1988 Chevrolet Celebrity Wagon Eurosport from North America - Comments

Since I have bought the car, nothing has gone wrong with it. Before I bought it however, the previous owner stated he completely overhauled the front end because it stranded him on a busy bridge here in Green Bay. The rear defroster never worked, the right rear window doesn't roll down, and the gas gauge is inaccurate (half is actually empty). Not sure if it's a bad thing, but the water temp is usually at 220+ on the highway, something I try to baby by putting in neutral on off ramps and crank the heater.

This was really my 2nd car. I'm 19 now and still continue to drive this car every day. You'd think a 19 year old would drive like an idiot, but I baby my car. This car is simply the most comfortable, reliable, drivable car I've ever driven. The engine still runs like a swiss watch, the transmission shifts almost perfectly, I'll elaborate on that in a second. The bench seats can fit my huge self very well. I'm 6'4" and love the low profile feel of the car. I get the oil changed every 2500 miles and back in November, after winning a $100 bet on the Packers, I flushed and changed the transmission fluid. I have no doubt in my mind this car will easily reach 210,000 miles!

My ONLY complaint about this car is the transmission when it's cold. I live in Wisconsin, it gets pretty cold here in winter obviously. When the car temperature is below 140 or so, it simply will not shift out of 3rd gear. It must be warmed up fully (or at least 150 from what I see on the gauge) before it goes into 4th gear or overdrive. It's not a big deal really I suppose, but I work right by the highway and feel I'm forced to take the city home because I try to avoid high engine RPM at all costs.

I have an 87 Cutlass Ciera, basically built on the same platform just a different bodystyle. I noted that you said on cold mornings that you trans won't shift out of 3rd (or what feels like 3rd) untill it's heated up. I have this problem with my car. Right now it's got a 2.5L engine with the 125C Transmission (3 speed with TC lockup, which feels like 4th) (wish it had the 2.8 with OD Trans). If I'm driving at normal road speeds which is 80km/h (50mph) it won't lock up at all, but if I travel at highway speeds over 100km/h for at least 5 minutes, it will finally lock up. I just want to know what you've experienced with your car. What do you have for an Engine/Tranny? I did some research and have found that it's could be the TCC (Torque Convertor Clutch) Solenoid and a Pressure switch. (which basically go hand in hand) From the dealership, it cost me 60 bucks for these 2 parts and a side pan gasket. Hope you can put this to use, but just let me know what you've noticed with yours.

I have the 2.8V6 with the 440T4 tranny (4 speed + overdrive). I think it was just a feature in these transmissions to keep it out of lockup until the engine and everything else was at a good operating temperature. I never did much research on it since it didn't bother me all that much.

As for experiences, this tranny had 1st, 2nd, 3rd, a slight lockup, and a much bigger lock up overdrive. The speeds were 0-12 MPH (1st), 13-18 MPH (2nd), 19-33 MPH (3rd), then 34-45 (3rd and lockup) and 45+ MPH for Overdrive for regular acceleration. However, when it was cold, the shift points went much higher and it really forced itself into the first lock up gear when I took the highway home after starting it up. I really don't think I can make a whole lot of sense to anyone, but myself on this hehe.