Poor auto gear shift on VC

[SNOWcondor]

I'm just a beginner when it comes to fixing cars but I've just been given a VC commodore 4 cylinder. It is an auto and its having trouble with the gear changes I think. When your pulling off it feels like it changes through to top gear before the revs can catch up and I find it difficult playing with the throttle to get it to change back to get it up to speed. Id like some suggestions, would the trade in be better if I replaced the gearbox with a manual or is there a way I can play with the gear shift points? Any other suggestions are welcome.

[vkberlina]

First of all check your fluid level in the auto.

Park on level ground, car running, in park with park brake on.
On the driver side back of the engine bay you will see a long dip stick tube.
Pull it out wipe it, replace it, then pull it out and see what the level is.
If it needs fluid, pour it down the dipstick tube, repeat untill correct.

Else it could be in need of a service
Shift points can be changed by altering valves inside the gearbox, unless your experienced its a tranny specialists job.

Manual all the way, you could pick up a cheap MC6 4 speed or M76 5 speed pretty cheap for the car.

[SNOWcondor]

Thanks, I'll give that a try. The guy I got the car from is a "mechanic" and is supposed to have fixed the car up. He's apparently done all the fixes to it but I can't really see much improvement from what I remember it to be like before. (It was my grandfathers car) I don't know weather to trust him or not.

I just drove the car cold and had it stall on me continuously at medium revs in gear which replicate the symptoms I was getting before I think. I managed to drive it at low revs but couldn't get it past 48kmph on a straight stretch. I'm thinking now it may be the engine like you said. I checked the oil level and it appears to be fine. Do you think it just needs to be warmed up every time? (kinda inconvenient though)

[Shifty1]

Ensure you warm the engine before you go out first time for the day.. help with engine life.. personal experience

Get your auto serviced by another mechanic and see how that goes..

[kurtbarker]

Hey mate, if it's stalling when you start it up it just might need a service. When I got my VK it always stalled of a morning, and even more so if I wanted to reverse.

After getting it serviced they found that a couple of spark plugs had gone, and i've had no problems with stalling since.