Curious to see who has this issue...

[Tunes67]

(why would you buy a new alt when a remanned one is csheaper and they replace all the moving parts and the regulator)

I agree with the reasoning you have here Pat.. But I have also run into shoddy reman parts on way too many occasions to ever trust a reman. Not just talking about alternators... but Starters, waterpumps, alternators, carbuerators, distributors, etc.. you name it.. they suck.. and I am not talking specifically about MX-3 parts here.. I am talking in general. In order for remans to be profitable.. they have to use the cheapest parts and the cheapest labor on the planet to get them done and back to market. Then to cover their asses they slap on a "lifetime warranty" figuring that at most.. someone will replace the part one more time then off the car rather than continuing to work on it. Gro and some other guy here went through 10 or 11 (combined) autozone remanufactured distributors in a way small time frame. In my opinion.. the old saying "You get what you pay for" applys to remanufactured car parts and probably originated from said car parts LOL But thats just my opinion. If you do decide to buy reman.. I recommend Napa remanufactured parts.. they at least fully test their stuff before it goes on the shelf. Hope this helps.

Tunes67

[projectmx]

well mine is atx and still has the dimming and wild idle problem

[tw1st3d_cl0wn]

Wow, I forgot all about this topic. Didn't think that my electrical issue would have to do with my transmission. But I'm glad it was brought to my attention. jschrauwen had suggested I change my tranny fluid and filter, which I am going to do this weekend, as well as install my tranny cooler finally. Now, I have heard people reccomend different brands of fluid, such as Royal Purple (?), but I couldn't find that in the auto parts store. So I bought Valvoline high milage ATX fluid. Is that stuff crap?? Should I invest in something better? I tried doing a search but found alot of stuff that I wasn't looking for. Thanks in advance.

[Tunes67]

I wouldnt say the Valvoline stuff is crap.. but its far short of being the best out there. Royal Purple is good, but there are other brands just as good.. probably the one thing to look for is a Synthetic ATX fluid. B&M Makes "Trick Shift" fluid.. I ran that in my Nova.. definately helped shifting that trans (Turbo 400 Short Shaft trans for the gear heads ) Best of luck

Tunes67

[tw1st3d_cl0wn]

Thanks alot for the quick reply. After reading what you suggested, I don't think I want to use what I bought. Can I mix a synthetic fluid with whatever I have in there now? I'm only changing it, not getting it flushed so some of the old stuff will still be in there. Thanks again! You're the man Tunes!!

[Tunes67]

Depends on the brand I think.. most should mention on their bottle if they can be mixed with non synthetic.. the B&M Trick Shift stuff allowed mixing so I assume other brands would as well. The B&M stuff was weird.. Green ATX fluid LOL On my nova I drained the trans as well as the Torque Converter and cooler & cooler lines.. this probably got 90% of the old fluid out in my case.. Since you likely wont drain your torque converter.. drain the pan and the radiator and tranny lines at least to get as much of the old fluid out as you can. Especially if you do decide to go synthetic. I would avoid fluids that contain additives (Like the Valvoline high mileage stuff) Some folks have reported great success with tranny additives.. but to me.. our transmissions were not designed with those fluids in mind.. if the fluids are thicker.. it could make the pump(s) in the tranny work harder.. if the additive thins the fluid out.. it could cause excessive heat and loss of lubrication.. hard to say what effects could happen.. so I tend to just go with a good synthetic.. synthetic fluids take longer to break down and so they offer better lubricity over time & use. Synthetic fluids usually offer more protection versus heat as well.. and since apparently that is the main killer of our ATX's.. fighting heat is the way to go With your filter & fluid change as well as the addition of the tranny cooler.. you should be fine for a good while. Best of luck.

Tunes67