* I know I have the bad year for auto tranny's, and I believe this is the original trans...

So I'm the second owner of this 2001 Civic LX Automatic with 130,000 miles. I do regular maintenance myself but have never changed Trans Fluid. I pretty much drive like a grandma and I just put a tow package on it to tow my 250 lb trailer with my 275 lb dirt bike on it, (doesn't sound like that much weight).

Well, yesterday the second time I've used the trailer, I'm coming back from Hollister Hills OHV park and going over Pacheco Pass, (pretty good climb about 1 mile long). And I thought I should take it out of D so I dropped it into D3 and I wasn't really pushing it too hard but it was at around 4k RPM when it basically felt like it was slipping real hard, and I look down and the Check Engine light was on. I pulled over it sounded like it was running rough so I shut it down. Plugs all connected, nothing leaking, tranny fluid full and not burnt smelling, (I've never changed the fluid though). I disconnected the battery and after about 5 minutes I reconnect it and the Check Engine light is off and the tranny seems like new, so I drive away another 100 miles home like nothing ever happened. Weird

So I need to go to Auto Zone so they can pull any stored code that may still be there. Im gonna change the trans fluid too. but I have a few q's;

Can a trany problem trip the check engine light? EDIT

How did this fix itself?

Was it just the trans temp got too high and maybe tripped the check engine light?

Thanks, any help appreciated...

Jeff

 

I heard that if you change the tranny fluid after waiting too long, the detergents in the new fluid can break up grime deposits, causing grime to circulate through the trans, aka more slipping.
You might be better off letting it be, or changing out only a portion of the fluid at a time? I'm not an expert... hopefully someone more knowledgeable will have some follow up.

 

lots of people blame the fluid swap for a tranny problem, but LETS FACE IT.... if there wasnt a problem they wouldnt have done any work on the tranny.lol just start saving up for a tranny rebuild and dont pull any weight with it till you get it rebuilt. otherwise it will leave your car and trailer setup on the side of the road!