Hoping some of you guys could shed a bit of light on this problem. I just bought my girlfriend a 98 TF Magna Solara yesterday. The problem it has is a Transmission Shudder under light load around 50-65km/h. It didn't do it on the test drive but after driving 100km back home on the highway, it was noticeable throught the town streets. So it only seems to do it when everything is hot. The fluid looks nice and red and doesn't smell burnt. Do these tranny's have a filter in them? the old girl has a 175000 on the clock but have no idea when the transmission was last serviced. I have owned Fords all my life so Mitsu's are all new to me.

Hey man, what makes you say its the transmission, for instance worn cv joints/drive shafts can cause similar shudder......

It felt like there was a light increase in rpm while it was happening. But it doesn't do it all the time??

I think he meant to say "Feels like a transmission shudder."

Could be drive shafts, misfire from plugs or injectors, etc. Get to know the car a bit better and check a few things - like the service records - before you point at the trans.
Or just the trans lockup trying to do its thing, if the revs fluctuate at steady speed.

If I hold it in 1st, 2nd or 3rd everything seems to be fine and I can't get it to replicate the problem. It only does it Drive..

If you have a 4 speed auto its normal for it to try to lockup at that speed in 4th if everything is warm and you hold a steady throttle. It's not a "problem".

Research "lockup torque converters" if you don't understand that.

The shudder can last 4-5 sec. I've not known a lockup clutch in a torque converter to do that. But if this is normal for this model transmission, then that's fine. Just wanted to make sure it wasn't a historical fault for this transmission ect.

Hi, and welcome to AMC

NO it is not normal for a torque converter to lock up and cause shudder, I really dont know where you get your info from Max and quite frankly a lot of people are sick of your wild guesses.....

There is an issue where the trans will cause shudder between usually 50 and 80kmh where the trans is trying to select converter lock up but is not able to complete the lock up and you will get a shudder, you hold back 3rd or put some boot back into it and the shudder goes away, if this is what you have, replace the trans and your issue will be solved

If you can not get the car to do this in third at same speed and condition you can then rule out the drive shafts

The shudder can last 4-5 sec.

Should have mentioned that before. No, that's definitely not normal for this type of transmission. Usually the revs go down slightly, but come back up if the lock doesn't hold. Gives more of a gentle surge than a shudder, noticeable more on the tacho than anything else. Do you have a warranty on the car? If so, try to get it fixed that way as changing the trans or getting it reconditioned isn't cheap. An auto trans specialist might be able to tell you if it is a problem in the torque converter or elsewhere. Good luck sorting it.

Thanks Madmagna for your reply. So can you drive around this problem? Does the shudder get worse before it breaks? Should I be looking out for any other signs?

No the car isn't covered by warranty. Private Sale!!

Oh bother! Mmmm - seek out a good auto trans specialist in your area and have a chat.