dear fellow C4 owners.

I have a 92 C4 Convertible with only 46k miles.  She drives good and I have zero complaints but I have a question.

The last time I drove her I joined a Porsche club's jaunt through the San Fernando hills in southern California. I was the only non Porsche at the event and while they gladly welcomed me to their well mapped out course they showed me how well the C4 can handle.  I kept up pretty well with the other 32 Porsches but after the first hour of a three hour of switchbacks and short fast straightaways I noticed she was not shifting properly.  Either long shifts followed by short shifts that felt like the transmission was slipping in some ways.  A couple times after coming to a stop and starting to take off it felt like she was starting in 4th gear.  I opted for shifting manually and while she responded well, I started to feel the same mis-shifting and slipping.  So here comes my question.  Could this be that perhaps I should change the transmission fluid?  could it possibly have some moisture in the system?  I know I just looked at the TV cables and everything looks ok as far as I can tell.  I have not tried to adjust them yet.  When I let the car cool off (or the next day) she drives normal but now I am hyper aware of the funky shifting once the car warms up.  One more thing, when I started to notice the odd shifting I tried to turn off the ASR but it had no impact on the problem.  

Any thoughts on this?  I know I will end up going to a transmission shop but I want to to make sure I have some kind of an idea what it could be in case its something really simple.

Oh, one more thing, other than manually turning off the ASR, is there any type of a bypass switch or connector for it?

many thanks in advance.

Erick 

Greetings, Be patient,  Mr Apple, who is the transmission Ace, will reply no doubt. It may just lack a additive to free things up. Mine did, and works well. 

that would be great!  The last thing I need is finding a good transmission shop who is not willing to take advantage of the situation.

So...after beating on it all day, it acts weird, but then works ok once it cooled off? Have you tried hammering on it since then to see if it would act up again? It's possible the fluid has been overheated, and needs to be changed. Valves in the transmission valve body can get draggy, or stick when the fluid gets super heated. I would suggest checking the trans fluid for the correct level, and see if it has a nasty smell. If it smells bad, it IS bad. Depending on how bad it is, changing the fluid could make it worse. If you remove the transmission pan, and see excessive deposits, then it's time for a rebuild. If the pan is clean, but the fluid is just dark, then a fluid change would be needed. Also, if you plan on testing the limits of the car, I would suggest installing an auxiliary trans cooler to help control the heat. 

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Well, the fluid level seems fine and the color looks healthy (red/burgandy) and it does not smell.  Previous owner cherished the car before realizing he could never drive it again (health issues) I seriously doubt he would have mis-treated her in such a way to overheat the transmission.  Me on the other hand, that drive with the porsche club was the first time I put my foot down on her.

Sounds like I should change the fluid and see how she reacts.  other than a tranny cooler are there any additives or should I look for any codes?

Thanks for the sound advise and by the way I was not sure if you were kidding about the "beating the transmission" or not. 

Stay tuned for an update after this weekend.

Yes, a transmission oil and filter change is a start...along with examining the debris located at the bottom of the pan (if any).

GL