*** CORRECTION: FUEL PUMP RELAY NOT STARTER RELAY ***

Hello everyone! I'm new to this forum. I own a 2002 Saturn SL2 (Automatic). When I first obtained the vehicle, the previous owner told me about a problem w/ the starter relay (located next to the passenger's knee). He'd have to wiggle it at times for it to start, and when I got it from him we ended up putting a small thing of wood in between the starter relay & whatever else was beside it to keep it working, otherwise mid-drive it would turn off. That took care of that problem. The other issue was the trans. solenoids. The car was stuck in 3rd. Changed them out, and was all set. Fast forward to a few weeks ago. Car wouldn't start one morning, so I wiggled the relay, and away she went. Not long after though, the car started shifting hard and getting stuck in 3rd. I did a lot of research and it sounded like I needed to change the valve body. I purchased the body and have it now, but here's what i'm getting at. Is there any way that the relay and hard shifting / sticking are related? I wouldn't think so, but the reason I ask is that after a few weeks of wiggling and re-setting the relay, the shifting / sticking stopped. Seems like an odd relation, but what do you all think?

 

I've never heard of anything like that being related, but with computer controlled cars nowadays, anything's possible. As for that relay, I'd replace it and make damn sure the grounds to the fuse box are clean and tight. This sounds more like a ground issue to me than anything else. BUT, I'm not an ASE Certified mechanic. I don't claim to be a mechanic at all. Just an old shade tree fart that has been working on his own cars for over 45 years.

 

Thanks for the quick reply, Rubehayseed. I'm going to go to Napa later today and buy a new relay. Hoping that takes care of at least the relay issue. I'm the furthest thing from a mechanic, but i'm learning as I go. When you say grounds to the fuse box, what exactly do you mean?

 

Every electrical circuit in a car has to have a good positive feed or negative ground point. Your fuse box SHOULD have a large ground wire coming from it to some contact point under the dash or somewhere along the kick panel or firewall. That grounds the fuse box to the body or chassis. If that is the the least bit loose or corroded, it can cause issues. You may have to take the fuse box loose in order to find it. Disconnect the batter first!

 

I have had a bad ignition switch cause transmission problems on a GM pickup a couple times over the years. The engine would start and run perfectly but the transmission shift indicator fails to light up and the trans defaults to 3rd gear. The trans has a fail safe mode to get home if it looses 12v. Low should give you a low gear and drive should give a high gear, reverse should work. If wiggling relays makes your car work then look there first. If it is key related go there first. I suspect the ignition switch.

 

I tried correcting my post, because originally I thought it was the starter relay, but really it's the pump relay. The two problems seem to go hand in hand. When the pump relay acts normal and doesn't require a wiggle or two, the hard shifting / sticking goes away. When the relay does act up, it almost always is followed by the hard shifting / sticking. My Dad didn't seem to think the two could be related, but as time goes by I feel like they are. Also, what's really sucky is that I just spend over $250.00 to get a new valve body. I can return it, but it'll cost me over $60.00 in return fees and shipping. If the two are related than all I needed to do was spend $8.00 on Amazon for a new pump relay. Oh well, I guess.

 

We live and we learn. It's part of the aging process. I don't see how the tow could be related either, but not being an engineer has it's downfalls.

 

Depending on how many miles are on your ride and how long you plan to keep it, you may find that having that valve body in hand down the road when they are no longer available is worth its weight in ....plastic.

I took a quick look at the schematics for a 93 (pretty much identical to a 95) S car.

The place on the bottom of the instrument panel fuse box where the fuel pump receives this 12V from the IP BATT feed is actually a major power distribution point of its own. However, none of the other devices it feeds seem to have anything to do with the operation of the transmission. However, that location on the inside fuse box (F4, F5?) is known to be overheated by excessive use of the cigarette lighter as a 12v power source. The wiring was designed to handle short bursts of higher currents to heat up the cigarette lighter element. As the years have rolled by, we now have cell phone chargers and other items which CONTINUOUSLY draw on the order of AMPS....THe wiring and fuse box attachment are unable to dissipate the heat and the result is that that particular contact gets burned on the underside of the fusebox.

I highly recommend you take the interior fuse box apart (battery off). I'm guessing that terminal is burnt and needs some tlc. depending on what is next to it, you may find your answer regarding the tranny -- or not. But at least you can get the fuel pump relay and the things it feeds taken care of...

Also, longshot possibility that the "learning process" and "adaptive memory" of your driving style is getting corrupted when the car cuts out in gear. Therefore, once you get it running trouble free for a few days, the pcm has relearned your shift points and works reasonably ok.