I've noticed a shudder in the drivetrain when turning left or right at an intersection. If I give it a little more throttle it's not as bad. Is that torque bind or something? How can I fix it? It's an automatic AWD. All tire's and wheels are exactly identical.

You probably have a bad duty-c solenoid. Check the TCU codes - if the AT Temp light flashes 16 times on startup then you have stored TCU codes. There is a 6 pin black connector above the gas pedal and two grounding wires wrapped into the harness directly above that. Insert one grounding pin into the center pin on the black connector (blue with yellow trace typically), then follow this process:

 

1: Turn ignition on, apply brake, and place gear selector in 1. Turn ignition off.

2: Turn ignition on.

3: Move selector to 2.

4: Move selector to 3.

5: Move selector to D.

6: Depress accelerator pedal slightly.

 

7: Read morse codes flashes on the AT Temp light. 24 will indicate a bad duty-c. These are "stored" history codes from previous drive cycles.

 

8: Turn ignition off, then back on.

9: Move selector to 3.

10: Move selector to 2.

11: Move selector to 1.

12: Depress accelerator pedal slightly.

 

13: Read codes again. Codes given here are current faults active in the TCU on the current drive cycle.

 

GD

Yes. It's blinking 16 times alright. I'll do the procedure like you described. I put a fuse in the small FWD box under the hood to see if that would help, but it didn't. I put a test light there also, but had no indication of current....? Do I need to have the engine running with the trans in DRIVE?

Edited May 28, 201213 yr by darsdoug
Forgot something.

Not sure on when you would see current at the FWD fuse.

 

Pull the codes - you need to start there before worrying about the FWD fuse.

 

GD

Now I have a clear picture of what's going on. I just needed to know the basic concept and engineering on this Auto AWD trans.

The wife has been driving it regularly this past month with the bad solenoid while I'm at work. A local tranny shop gave me a ballpark bid of $800 to fix it, but I can't really afford to bite the hook. So how long do you think it will keep going before catastrophic failure and a tow truck is required? Your input will be appreciated.

The duty-c is easy to replace. You just pull off the extension housing, drop in a new solenoid ($120) and put it back together. Takes about two to three hours. I typically charge $180 labor plus the part.

 

Probably won't ever fail. People drive around with bad duty-c's for a decade with few ill-effects.

 

GD

We might make a trip down there and have you install a new one for that price. Probably won't be until spring though. Give's us plenty of time to plan and such.

Sure. I could take care of that for you. Just let me know!

 

GD

I cruised up to Lynnwood today and saw a 97 builder. I didn't inquire about it because I was busy looking for something else and wanted to get out of there before the rain's came. Here's a shot of it. You're on for the duty c. I'll stay in touch. Cool.