Shuddering 60-80km/h. 2002 3.5 Auto NM

[Highlander]

Hey hey

Have been viewing the forums quite a bit recently as my wife and I have recently become the owners of a 2002 NM 3.5 Auto Pajero with 231k kms on it. We would love to become more active users of the site as already it has provided us with quite a lot of useful information. Coming originally from the UK most of my mechanical knowledge comes from driving small, manual hatchbacks and these vehicles are a slightly different beast altogether.

Our pajero has a few small gremlins to be taken care of however certainly the biggest one at the moment is a Shudder that travels through the whole car between the range of 60-80km/h. It seems I can drive around avoiding the shudder if I keep push it into Semi-Auto mode and keep it in 4th at 60kms instead of the auto box trying to coast around in 5th at 60kms but I would like to get this sorted as there isnt really much option for doing this around 80kms. Once I go past 80 the shudder disappears completely.

We've searched the forums and elsewhere on the web and have found a number of threads dedicated to this topic although have noticed less and less over the last couple of years with some unresolved threads.

I took the car to a Mitsubishi dealer here in Perth thinking that would certainly be using the recommended SP-3 ATF and was told they do use genuine Mitsubishi products. I was hoping that a full flush of the transmission fluid would somewhat solve the issue but alas it doesn't appear to have done a thing right now.

Upon looking at the invoice again I have noticed that they have used an ATF called Multi Trans - Fortron (Attached a PDF) which seems to be a local product to WA. I have questioned the service advisor about this and was told that this age of Pajero doesn't require SP-3 which after seeing in recommended in other threads here I find myself highly doubting. They also charged $360 for the flush and fluid.

They did pick up that the rear Diff Bushes could do with being replaced which we have noticed seems to have helped other users here so that job is on the list to be done too but as it stands we havn't got round to doing yet.

There are also mentions about an ECU software fix which can help too but I didn't seem to get much traction from the service guys about that at all.

Has anyone successfully managed to have gotten rid of this shudder and if so what steps are best to follow? I would also be incredibly appreciative on any tips for garages in the Perth area to be pointed towards. I have taken a note of De Rosa Auto Repairs and Wangara Auto Transmissions from other threads here in this forum but always looking for advice.

Cheers!

[Nab]

Genuine Mitsubishi trans oil for the NM/NP is the SP3, not sure why they used the other stuff (all they had in stock probably). These cars do need the correct oil in the transmissions (whether genuine or aftermarket), not sure if the Multitrans is suitable though. I have bought 5L of genuine Mitsubishi SP3 from the dealer for less than $50, not worth using anything else in my opinion.

I also doubt they "flushed" the oil, more like emptied the transmission pan and replaced about 4L. A full flush can take 10+ liters to get the old oil out and not many, if any, dealers would do this. Does the invoice state how much fluid was used?

The vibration could quite possibly be a faulty torque convertor. Flushing the transmission may help, some have run some sort of additive with mixed results but usually the only fix is to replace the torque convertor.

[RoyHarvey]

Shudder

Sounds like torque converter shudder, have a browse through these search results.

https://www2.pajeroclub.com.au/forum/search.php?searchid=6163569

[Highlander]

Cheers Nab,

The invoice only states the type of fluid and then the cost for the fluid ($120)

When I queried the use of this ATF they did say that the full flush would take 10 litres which I thought was fair enough but they would charge around $30 a litre normally for SP-3 which seemed a bit steep.

Hoping that it wouldn't be the torque converter but can understand how that might also be possible.

[Highlander]

Thanks Roy for the links, have seen a fair few of those already in our searches but good to see some others too!

[spot01]

What condition was the fluid before it was changed - was it old & burnt looking or fresh?

Slippage in the drive can be caused by old fluid or lack of fluid changes - unsure if shuddering is similarly related? After changing the old fluid, it can take a while for the slipping autos to settle down (some days, perhaps a week or two), so perhaps give it a while before judging. Sometimes the slipping autos with old fluid need a second change, as not all old fluid is removed each time.

Re the non genuine fluid, check the fluid manufacturer's website to see if they recommend it for your vehicle - if so, should be OK.

Re the rear diff bushes, try driving in 4H to see if the fault reduces by spreading the drive.

Another thought is engine mounts - were they checked?

[sandgroper 123]

Had the same thing in our ML350 the shudder was like going over a cattle grate , on the merc you can drain the converter also dropped pan, new filter and drained cooler . that cured it ! but i always use the paddles now to stay locked up , its the heat that does the fluid in .

[Highlander]

I only picked it up about 2 days ago to be fair so maybe I should wait a little longer to properly judge. Planning to take it for a bit of a longer drive at the weekend than I can manage during the week so maybe that'll help to get the fluid soaked into everything a bit more.

The fluid wasn't looking too great if I'm honest, and the last record on the service log of a trans fluid change seems to be around 100k ago, so it's very possible it could need another flush as you say.

I'm still not 100% convinced about the fluid, the website says its good for Nissan and Subaru but no mention of Mitsubishi, I'm tempted to give the fluid manufacturers a call (as they seem to have a place in WA) to see what they say about it.

The car was in for a service at the same time and they did do a pretty thorough inspection of the engine but ill make a note to take a look at the engine mounts myself.

Cheers for all the posts so far

[basil]

My first paj took about a week to get rid of the shudder after doing a flush and using Castrol Transmax synthetic.
Nothing changed and then one morning a week later it just disappeared, so give it a few days at least and double check your fluid type.
I have always used the Castrol synthetic and never had issues other than when I first bought our first paj, and when checked was turning dark in colour.

Cheers,

[Highlander]

Cheers all for the posts on this thread. 2 weeks in and about 500km's driving nothing seems to have changed really unfortunately. Coming round to the fact I should probably get the ATF flushed again but this time ensure that the Diamond SP-111 gets used.

The car does have an extended warranty which covers torque converters so I am thinking of getting that looked at with the hope that it is stuffed it will cover me for at least some of the cost. =(

[Highlander]

Update to this thread, I took the pajero today to a gearbox place in Perth (Perth Gearbox and Diff Centre) to let them have a look at as the shuddering was really getting in the way of us enjoying the car.

After a quick drive around with one of the owners (really helpful and genuine guy called Ernie) he thought we should start with adding some Friction Modifier to the transmission oil and then work from there up the possible problems. Normally they wouldn't add it to old oil but I did say that the current oil has only been in there for about a month and less than 1k km's.

30 bucks later and after an afternoon driving around trying it out I am pleased to say the shudder is totally gone. I realise that this quick fix might be hiding a more serious problem lurking underneath but for the moment and for the next couple of months of Summer I'm happy to go with that as it has made me enjoy driving the pajero again. I'd be really happy if this fix works until it's due another transmission flush and service.