DonaldR

The root cause of the intermittent problems was the common "ring land wear", however the mechanics at Woodbridge Transmission were very surprised I caught it in the early stages.  Peter said that most folks would not have realised it until much later.  I would highly recommend these guys if you have this problem or looking for a rebuild (which was my case too).  Their prices are very reasonable compared to Mr Transmission or any other places.  They are family run and dealerships always use their services.  When I dropped off the Journey, I saw a pretty new (maybe 2 yrs?) BMW X3 and a shiny new Benz SUV (looked 1 yr) up on the hoists.   I don't nickel & dime, I simply ask for the price and compare it to others.  The Journey drives quite well and the acceleration is smooth.  I learnt another lesson as well when I had to drive it while it was suffering - if I kept my speeds between 100 - 105 km/h on the 401 freeway, my fuel economy was between 9.3 - 9.5 L/100km.  If I kept to the legal speed on local roads - the highest it climbed was 10.3L/100km.  Gas prices are CAN$1.30/L for octane 81.  Lesson learned.

your welcome, also dont forget  your coolant it ages and can cause problems with age.

I had the transmission service done (oil & filter) and the problem went away.  After carefully re-reading the manual, the ATF must be changed either 5 years or 102,000 km.  I think a refill in my case should be done in the next few months.  That 62TE has a total fill of 9 qts, the change today replaced only 5.5 qts.  I am quite relieved.  Sometimes taking advice in the face of logic is better.  Thanks 2late4u for the solid advice!

glad you are so smart on how to deal with your problem, i was just stating that your trans fluid was 6 yrs old, do what you want,i was just offering my point of view. hope you find out your problem.good luck.

sorry if i upset you Donald as i said i was only stating on how old the trans oil was, if you dont want to change it then dont. since you dont have a dip stick you might be low on fluid? as i asked what engine  you had and you gave no answer. bad spark plugs can give some of the problems you seem to be stating, you are posting asking for help and i was only trying to give some insight but do as you please and i hope you get it figured out. 

Sorry - its a 3.6L, and yes it is a bit frustrating dealing with the service folks at the dealership and as well - it's summer and I can't take my kids on long trips because of this.  Thank you for these tips - I will mention it to my mechanic.  I do plan on an ATF change now, as it does break down after time.  

Also another piece of information that I left out (dunno if its even relevant) is that I park year round in my garage, and I always back in.  I always back in when I'm parking anywhere.  So I am using the reverse gear every time I drive the car.