1997 Dodge Caravan Hard shifting and sometimes no shifting

1997 DODGE CARAVAN
82,000 MILES • 6 CYL • FWD • AUTOMATIC
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WEVVIE
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
My wife's 97 Dodge Caravan with only 82000 original miles is shifting very hard much of the time. The downshift is also quite abrupt. When driving up a long hill, the transmission will downshift and not shift back into overdrive unless she stops the car, turns off the ignition, restarts the car.
I was unaware that the transmission required ONLY ATF4 and, when it seemed a little low, added some from Pep Boys that claimed it would be ok.
I know these electronic transmissions are problematic. Would my addition of a non-recommended fluid be to blame and should we take it to a Dodge dealer to have the transmission fluid completely replaced?
Oct 17, 2010 at 7:07 PM
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BMRFIXIT
  • ASE Certified Mechanic
  • 19,053 POSTS
  • ASE Certified Mechanic
Depend on the amount you added
fluid should be flushed
replace tranny filter too
check for Tranny codes
Oct 17, 2010 at 7:45 PM
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