Good Day, i just discovered this Forum and took the time to browse through the different posts. First off, i'm a Mitsubishi RVR owner for the past 4 or so years. Its a Mitsubishi RVR 1995 Model, Automatic Transmission 2.0L Non Turbo engine. In that time period, the Automatic Transmission broke down 3 times. Why did My parents choose the Mitsubishi rvr as their vehicle of choice while searching for a vehicle on the internet? My guess is as good as yours.

The Tell Tale signs of the Transmission problems are obvious. Occasional slipping of gears that becomes more frequent until driving is impossible. i noticed that the the transmission used to break down after long journeys across the country. Not just once but over a period of time. why? That i will explain in a bit.

I'm not an Auto Mechanic, but Common sense and research does alot.

The Problem? In my research, i've found out from a couple of webcites and RVR owners around the world, that the Automatic Gearbox made from 1993-1996 was defective. How? The Cooling Mechanism inside the Transmission didn't work/Right. Thus, the transmission fluid would not get sufficient cooling and would eventually loose value(Most fluids in Engines/Transmissions has to be changed regularly because of that). The RVR was a special case. because the Cooling was Minute, the oil would cook and cook,,,,and cook...until the value was so low that eventually the mechanisms inside the Gearbox would start going bad some faster than others..thus causing slippage of clutches etc.(i'm not familiar with all of the different parts inside the Tranny). In my case, the Transmission went bad faster. Why? I'm a motor sport entheusias. Thus, i love fast driving, coordinated driving, races etc. The RVR is Clearly NOT the suitable vehicle for all of that.

So what would happen, when i ran HARD for sometime without servicing the transmission(my fault), it would start giving problems, usually would overheat and start slipping but it would happen maybe after a long run that would get the transmission EXTRA hot. Thus i'd have to get the vehicle towed back home.

The Remedy? The first time the transmission went bad, my dad sent it overseas, got it rebuilt and it was sent back. it worked for about a year and a half then went bad again. This time after being off the road for 7 months,(source problems) i bought a used Transmission from a local used parts agent. worked like a dream for about a year den went bad AGAIN.(SIGH..)This time it stayed down for 8 Months and i used another vehicle to get around. Finally, after a long wait, a transmission repair kit i ordered came. Gave it to my Mechanic, he delayed a couple of months before fixing. I finally got the RVR a couple of Days ago. Works great. What caused the Transmission to give up this last time?

---->I had a small tear on my chassis so i took the vehicle in to a Nissan Suzuki Dealership(bad idea)..i worked there at the time. They had to take off the Engine and Transmission to weld the chassis properly(there's a bunch of novice young guys working as Techs there.). They did. after i was given delivery of the vehicle i had a whole bunch of problems. First, some wiring was done wrong so in driving when i was to DIP on the x, the vehicle would suddenly go into neutral or slip. That was fixed(mix up in wiring). Next, the engine was on a side and the heating mechanizm on the engine touched the radiator fan. i was told that i had a bad engine mount. so i payed no mind(couldn't get the mount at the time). 3 months after, on a long journey, i noticed that SUDDENLY the "A/T TEMP" warning light on the dashboard came on(my island is VERY mountainous). 10 minutes after, the transmission started slipping severly. i had to tow the vehicle back to my home(50 minutes away).

What caused the Transmission to suddenly go bad after just 3 months fresh out of the Nissan dealership?(they claimed they did not interfere with the transmission. they just took it off with the engine and placed it back) i found out TODAY after i did a journey. about 30 mins into the trip, the vehicle suddenly started smoking. i stopped, checked under the hood and saw some splatters of oil around the tranny/bottom pan area..so i just figured the oil got hot and steamed. A bit more driving and i looked in my rear view and saw a trail of smoke. I looked into my dash and there was that A/T TEMP warning light again!!!!!! What is going on!!!! Anyways i opened the hood, looked around it and guess what?? Neither of the 2 Radiator Cooling fans are spinning! BINGO! the Transmission had EVERY reason to overheat 8 months ago. I figure that was ANOTHER one of the problems from the dealership. the fans were not connected. Anyways at that point the gears were going hay-wire, so i think the ECU went into safe mode(happened to me once b4) i'm stuck in 3rd gear. I let it cool down and i finally made it home. (My mechanic should be coming a little lata to check on it)

There's my solition for now. Get the Fans fixed and flush the Transmission every couple months to keep it going. but i think i'm going to buy a Manual Transmission and end ALL of the worries. The RVR is a GREAT vehicle and i love it. Anyone who wants to buy one, they need to be aware of the Auto Transmission problem on the 1993-1996 models. Buying a Manual or even a Turbo is good. Stay away from the Auto Transmissions.

Oh...the solution to the engine being on a side? The NOVICE guys at the Dealership installed the engine mount UPSIDE DOWN 180 Degrees. so the two bolts for the engine was further forward, thus the reason the engine HAD to come forward to fit. They Rectified that problem yesterday.

I hope some of the info i gave will be meaningful to any of you guys who own RVR's and those contemplating buying.

Peace out

Shreddaz.

thought i'd post here for my first post,

i've been looking into the RVR for a while now here in Australia, my GF has a 1992 RVR sportsgear, non turbo auto.
The auto died about 3 months ago and i've spent that time trying to find a replacement.
No luck getting the correct model but was offered another box that would fit with some modification. at the price they wanted i thought i'd ask around about getting the trans re-built.
first place i went to the bloke told me what had happened to the transmission before i mentioned anything to him, turns out the RVR trans is not the best and he was forever having to re-build them back in New Zealand.
one thing he mentioned to me was the torque converter lets go and puts all the crap into the fluid which then travels into the trans cooler below the radiator and starts to block the cooler, what makes it through the cooler then goes into the trans and blocks up stuff in there.
he said one of the best things you can do is add a new trans oil cooler, bypass the factor one and fit a new one, it will increase the life of your trans and if the torque convertor does go again its a lot cheaper to clean out the cooler than replace the radiator.

Guys,


Can I ask some pictures of your engine? also what ecu number you have for your car? I bought an engine... and people have mixed idea if my engine came from a 6th gen galant (GTI) or from RVR... plus i dont have the right ECU...

all i can say is try. EVOCREW.COM they might be able to help! :57:

Hi Folks.

I have a 1995 RVR Sportsgear auto Turbo model. Reading the various posts regarding problems with the automatic gearbox I think now may be a good time to change the transmission fluid and filter. As I dont have a workshop manual could anybody tell me if
there is a drain plug for draining the fluid and the location of the transmission filter.

Many thanks for your help.

i live in north cyprus,and i too had auto tranny problem,had gearbox rebiult out here,but due to weather temp here,i change engine oil,and keep a close check on tranmission oil,i do thou have two lottle neons on dash to tell me when fans are on,allso i have a gel filled battery as hot weather damages the acid type,optima batterys are great.

Thanks for the long post on RVR auto's. My mother-in laws is starting to act up and I plan to flush the trany fluid soon. It is not worked hard or driven long distances so its not too bad at this stage. Can I ask about what fluid you recommend and if you also flushed the tranny when changing the fluid?

Also I've read about replacing the tranny filter. If it has a filter why does the cooler get blocked with debis?

Jim