I have an O1 Sebring LX Coupe with about 85,000 miles on it. In cold weather, when I drive it right away and I come to a stop and start up again, the transmission will sometimesjerk. It will be as if the car is in neutral, then it jerks and everything seems fine. Once the car is warmed up, whether I let it run a few minutes before I take off, or after I've been driving it for a few minutes, the problem seems to disappear. Should I be worried? Has anyone else experienced this? Thanks for any help!

 

Tremblur, I too experienced the same lately (got a 2002 LE, 95.000 miles) and the first mile rpm are very high. After warmed up everything's back to normal (at least, I think so) but I'm looking forward to replies as this worries me a bit.

 

have either of you guys serviced your trans yet?

 

About 10.000 miles ago I hadmy ATF changed and tranny read, that's all. No problems then, just a regular checkup and maintenance.
Whys that?

 

whats happening is the seals are hardening because of the weather change.i get a lot of trans problems when either the weather is too hot or too cold.you can warm the car up before you go.might help for a little while.moe

 

Thanks Moe, sounds plausible. Next checkup I'll have the techs have a look at it. I'll post their findings.
Nice day!

 

I have had that too. I switched to synthetic ATF+4 and have had much improvement. Mine's an '04.

 

I also had my trans fluid flushed/checked etc. not too long ago. I thought that might help it but it hasn't. Yeah, warming the car up does seem to help quite a bit. Thanks for the info.

 

did you switch to synthetic transfluid. it seems like synthetec helps out a little.

 

I had this same problem. I kind of let it go thinking it's ok when it warms up. The problem only got worse and it would slip gears more often and more persistently. The fluid was low but i kept filling it. Then i developed an awful 'thunk' when it downshifted from 2nd to 1st. One day i was driving my son to school, check engine light comes on, and then it wouldn't leave 1st gear. It was a mile soI slowly went home and checked the fluid. It was dry. I filled it and it improved but still the awful thunk.

Because it was so cold here I had the car towed to the dealer. I thought for sureI needed a new trans, but the repairs were relatively small. I got a new trans solenoid, new trans hose, and they flushed & filled the tranny. Since then, all is well.

My prob may have been more than what the OP describes, but i wouldn't take it for granted as a 'normal' problem. Definetely look for leaks and keep your eye on the fluid.