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Broken Sprag

How to Tell When the Sprag in a Torque Converter Is Going Bad.

1.  Enter the vehicle and engage the ignition using the key. Roll down the window and use your ears to listen to the sounds that are coming up from the transmission. Upon an initial period of one to two minutes of warming up, you can begin to test-drive the vehicle to tell when the sprag in a torque converter is going bad.
2. Shift the vehicle in drive to pull forward. Does it engage the gear and move forward when in drive? Normally, if the forward sprag in a torque converter is going bad or is broken, it will not allow the vehicle to move forward when in drive.
3. Place the vehicle in park again and then move the shifter into the reverse position. Does the vehicle go in reverse? Even if a torque converter sprag is going bad, it will still allow the vehicle to be placed in reverse and have movement.
4. Check the other remaining gears in the same manner. Place the shifter into each of the manual shifting points and attempt to move forward. All this can be done within a small area. From a standing position you can check to see if all the gears will engage properly.
5. Operate the vehicle normally, driving within a one mile radius from your starting point in case a broken or bad sprag stops the transmission from working properly. During the drive, you can shift through the forward gears. Check again for the "missing gears" which will be the drive and first gears when the sprag in a torque converter is going bad.
6. Complete the test drive by returning to the location of origin and analyze the results. Did the transmission shift easily through all the gears? Then it probably is not the front sprag in a torque converter. It's when there are "missing gears" that you can consider having the torque converter removed and checked before having to pay for a new transmission rebuild.