Have a 92 240 w/120k. Never towed and ran flawlessly. After sitting for 8 months, car was hesitant (1 sec) into reverse and would not shift into 3rd gear. Drained the fluid and changed the filter (neither was that bad). I noticed if I dropped it into L2 then back into drive, it would drop into 3rd gear (I never got to an OD point as the way it was acting I didn't go far). So check the fluid while hot and its barely touching the stick. Added 1/2 qt. Shifting was smoother but still would not go into 3rd w/o the detour to L2. Checked fluid again while running and it was just onto the tip and MIN. I added another 1/3 - 1/2 qt. Now it jumps into D or R....but when driving will not shift out of 1st - regardless what you do. The shift down cable is loose in the sleeve.

fwiw.....I asked a transmission shop how they check fluid levels (idle, park, neutral, etc) and he told me to 'check the fluid when its at its highest level and go by that'. I removed almost 2 qts and just sitting cold the fluid is barely touching the tip of the dipstick.

Any ideas?

 

so the shiftdown cable fully extends with the throttle and promptly retracts with minimal slack when released?

to test the transmission fluid level, the transmission should be thoroughly warmed up (this takes about 20 minutes of driving *after* the engine is at full temp), then stop on level ground, put it in park, leave it idling, and check. under these conditions it should be near but not above the upper mark

 

I had about 2 1/2 gallons of house brand ATF, so although it was just flushed and serviced about 18 months ago, I decided to flush it again. The first 2 quarts that came out of the return line were very red. By the 3rd qt is was beginning to look murky. 5 qts and it looked like V8 juice - red but not clear. By the 8th quart it was clear kool aid again, so I continued through all 10 qts. Went through all the gears for 4-5 second each and took it for a spin. For about 30 seconds it was like it was then began to shift smooth and normal on its own. Drove about 20 miles around town and it was flawless. Only thing I could not verify was the OD. I got it up to 50mph at about 2600 rpm, so OD wasn't kicking in. The light on the dash works but no proof the solenoid isn't stuck or malfunctioning. Tomorrow I may pull the solenoid and bench test it - also test the relay to see if its working properly also.

As far as the cable - it looks fairly new like its been changed before. The cable is loose inside the sleeve - not binding. Shift points could be tweaked 5mph later, but the OD is now what I'm looking into.

 

that sounds like OD (4th gear) to me. if you were cruising on level ground going a steady 50 or 60 MPH, and you push the button to disable OD (OD light comes on), do the RPMs go up ? push it again, they go back down? if so, then your OD is working.