92 Chevy Cavalier - Sell or Keep

[Sphinx]

so i got this beater, for 400 bux. It has over 240,000 miles on her, and it hasn't costed me a dime on fixing it. I was getting crazy gas mileage and thats the only reason the car is still sitting in my driveway. I have ran into a few bumps.

First hte crank sensor, then the brake line, then the caliber, and now.. the mysterious problem.

Was out driving it, went to stop at a red light the car shuttered and stalled... kinda like if you dont push the clutch in on a manual car. Its an Automatic btw. So i put it in neutral and start her up, and she idles fine, put her in gear and she instantly shuts off, the car will kinda jerk, but it doesn't do anything.

So i make a few phone calls to get a pick up from some buddies when i got the idea, maybe the torque convertor is locked and wont let go... so i did my trick of Netraul to drive and back and forth quickly and magically the car moved... took it right up to 60 mph. thank god i was on a highway and practically no lights to my house.

If anyone has heard this happen to anyone before, let me know, im curious, im thinking about just getting rid of it, but the gas mileage is just too good to let go without at least looking into the problem.

Thanks

[Slo86Bird]

ill give u 50 bucks for it

[The Fixer]

Try unplugging the TCC plug on the tranny. If that cures the stalling issue, then you know you gotta change the solenoid. I have NO idea how bad it is to do on that car, but I have a friend who's a mechanic that drove a beater Chevy Celebrity that way for years with no troubles.

[V]

yeah, its a small plug on the trans, pull it and it should run fine. the tq convertor just wont lock up anymore. for a beater you could leave it like that like steve said.

[Tru2Chevy]

Yea, I drove my '91 Lumina with the TCC solenoid unplugged for 8 years - never had a problem. You will lose just a little bit of milage, but not much.

IIRC, the plug should be on the side of the trans facing the front of the car, and it is a square, 4 pronged plug. It looks just like the one on a 700R4/4L60e.

- Justin

[98tadriver]

ill trade ya the topaz lol

[Sphinx]

thanks guys, going to try that early tomorrow morning. Will let you know how it turns out

[Sphinx]

And to think i almost sold it for a stupid plug. The car runs great now. Thanks guys. I would have never known that, and no one would have told me what the problem was, b/c they could have gotten a cheap car. Thanks again!