Chrysler Repair: Transaxel, shaft seals, hydraulic control

Question
I have a 97 Town and Country with a 3.8 automatic, the van has about 150K on it and runs and sounds pretty good.  When I shift from drive to reverse or into drive and/or reverse there is a delay in the engagement of the tranny - during this time there is a sound coming from the tranny that sounds similar to the sound you get when you run your finger over the teeth of a comb - it lasts for about 2-3 seconds.

There is no problems driving on the road or when the car automatically shifts gears only when you shift into drive or reverse - it happens all the time, even after the car is driven for a period of time and is all warmed up.  

The fluid level is ok and the filter is relatively new as we thought that might be the source of the problem.

Can you help?

Thanks

Answer
Hi Don,
There may be something wrong with the oil pump or the hydraulic/solenoid control box parts which if repaired would solve the problem without having to remove and open the transmission proper. That box is on the side of the trans that faces the front of the van and it can be removed and repaired. The best way to determine if that is the case is to do a fault code readout of the transcontroller memory using a diagnostic readout box attached to the access plug underneath the dash. It might also show up via a set of pressure readings on the ports that are a part of that unit. The problem you describe could also be related to damage to one of several shaft seals which are only serviceable by opening up the trans after removing it. But that being so costly, I would be inclined to have a competent trans mechanic do the memory readout and the pressure port measurements to see if it can be localized to the hydraulic control box so that you might not pay for a rebuild unnecessarily.
If you know a good independent (non-franchise) shop that has the reader and experience with the Chrysler electronic transaxles that is where I would take it and ask them about such a diagnosis. The dealer is a second possibility. Try to get the specific fault code numbers, what they mean, what repair is proposed, and at what cost. Similarly see what the hydraulic pressure readings reveal. It might be something as 'simple' as a solenoid or the pump. Let me know what you find out and I can look in the shop manual for the possibilities with each code.
Roland