I'll keep it short for you guys.

-Transmission on its way out. Gear slipping, delayed gear changes, S1, S5 and S7 solenoids are rooted. Cannot afford to have my spare trans fitted+serviced.

-Car temperature slowly rises when driving in stop start. Not sure how hot is too hot. Photos below taken about 30 minutes ago after driving into the city and back. Weather is 16C and VERY rainy. Drove it firmly. Came up a small hill at 80km/h just before that photo was taken.

-The throttle also seems to become 'stiff' randomly (as opposed to loose, as it usually is.) Braking almost to a stop seems to make it loose again. Car has very little power now. Not sure if trans-related.

-No leaks. Complete cooling system overhaul (core plugs, hoses, rad cap, radiator, thermo fans, heater taps, no mixed coolant, new water pump, new thermostat+housing, etc. NO LEAKS.) Head is NOT blown, car has plenty of oil. New air filter/cleaned idle speed controller.

'97 EL Fairmont.

Aaaaaaaand never mind now. The transmission actually just died about an hour ago. No power, locked to 3rd, barely moves. I'll figure out a way to have the one sitting in the garage fitted.

did u get this solved?

That's a bummer :/ my gear has slipped occasionally in the cold, should I be worried?

I had the same issues but mine was my cadilac converter was clogged

dam how much did it heat up ? as in half way up the needle or bit more ? with the clogged cat just curious

it was up over half way most of the time cause it was choking itself
I have put below what we have done cause for a new cadi they supercheap didn't /couldnt get them
a small parts shop up here wanted $400

the honeycomb inside was melted and clogged there was just no vapours getting out which means at low speeds it was fine but onece I hit a 100 it was slow going up hills , but all we did was cut the cadi convertor and opened it up smashed the honeycomb out weldered it back together and now its got balls , now my wagon is capable of getting upto over 160km/h takes a few to get there but it just glides and not to add the nice sound of it now

So I think I figured out the heat problem at least. I pulled my bumper off today and then re-attached it (due to one I bought not fitting.) The car was in a rear end crash before I bought it and the front end went into a truck. The old owner did a botch job repairing it so it sits on okay, but he must have tucked the mudguard up over the radiator, preventing most of the air from flowing through. I took it for a spin just before and couldn't seem to get it past 92C (although keep in mind the weather is cold and dark.) I'll give it a proper test tomorrow.

Transmission-wise, it's still f**k, but resetting the ECU at least gave me gears back. I need to drive the car extremely lightly or it'll pop into limp mode again. Not fun at all.

xelfalcon wow that sucks