No "downshift" '94 Corolla

[Chris Jeanotte]

My '94 Corolla won't start in low gear when in "drive" If I put it in "L" it will start in low (I then shift it manually to 2 then "D". the car drives fine until I come to a stop, then again it is in a high gear till I repeat the same process. I see there is a "shift solenoid" available for this trans. Is this the problem or could it be something else? Oh another clue, the "O/D off" light blinks on & off continuously. Is this a fault code of some kind? Thanks.

 

[rk97]

Yikes.

How many miles on your '94? You might start looking for used transmissions rather than spending time and money trouble-shooting this one...

Beyond the basics of checking the fluid levels, and maybe doing a flush to see if there's any metal shavings, etc., I would just keep shifting it manually while you look for a cheap replacement.

That's not a "fix," but it might be the simplest and cheapest option, rather than chasing gremlins and swapping a bunch of parts trying to pin-down the problem.

 

[Barry Young]

I'm new here, having the same problem as the original poster. I have a 93 Corolla Wagon (building as a spare mail car for my wife) When I first got it running (rebuilt the engine..it had a spun rod bearing, so I didn't get to test drive the car before hand), sometimes it wouldn't have reverse.. mostly when cold. When it would go in reverse, it did perferctly..no slipping at all. It also starts out in high gear (when cold). I have replaced the trans filter, and fluid.. and used Sea Foam additive. So far, it goes in reverse fine now.. but still starts in high gear when cold. There was no clutch particles in the trans pan..it looked great.. so I'm sure the clutches in the trans are good.. and it doesn't slip at all..shifts firm.. just starts out in high when cold.. Any ideas???

 

[James Burton]

The O/D light is a fault code. I believe you would check for trans codes the same way you do engine codes. Engine light blinks in patterns for engine codes, o/d light likewise blinks for transmission codes.