Chrysler Repair: transmission hesitating,clunking,jerking, air strut, chrysler dealer

Question
I have a New yorker 5th ave/93,3.8 autom.It started a couple of weeks ago,hesitating then sorta a small clunk before going into reverse or drive,also was harder to move from park to reverse if i was on a bit of a grade.Now its taking longer before it engages , really clunks and jerks like its catching then missing a bit catching again,especially reverse,do have a cracked trans. mount.This car has been nothing but trouble also having air susp. problems,have air bag leaking on fr/lft. air strut ,try getting a new one $1800 crazy ,hard to find at auto wreckers,still 350 used plus labour,fuel gage needle starting to do dissapearing acts, any other alternative besides bringing it to a push pull or drag trade,interior good body good,all options other than leather.Have had car 2 yrs. but have only been driving it for maybe 6 mth. sat for a year,has173000km.,had it checked when I got an oil change,he said the tranny oil was dark but if it was acting up doing a tranny flush may or may not help.not sure what to do now not sure if it is the tranny or if maybe something not to bad,

Answer
Hi Mary,
It sounds like the transmission is the issue. But diagnosing exactly why it is behaving this way is important. The electronic controller transmission is complicated and sophisticated, but fortunately it all is introspective and has the ability to recognize malfunctions and tell you something about it.
The chances are there is some internal mechanical wear/damage to the internal clutches of the transmission, but because the cost of rebuilding is so high it is worth spending a little on analyzing whether that is true or not.
I would begin by checking the fluid level on the transmission dip stick. Warm up the engine and then while the engine is idling in neutral check the level of fluid shown on the transmission dipstick. If it is below the normal area as labelled on the stick get a quart of Chrysler trans fluid from the parts department at a Chrysler dealer and add a little at a time through the dip stick tube until it reaches the proper level. See if that has any effect. Don't overfill the trans.
If not, then the transmission has an electronic controller that has the ability to recognize malfunctions and store them in its memory as two-digit fault codes. An electronic readout device is plugged into a port under the dash to access the memory and tell you the fault code numbers. It would be worth spending about $50 to have this done just in case the problem had to do with the hydraulic or electronic parts rather than the internal mechanical parts because those could be repaired without taking the trans out of the car and dismantling it. So a dealer or a competent independent transmission shop (but not a franchise type where the usual answer will be to do a "rebuild") with a reader for Chrysler transmissions should be able to do that. Ask for the code number(s), what they mean, what repair is needed and how much it will cost. Be sure that they have the reader plug adapter that will give them access to the memory via the plug under the dash. This is not the same plug as is in the engine compartment for accessing the engine controller memory.
Then write back and we'll evaluate what you were told. You don't have to make a commitment to the shop to repair it, just get the number(s), what they say they will do to fix it, and how much they estimate the cost to be. You might even ask before they do the readout whether they will credit the cost of the readout against a subsequent repair job if you authorize it. Now you are just trying to get information about what is wrong. The cost would be much lower if it could be repaired without removing the trans from the car.
Roland