Chrysler Repair: Transmission, dodge caravan, remedial service

Question
Can dirty or burnt fluid cause the transmission to slip and shift wrong.1995 Dodge caravan engine 3.3

Answer
Hi Steve,
Other owners of the electronic transaxle have said that such degraded fluid can cause problems with the operation of the unit such as you described. So check your fluid for color and smell. There is no sure cure for that trans; there can be mechanical problems as well that new hydraulic fluid won't fix. But it may be worth investing in a thorough
fluid exchange and filter change in the hope that it will solve the problems. But you will have to ask for the shop to power flush all the fluid from the system because just draining it will not get more than 2/3 of the old fluid out. There is still fluid in the torque converter and the cooler core and hoses, unless they power flush it. One idea would be to ask them first to carefully remove the 3 pans and look for the presence of mechanical debris (which is a sign that the problem goes beyond bad fluid); so they can stop right there and let you decide about a rebuild rather than pay for the power flush and all new fluid when you have a pretty good reason to believe it is more serious repair needed. The other thing to do is have a good trans shop or Chrysler dealer readout the trans controller for stored fault codes in the memory. That is another way to size up whether there is likely to be mechanical issues internal to the trans that will require rebuild or not. If it turned out that all the fault codes were related to hydraulic functions only then that would give you a basis for trying remedial service of the fluid change out and filter, otherwise the codes may say that there is little probablity of solving the problem with new fluid and filter.
Be sure that the shop is familiar with the Chrysler electronic trans and has a reader with a body controller type of plug, which is not the same as the plug used to readout the engine controller.
Take your time, don't be panicked into opting for an overhaul which is big bucks, without a good basis for authorizing it. Let me know what happens, please.
Roland