shift skip eliminator installed?

[mstg-etr]

I purchased a '95 Formula back in the spring and it came with a cat back exhaust and a K&N filter. I put a K&N cold air intake on it and I just purchased, via e-mail, a shift skip eliminator.
After reading about what the skip shift eliminator does I am wondering if I already have one. Where is it and how can I tell if it is already installed?

[TraceZ]

Re: shift skip eliminator installed?

Originally posted by mstg-etr
I purchased a '95 Formula back in the spring and it came with a cat back exhaust and a K&N filter. I put a K&N cold air intake on it and I just purchased, via e-mail, a shift skip eliminator.
After reading about what the skip shift eliminator does I am wondering if I already have one. Where is it and how can I tell if it is already installed?

Ok.. if you already have one your CAGS will be disabled.

CAGS forces you to shift into 4th gear instead of 2nd or 3rd. Believe me, if your CAGS was active you would know it. I disconnected mine the day I got the car.

[mstg-etr]

So I just wasted my money...again? Where is this located? Under the hood? Under the dash?

[wolfdogs]

Originally posted by mstg-etr
So I just wasted my money...again? Where is this located? Under the hood? Under the dash?

on the left upper side of the transmission. it plugs inline with the regular harness.

[mstg-etr]

Thanks wolfman. What is CAGS stand for anyway?
Now I am wondering what else has already been done to my car. I was thinking of adding 3.73 gearing for the rear end. Maybe that has already been done too.
I hate buying used cars....from a dealer.

[KnightFire]

Originally posted by mstg-etr
Thanks wolfman. What is CAGS stand for anyway?
Now I am wondering what else has already been done to my car. I was thinking of adding 3.73 gearing for the rear end. Maybe that has already been done too.
I hate buying used cars....from a dealer.

I THINK that CAGS stands for Computer Aided Gear Selection...not certain on that.

You can use a gear calculator to see what gears you have using mph vs. rpm...it should give you a really good ball park figure.


KnightFire

[KnightFire]

Looks like I was on the money...here is some detailed info from www.f-body.org

Q: What's CAGS (skip shift) and how does it work?

A: CAGS stands for Computer Assisted Gear Selection and is on 1994 and on cars with 6 speed transmissions. It's purpose is to improve gas mileage and avoid the "gas-guzzler" new car tax. CAGS comes into play under the following conditions:

you're in 1st gear (of course)
you're at 35% throttle or less
you're between 15 and 21 mph
engine coolant temperature is greater than 171 F (77 C)
This will energize the skip-shift solenoid and force a 1st to 4th shift. What happens is you'll be moving happily along when suddenly the "Skip Shift" light goes on in the dash. At this point you will be locked out of 2nd and 3rd. You simply cannot shift into them. At this point several options are available to you:

shift into 4th
shift into 5th
shift into 6th
coast in neutral until the RPMs drop and CAGS is disengaged
open up the throttle a bit more and shift into 2nd or 3rd
Interestingly, 1st gear is determined by the PCM calculating from the speed sensor input and the RPM values. Disconnecting the solenoid connector disables CAGS but an error code 84 WILL be set if the PCM does not measure voltage at the solenoid connection to the computer for a period of 26 secs. This code is stored but will NOT light the Service Engine light. Apparently Chevy correctly anticipated the rush for owners to disable this function. A resistor inserted in the connector will allow voltage to the PCM input and prevent this code setting but who cares since the code is reference only.



Q: How do I disable CAGS?

A: There are several electrical connectors going into the transmission. There are three 2-wire connections on the drivers side of the transmission. Two of them are hooked up to large, brass colored protrusions which are solenoids. The third connection is to a small black box on the tailshaft of the transmission. This is the speed sensor (no speedometer cable on the LT1). Disconnecting this will stop CAGS, but your speedo will also not work and the check engine light will come on. Of the other 2 connections, one is up on the tailshaft. This is the reverse lockout solenoid, although it's really a reverse enable solenoid since when it is not powered on, you are locked out of reverse. The final connection is the CAGS solenoid, the farthest forward of the three in the center of the transmission. Unplug it, tape it, and forget it.

The Service Engine light won't come on if you have a 1994 or 1995 car (note, no CAGS on the '93s), but the PCM stores an error code of 84 indicating the open circuit in the CAGS wiring. Since an open circuit (which a disconnected solenoid would be) using 2 wires can only be detected by no current flow, simply insert a resistance relatively close to the DC resistance of the solenoid coil across those wires. That way the current detector will still see the load, assuming the CAGS solenoid is still there and operational. See below for instructions on this.



Q: Why does my Service Engine Light come on now that CAGS is disabled?

A: You most likely have 1996 or later car. In 1996, GM instituted the OBD-II standard on the F-Body computers. This makes modifying the car much more difficult than in the past. Simple changes (such as disabling CAGS) will cause the computer to sense a problem and light up the service engine light. Luckily, you can fool the computer into thinking CAGS is still connected.

The resistance of the CAGS solenoid is 15 ohms. Assuming 13.5 V, that means about 12 W are dissipated. Go to Radio Shack or any local electronics store and pick up a 15 ohms, 10 W resistor (about $0.50). 10 W should should be fine as it will be mounted to the transmission which will work as a heat sink and the skip shift is only active a few seconds at a time, so there won't be much time for any extensive heat build up. But in hotter environments, you might want to use a resistor of 2200 ohms rated at only a 1/4 to 1/2 W.

Simply put the resistor in place of the CAGS solenoid thereby closing the circuit and making the computer think CAGS is still connected. You can also buy some heat shrink tubing to put around the resistor to protect it. Then take a tie wrap and fasten the "eye" of the wire connector to the transmission so everything is nice and tight. The connection be returned to stock form in less than 5 minutes if needed and easily be duplicated again for $1.


HTH

KnightFire

[TraceZ]

Originally posted by wolfman
on the left upper side of the transmission. it plugs inline with the regular harness.

either that, or it just may be unplugged. The eliminator kit is really unnecessary for reasons already covered.

[Injuneer]

[wolfdogs]

Originally posted by TraceZ
either that, or it just may be unplugged. The eliminator kit is really unnecessary for reasons already covered.

that one's already dissabled.................................












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