So it caught up with me ... valve body replacement!

[PierreC]

Perplexed!!!

I guess that sums up my current state of mind.

So I took the car back to the tranny shop, they agreed that maybe the adaptation was not properly done and then - this time with me in attendance - reset the counters, put the tranny in adapt mode and did the full adaptation cycle again. All was well and I drove out of there with a smile on my face ... all shifts were smooth, and remained so for my +/- 6 mile journey to work.

I parked the car and got back to it about 2 hours later. The very first 2 -> 3 shift flared, and kept on flaring for the rest of my journey. Well, maybe not "flaring" as there is no increase in revs - it feels like a delayed shift, more like a hesitation accompanied by a jerk.

Any ideas please?

[JRL]

You really need to drive it longer after the adaption process, you're not even getting it hot
Find a day you have the time then...go back... adapt again and drive it 50-100 miles
It can take up to 500-1000 miles to shift properly.

However, I must admit this is a bit odd and you may have other issues because these trannies show their issues when hot.
You need to drive it for a couple of hours and see how it gets

[Astro14]

Both of mine worked great right after the adapt cycle was finished.

However, it took me a good 45 minutes to complete that cycle (traffic/space are an issue). So, if they took less than about 25 minutes, they may not have done it to completion. Further, the tech put the car in the adapt mode, and then shut it off, thus ending adapt mode. We went through this a few times until they got it right. So, since this experience was at a dealer, there is a chance that your car still wasn't done correctly.

Flare is when the transmission shifts from gear X to gear X+1 and the engine revs up instead of smoothly dropping in RPM....it happens when the band for gear X+1 doesn't engage quickly, and the gear set isn't selected as a result. Usually car coasts during the RPM increase...like it's in neutral...

Is that what you're feeling?

Also, as JRL says, this usually happens when hot, because the fluid is thin and the pressure drops...resulting in slow/weak engagement. If it's happening when cold, I suspect that adaptation is off...

[PierreC]

You really need to drive it longer after the adaptation process, you're not even getting it hot. Find a day you have the time then...go back... adapt again and drive it 50-100 miles. It can take up to 500-1000 miles to shift properly.

However, I must admit this is a bit odd and you may have other issues because these trannies show their issues when hot. You need to drive it for a couple of hours and see how it gets

Thanks Jim. I will follow your advice ...

[PierreC]

Flare is when the transmission shifts from gear X to gear X+1 and the engine revs up instead of smoothly dropping in RPM....it happens when the band for gear X+1 doesn't engage quickly, and the gear set isn't selected as a result. Usually car coasts during the RPM increase...like it's in neutral...

Is that what you're feeling?

No, it is more like the transmission freezes for a split-second before it shifts, and during that split-second there is a loss of power (almost as if you apply the brake momentarily) before there is a jerk (or surge) when the gear engages.

Its almost like the opposite of flaring ... binding?

[JRL]

That's not good but try again.
You may not have installed a good VB, other things are wrong or it just wasn't rebuilt properly.

[PierreC]

Hi Jim

I will start with your previous advice and drive the car (after another adaptation) for >> 50 miles and then see what transpires ...

[PierreC]

I am now about halfway through the 1000 mile driving period suggested by JRL and although there is an improvement, there are still issues: There are still harsh 2 -> 3 upshifts, about 1 in 4 shifts. Another 1 in 4 has just a "hiccup" (no quite a flare, nor very harsh) and the remaining 2 in 4 shifts are perfect.

Now for the next 500 miles - lets see if the problem is completely gone ...

[kutcht1]

Thanks for the update, hope it smoothes out.
TomK

[PierreC]

Since my last post I have traveled another 250 - 300 miles and there has been a marked reverse in the situation.

The 2->3 shift now flares or "hiccups" just about every single time, garage shifts has gone bad and clunky and there are audible "metallic clunk sounds" on the odd occasion.

In addition, during a peak-hour traffic highway trip of some 40 miles yesterday, the car / transmission entered the LIMP HOME mode and it was quite daunting to hold up fast travelling traffic while struggling at 30 MPH ... BTW, no CEL and no message. After parking at my destination and about 5 hours elapsed time, everything was fine again and I got home without further incident - except, of course, the harsh 2->3 shifts!

To make matters worse, the transmission "specialist" who performed the valve body rebuild is not interested in fixing the valve body - he claims that the problem is the transmission (gearbox) and is only prepared to do a full transmission overhaul [during which, of course, he can fix the valve body and claim that the problem was in the gearbox all along, whether it was or not].

Life happens ...