AUTO TRANSMISSION CHARACTERISTIC UPSHIFT OR DOWNSHIFT ON GRADES

[plnolady]

I love my Vibe. Fun little econo car that gets the job done for me. Only problem is the transmission when I go up or down a steep hill. If I climb a steep hill the engine downshifts to a lower gear so I can get up the hill. No problem there. When I get to the top of the hill and start coming down the other side the engine fails to upshift. It doesn't matter if you give it gas or take your foot off the pedal…the engine whines out and the RPM’s are too high.The Dealer told me it’s how the engine was designed and it’s working as expected. Something about how Pontiac fine tuned the “EMC”? Have any of you had this problem or do you know where I can find more information on this problem?Any assistance is greatly appreciated!

[Mavrik]

the engine is performing what is known as engine braking. Its more commonly known with a manual transmission. But basicly the engine is trying to hold back the speed of the vehicle by keeping it in a lower gear.

[Raven]

My '04 did it. It never really bothered me and there is no fix as far as I know.

[glassman]

my 03 will upshift if you lift off the pedalbut when going downhill if you are braking it will downshift and use the engine as a brake still catches me off gaurd sometimes

[Mavrik]

Quote, originally posted by Sunny »My '04 did it. It never really bothered me and there is no fix as far as I know.Can't fix how it is designed.

[kcorona]

Quote, originally posted by Sunny »My '04 did it. It never really bothered me and there is no fix as far as I know.You can work around it though - shift into neutral on the downhill.