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Transmission won't shift into od when cold

Posted: Fri Oct 28, 2011 8:41 pm
by carnut
We have recently purchased a 2003 vibe awd with 119000 miles.We got it in September when the weather was warm. Now that the temp has dropped below 50 I have noticed the automatic transmission won't shift into od until it warms up. (drove around 10 miles) Has anyone ever experianced this problem before?

Posted: Fri Oct 28, 2011 8:46 pm
by Wolfman213
It will shift into OD, but it's more of a fail-safe for the internals. The most I've got it to RPM wise has been about 4250 and that was flooring it in 1st. From there is will only go to about 4K. It's normal and saves on the internals for idiots like me that don't care how cold it is and floor it right away lol. But yeah, nothing to worry about.

Posted: Fri Oct 28, 2011 9:11 pm
by carnut
Thanks for the quick response! This is the first car I've had to do this so my mind was telling me "somethings wrong"I was also thinking (can't stop the hamster from running on the wheel...LOL) right before this started I replaced the cheap metal battery clamps with heavy duty marine one's. Could this have reset the ECU?

Re: Transmission won't shift into od when cold (carnut)

Posted: Fri Oct 28, 2011 10:45 pm
by keithvibe
normal, till the transmission is up to temp it keeps it in lower gears.

Posted: Sun Nov 13, 2011 3:21 am
by Bastranz
Wow! I never knew this occurred (I guess since by the time I drive at higher speeds, the engine is somewhat warmed up).How long does it take for the engine to warm up so that it shifts into OD?

Posted: Sun Nov 13, 2011 5:04 am
by Salsa Guy
Yep, depending on temp out mine does the same. Alttle un-nerving when I get on the highway right after leaving work and the cars is running over 3K.

Posted: Sun Nov 13, 2011 10:03 am
by carnut
Well I improve the warmup time by putting a new thermostat in. The old one a a piece of plastic wedged between the seat. Don't ask me how that got in there. Warms up enough in 2 min. to shift into OD.Thanks everyone for your help.