88 Auto Trans - Drive and Reverse engagement delay when cold

Problem seems to be getting a bit worse lately. When the truck is cold, it takes a good 15 to 20 seconds before Drive or Reverse will engage. If I rev up the engine it will catch in a few seconds and all is good. I checked the fluid level with the jeep running and also the fluid is a nice red transparent color. I have to assume the pump or some internal seal is bad but thought I'd check here first. Maybe the filter is plugged? Advice?

SoCal88XJ said:

Problem seems to be getting a bit worse lately. When the truck is cold, it takes a good 15 to 20 seconds before Drive or Reverse will engage. If I rev up the engine it will catch in a few seconds and all is good. I checked the fluid level with the jeep running and also the fluid is a nice red transparent color. I have to assume the pump or some internal seal is bad but thought I'd check here first. Maybe the filter is plugged? Advice?

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I have had the same problem for 3 years. Gets a little worse each winter. But mine is only a problem in drive and forward gears, on the first cold start in the morning on winter days. Several others have reported the same problem. As far as I know all of us have just let the tranny fluid warm up in neutral for a few minutes on cold days. Non of ours had a cold reverse problem that I recall. Best guess any of us have come up with is a leaky oring / seal that seals up once it gets warm enough.

Mine only does it for 1st and reverse, once it catches it stays firm unless I restart the engine while its still cold, or let it sit overnight. This is what leads me to believe its hydro vacuum or pressure related, like an air leak in the fluid pickup. I'm in southern California where the night temps have been relatively warm. I suspect colder trans fluid would be thicker and might exagerate the same problem into what you have described. Sounds like I'm on the right track, perhaps the valve body gasket or a sticky solenoid. Hmmmm.

On every vehicle that I had that I experienced this problem with, a fluid and filter change alleviated it.

If you are correct, and it is a sticky solenoid in the valve body, consider that a fluid flush will help clean the crap out of your tranny, and the high detergent content of new tranny fluid may just help clean away this problem. Just a thought.

Geoff