water in the tranny fluid

Which motor mount? The top one (Torque Axis Mount?) These seem to go bad
with time. Most often it is from the rubber shrinking under load and
getting a large gap between the steel frame and the engine mount. This
leads to slamming when the transmission shifts between gears. It is very
easy to replace and the procedure has been covered here and in the Saturn
forum before so Google for more info. The key is to use a jack to support
the oil pan using some wood or a telephone book to distribute the weight
evenly on the pan surface. You need this to raise the engine back up to
bolt the mount in place.

As to this causing your 3rd gear problem, I doubt it since you indicated it
won't go into gear at all. On the transmission fluid, it is very important
that you change the filter as well but you did not mention if this was done.
As I indicated previously, after you have changed the fluid and filter, you
can try the valve body cleaning procedure in the Saturn Forum (search on
Wolfman's "Reverse Slam Cure"). This is basically adding your favorite
transmission additive, then putting the vehicle into reverse and letting it
idle for exactly 30 minutes with the parking brake set and while you are
inside the vehicle. (It probably would not hurt to block the wheels as
well, although this is strictly an added safety precaution.) After 30
minutes, stop the vehicle, and then drain the fluid again. In your case
since fluid looked so bad, I'd also remove the spin on filter and dump the
fluid from there too, then re-attach, tighten, and re-fill to full (do not
overfill) with Dexron III fluid again.

If this doesn't do the trick, you can try measuring resistance of the 5
transmission solenoids using the procedure I posted in March. All solenoids
should measure identical resistance somewhere between 4 and 8 ohms if I
recall correctly. If you get one that is way out of line (0 ohms or 2K ohms
for instance, then you found your problem. If they all measure the same,
then the solenoids are likely all good so it will be time to visit a good
transmission service place. Make sure you tell them you just changed the
fluid and what the old fluid looked and smelled like as this will be
important to help them diagnose your problem. Good luck and remember to
change that fluid and filter about 30K or so down the road!

Bob

In article <6d864d56fa59daa0679ec7a0d7dee827
@localhost.talkaboutautos.com>,
says...
> i changed the fluid today. i dont think it has ever been changed. the
> filter had rust bubbles on it, and the fluid was brown. it smelled like
> really bad rusty water. so, i did all that, and i guess we'll see the
> results. also, the thing i posted about the vibration. it appears that i
> have a bad motor mount. i mean, its pretty well gone. could that be a
> possible cause of the transmission problems? thanks again.
>
> dave
>
>

The upper torsion mount is likely the one your talking about I'm
guessing. Those do need to be replaced every 100k miles it seems. If
your trans fluid is brown and smells that usually means its burnt and
past its life. If there is a few bubbles on the dip stick that isnt a
problem. If it is covered in foam then it is likely over filled. You
should be parked on level ground, with the engine running, and the
transmission should be warmed up before you check the level...unless
there is a cold mark on the dipstick.

If I were you I would take a good look at the spark plugs and wires.
People have a bad habit of ignoring those things and that could cause
your car to run rough if one wire was shot. The plugs should be 100k
plugs and theres a chance someone skipped the service on those.

yup. thats the motor mount. my dad had that problem with his saturn too. it
looks pretty easy to fix. as for all the rest of the things for the tranny,
thanks. i've almost run the 250 miles you said to do, so i'll probably
start doing the rest of that this weekend. i'll try too keep posted of
results. thanks again.

dave