Symptoms are sort of steady.
I drive to work 50 miles each way (into NYC yet) every day. Hence the
mileage. Coming home, at night, after i get off the highway, i will
usually see the service light about 10 minutes into local driving. At
this point, the tranny bucks; shifts hard in lower gears.
This can also happen during the day, or even after a lot of local
driving. Doesn't happen every day.
My mechanic finds no error codes (i have not been able to get the car
to him with the light on). He thinks it's the transmission but says
any such problem is beyond fixing in a car with so much mileage. He
also adds there are slight leaks in the water pump and radiator and
says the way Saturns are built, fixing those would get me over a grand
in repairs, so all this might be moot because he would not recommend
those repairs either.

So because of this tranny problem, which is intermittent and not
severe, i might be junking the car instead of doing repairs i would
otherwise make.

Kicker is my friend's wife has same car, same year and it is doing the
same thing. She brought into Saturn WITH THE LIGHT ON! and they
couldn't figure it out. So they're driving it. That car has a lot
fewer miles than mine.

Thanks for reading this far!

 

Having owned a couple of high mileage Saturns, and given the problems you're
having , my first action would be to get a new mechanic, preferably a
Saturn-trained tech. And in my experience, very often when someone says the
Saturn dealer's personnel couldn't figure it out, they were not willing to
pay for the required diagnosis.

 

Thanks.
On the other hand, Saturn charged me $90 to investiage an overheating
problem they said did not exist, while my local was able to fix it.

Before I give up, I will use the Saturn dealer.

 

not to side your post, but just that statement alone would send me packing.

Saturns are some of the easiest cars to work on and it sounds like you
perhaps have some techs that are not experienced enough with GM vehicles
period. I would suggest that if Saturn can't figure out your car's problem,
you search for a local mechanic who knows his GM/Saturn vehicles. I see
people every week pushing 400K on their L series, so your mechanic seems
rather biased and inexperienced with Saturns.

--
marx404
Thanks.
On the other hand, Saturn charged me $90 to investiage an overheating
problem they said did not exist, while my local was able to fix it.

Before I give up, I will use the Saturn dealer.

 

I wanted to give my $0.02

First off, keep in mind the car is 8 years old and has a ton of miles on
it. It has treated you well, and worst case, you paid it off at least 2
years ago. It would seem, even a completely rebuilt tranny for under
$2000 is close to money well spent on a otherwise reliable car - which
has not cost you much in way of payments in the last few years.

Said that, I also want to mention the problems I have had with our 2002
LW200 manual. For over 30,000 miles, we had an issue with the clutch -
one that would lead to an inability to take the car out of gear; one I
would classify as a life-threatening danger. I paid for all the
diagnostics, but the dealer was unwilling to go to the next step and
think beyond the printed troubleshooting manual. Once it was finally
fixed (replaced the master/slave assembly inside the clutch) no troubles
for the next 50k miles. Now we have an intermittent problem with the
engine hesitating. Haven't made a payment on the car for about 3 years,
and it went off manufactuers warranty last June - so this will cost us.
But our payments were about $350/mo, so I figure 3-6 months worth in
repairs is worth spending (with the faith the issue will be fixed).

For your issue, it sounds very repeatable, so any attempted repair should
have a more or less immediate result. Track the paperwork and make sure
everything is written out clearly. Too often the service advisors
abbreviate and paraphrase without retaining the true description. Ask for
the mechanics notes to clearly address the thought process in determining
the fix.

Also keep an ear open to others with a similar issue. The OP mentioned a
friend's wife or neighbor with fewer miles but similar characteristics.
Swap cars and verify the symptoms are the same.

 

Excellent advice, how very true unfortunately this comes from being in a big
hurry and half-listening to the customer. I see this frequently.

--
marx404

 

I just wanted to make a few things clear:
My local guy, not a Saturn mechanic, advised me the radiator and water
pump issues combined would run me $1,2500, because of the way the car
is designed. I live in a particularly expensive area of Long Island,
which is costly all around.
I would say he's a Saturn expert by now because of all the work he's
done on my LS (and my wife's original SL, which is still running
fine).
He cannot diagnose my Check Engine Light/tranny problem. He says he
thinks the expense of the other items would be too much in light of
fact there may be a tranny problem.
My friend's wife has same year LS as me. Not nearly as much mileage.
Same check engine/tranny problem. Saturn could not diagnose this even
when she brought it in with the light on. She continues it to drive
it. It's not really that big a deal, but for me is standing in way of
other repairs.

Now if somebody had a reasonable guess as to what this, i might lean
toward bringing it into Saturn and having it gone over. They might
charge less to fix the radiator and water pump but what good is it if
there's a bigger problem?

I have had many repairs done on this car and im looking at new ones
(the new, bigger Scion XB?).

However it is making my daily 100-mile trip. And it's paid for.

 

I just replaced a radiator and AC condenser in my son's 1996 SL (the result
of front end accident.) This was a pretty simple task and the brand new
radiator wasn't very expensive either. I have not replaced the water pump
yet, but that did not look to be too bad either so I have no idea why they
are charging you so much. I'd get a second opinion and try an independent
garage that has experience with Saturn's. Good luck.

Bob

 

My mechanic finds no error codes (i have not been able to get the car

Your mechanic is either incompetent or his code reader is a cheapo or
you waited a really really long time to go there. Codes will be stored
in the vehicles history. If you can't provide them here then no one can
give you worth while advice. Stop at an Autozone while it is on...

$200 radiator.
$60 waterpump.
$50 or so for Coolant...
$50 or so for hoses...
Labor time? Don't have that info on this pc.
Must be well over 100 dollars an hour out there.

I wouldn't.

Tell us the codes for crying out loud... Dont drive with the frig'n MILs
on people!

Toasters are made for kitchen counters, not roads.
<places palm on forhead>
I...just...dont...get...people...

 

I had the same bucking/hard shifting problem with my 2003 L300 Saturn.
Took it to a dealer in Ft Wayne, IN, pretty useless since all they did wa
replace the battery. That made one light go off but didn't fix th
bucking. Took it to a dealer in Worcester, MA and wouldn't let them tur
off the car because the light would go off and they found a bad solenoid.
They replaced 2 valves, cost $150 in parts and $700 in labor. Thankfully
we bought an extended warranty because of the crappy standard 3 yr. 5 yr
old with 40000 miles. Oh yeah the AC broke at 3 yrs and we haven't gotte
it fixed yet

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