Ok, I've read as many threads as I possibly could about the rad/tranny cooler by pass thing everybody is talking about and still not 100% sure if this fits my issue so i'm starting this thread in hopes of stirring the pot a little.
Background: 2005 LE 4x4, 84k miles, light occasional towing and rare off roading except in snow and mud puddles. Other than that its a typical gas guzzling highway commuter/prius pisser off'er.
About 300 miles ago on my normal 25 mile highway commute my acceleration bogged down after having to slow down to let someone in from an on ramp. I was coasting along letting the speed drop to about 60 so I could let them in and lightly applied some gas to get back up to about 65.
As I lightly applied gas she just bogged down and eventually got through it as I kept applying gas. It felt like I was running over those small bumps along the side of the highway when you "accidentally" veer off the road.
So, first thought "CRAP!", second thought "What the hell was that?" Did some research on the web as I'm no mechanic and couldn't even tell you where half the stuff is most of you guys talk about. Well after about a week of this happening intermediately on the highway and now back roads doing about 40-45 I went to wally world looking for the ultimate vehicle elixir to dump in my tank or any other long tube with a cap on it.
No such luck, so after some thought and reading all these threads about rad/tranny issues I took it to a Transmission shop. Explained the above but with some added hand gestures. They checked my tranny fluid and it was fine but while I was there the guy pointed in their shop saying they were in the process of rebuilding an 05 pathfinder 2x right now due to the radiator issue.
So I set a date to bring the truck in but in the mean time he dumped a "bottle of black" in the transmission, said something about detergents breaking down over time and causing the Torque Converter to screw up. He said I would notice a difference right after I left.
Well that was yesterday and I've put another 60 miles on the truck and it hasn't shuddered or hesitated once.
I'm still going to hold my appointment and get the tranny, differntial and transfer case done for good measure as I know its never been done on the truck.
But my questions are:
Am I possibly going down the road that some on here have about the tranny going out and just happened to catch it early enough? I saw the tranny fluid, looked fine to the mechanic.
What was in that "bottle of black"? Closest thing I could find online was
Lubegard Black, a friction modifier.
When I take it in what questions do I need to ask so I can investigate further as I'm not in any financial position to rebuild the transmission.
TIA!