Rough Gear change with 5sp Auto
Hey everyone,
I was driving to Canberra airport yesterday when I noticed my car's gear changes were very rough, especially on downshift. So much so that there was a bit of compression lock. I tried putting it in Active-Select mode and selecting the gears manually but the same problem occurred. I pulled into a carpark nearby, turned it off for a while, restarted the car and then it was back to normal. The gearbox is normally very smooth. Seems like it would be some sort of software glitch since it went from rough to smooth after 5 minutes and a restart.
I never thrash the car and I never use the paddle shifters. The gearbox should be fine. I did buy it second hand so who knows how the previous owner drove it.
Anyone heard if this problem? Any ideas?
Donating Member
I think I had a similar problem last year, were you braking or slowing at any time during your downshifts?
Yep, braking as normal for roundabouts etc. It was changing in auto mode. I don't use the paddles at all. The change from 3rd to 2nd is probably the most noticeable. What problem did you have and how did you fix it?
Donating Member
I found it wasn't the transmission it was the brakes. I had a traction control warning before starting and when I started the car I saw traction control was off. This never happens when you start, even if you leave it off when you turn the ignition off, it will come back on by default.
When I was coasting or braking the brakes would have little glitches and come on strong momentarily. I could tell it was the brakes and not the trans because I could feel the brake pedal go down with my foot over it, not pressing it.
When I got back home I restarted the car and it was fine. I never got a professional opinion but someone at work with a WL caprice told me his car did it when his brake fluid was low. Either that or it was just a glitch, which I think it was.
That makes sense. I think it may be the brakes. I get an ESP fail warning every now and then but I have never had the problem with the brakes before. It did it before this problem occurred last night. It seems to do it even when I'm lightly pressing the brakes and alsmost coasting down to a stop. I turned off the car and started it again and the ESP fail did not come up but the problem still occurred. It was only after turning it off completely, removing the key and restarting that it went away all together. I have taken it in to Holden to have the ESP problem looked at four times now and each time they said it needed a speed sensor on one of the wheels adjusted. Needless to say the problem is still there. Gives me the shits. At least it sounds like my transmission is ok. Car is still under warranty so I'll get it checked out in a couple of weeks. Thanks for your help.
Donating Member
Yeah get it checked. That was the first and last time it happened in my car so I haven't stressed about it too muchOriginally Posted by hingo1983
Yeah the SV6 does have brake assist, which AFAIK "helps" you break when it thinks you need it.
I noticed that my handbrake is loose enough that it will not hold my car on a slight slope, but when I pull it up a little bit while driving the emergency brake alarm goes off and the brakes come on hard, with a noticeable clunk in the back, which could just be my toolbox in the boot :P
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