I was driving on the freeway at highway speed when all of a sudden the engine revs high (with no transfer of power to the wheels). I continue forward momentum, but additional application of pedal doesn't seem to do anything other than make the engine rev. As I got onto an off-ramp, I shift into "3", and appear to have power to go up an incline. I hopped out and looked around. No stream of oil, no smoke, no strange noises.

I got back into the Jeep, shifted into "3" again and was able to drive home via surface streets without any obvious problems, but not going over 50 mph, either.

Based on that, I'm going to assume I lost my overdrive gear. Could it be something else, like a busted torque converter? Will I be *relatively* safe to drive it to a shop (keeping it in "3" gear) or am I taking a chance of breaking the tranny further?

I called a local transmission place. A rebuilt tranny (including install & fluids) is $1800. Rebuilding mine is $1200-$1800. Sounds horrible, but I'd have a "new" tranny when it's all said & done. Or should I trust a junk yard tranny for considerably less money, but without knowing the actual condition? Note: I don't have the time, knowledge, or tools to do any of the work myself.

Thoughts & comments welcome. I am away from home for a week for work, so nothing will get done until I get back.

 

A bad solenoid maybe? Always look at the most obvious and cheapest fixes first.

 

Probably something simple. How's the fluid level and condition? Ever changed the fluid?

 

I had just changed my tranny fluid about a month or two ago.

Anyway, I was going to change my solenoids, but then I thought, "What if that's not it?" I had started making plans to get a "new" tranny from a yard, but then I thought, "There's no telling what condition it's going to be in and how long it'll last."

Because I travel solo deep into the desert and into Mexico, I figured I might as well bite the bullet and send it to a shop, knowing I'd probably spend the full $1800, but hopeful it was actually an easy fix. Yeah, well, they confirmed that the OD was gone and the other gears were kind of wonky during the drive test. I authorized them to drop the tranny and tear into it to the tune of $850. I got the call today and found out what I already knew. The OD drum was trash and the solenoids tested bad. A full rebuild. I was able to get a 10% military discount on labor, which saved me a little bit, so it's going to cost me just shy of $1700.

I guess the good thing is that I'll be worry-free on the transmission side from here on out. I have some travel reimbursement coming back to me, so it won't hurt as bad. The only other major components that could fail me now are the transfer case and the engine. Since I've spent all this money on the Jeep now, I'll get those two things rebuilt if they go bad and will probably have this Jeep well into the 2020's & 2030's.

PS. I'm still looking at a rear-disc conversion and ARB lockers (front & rear) one day. Probably next year. Can't stop now!

 

Thanks for the update.

 

a 96 with 200K+ miles? I'd change the tranny fluid and filter, pour in a bottle of lucas transmission fix and see if it gets any better in 100 miles or-so. If not, I'd just drive it around in "3". my parents chevy lost 3rd gear which was a pain. they drove it in "2" for a while, but it revved high on the freeway. they took that old transmission in for a rebuild and though it shifts, it hasn't sounded good ever since. I guess there's risk either way. good luck

 

You're a little late to this party, aren't you?

 

Thankfully, California is burning down to the ground again! I just got alerted that I'm going to be activated for wildfire duty. Thems good $$$ duty! I'll make enough to cover the rebuild in 4 days! And double-dipping with my day job...man oh man! The only tough thing is that I need to get back to San Diego (I'm going to L.A. until Monday) as quick as possible to pull the Jeep out of the shop before they start charging me for storage. I have no idea how long I'll be gone.