Wrenchin... Adventures under the hood... Put em here.

[SumJongGuy]

New one. Daughter's 2008 Honda Fit. Occasionally slips a little starting out. but shut it off and start it again and the problem goes away entirely.. until it pops up again a week later.. Same thing.. Shut off, start again, everything fine..

First guess is volt/amp fluctuations from a failing alternator messing with auto tranny solenoid. That actually happened tomy 96 Trooper. Replacing the alternator resolved it. No other signs of electrical issues, no dead battery, everything power everything working fine.. But something bad in the alternator messing with the tranny function..

Honda shop I called thinks tranny solenoid, taking it to a tranny shop Monday.

Anyone else have that issue.. Sketchy shifting in to 1st but either settles down or you can shut it off and crank it up again to resolve.. for now?

[Timberridge]

How many miles and has the "lifetime" oil ever been changed?

[fatnslow]

New one. Daughter's 2008 Honda Fit. Occasionally slips a little starting out. but shut it off and start it again and the problem goes away entirely.. until it pops up again a week later.. Same thing.. Shut off, start again, everything fine..

First guess is volt/amp fluctuations from a failing alternator messing with auto tranny solenoid. That actually happened tomy 96 Trooper. Replacing the alternator resolved it. No other signs of electrical issues, no dead battery, everything power everything working fine.. But something bad in the alternator messing with the tranny function..

Honda shop I called thinks tranny solenoid, taking it to a tranny shop Monday.

Anyone else have that issue.. Sketchy shifting in to 1st but either settles down or you can shut it off and crank it up again to resolve.. for now?

Assuming it's an auto since the shop is thinking solenoids. When was the fluid last changed ? Have you checked your fluid level ? IF it's low on fluid or super dirty you can have issues when it's cold.
If you have a failing alternator you most likely would see a battery light on a newer car and have all sort of weird issues but it's easy to check with a volt meter. You should see about 13.5 volts if your alternator is working right. I would start with a drain/fill(2-3 times if you're DIY) and maybe take a look at the pressure switch.
Go in the tranny shop with both eyes open, lot of them only want to sell you rebuilds.

[Timberridge]

Also, I don't know Honda trans's but there is a filter somewhere. In the ZF's in the eurotrash I drive, they are in the pan. They could be in line as well between trans and trans cooler. That could be plugged up. Try changing the filter and oil and if that doesn't cure it--cracking open the trans as a last step.

[gravitylover]

Kinda interested in an XC90. I’d be looking for used, previous gen, early-mid 2010s vintage. What do I need to know?

From my research on XC90s and XC70s I'd say look for a 3.2 first even though they're a little sluggish and a T6 second, stay away from the T5 and the Yamaha V8 unless you're ok with the extra maintenance time. Rust is definitely a thing with the 90, I looked at so many that had good service histories, drove great and looked good until I got underneath with a flashlight. They're heavy too so the tranny takes a beating especially if the PO believed in the sealed for life bullshit so expect to do the 4 time drain and fill process to completely refresh it. You should also expect to need to do a Haldex service which is pretty involved so it's almost never done but is really important.

[warthog]

[SumJongGuy]

How many miles and has the "lifetime" oil ever been changed?

Trans fluid or oil? Oil was changed ever 5K conventional and now every 10K synthetic. Bought the car a year and a half ago so no clue on the rest if it.. It was checked bumper to bumper by a highly recommended shop right after we bought it. No major issues.

[SumJongGuy]

Also, I don't know Honda trans's but there is a filter somewhere. In the ZF's in the eurotrash I drive, they are in the pan. They could be in line as well between trans and trans cooler. That could be plugged up. Try changing the filter and oil and if that doesn't cure it--cracking open the trans as a last step.

Just don't get why turning it off, even for 10 seconds, resolves the issue.. and runs fine for a week after that.. before acting up again.. It's the third time in about 6 weeks that this behavior has been documented. My fear is it won't do it when the trans place is looking at it and driving it around.

[fatnslow]

Have you checked the at fluid level and condition? If it's black or brown you need to change it along with the filter, especially with unknown service history
. It sound alike your not building pressure on cold start it can be as simple as your low or old at fluid. I WILL guarantee it won't have problems when you drop it off unless they're willing to hold it for a week and try every morning after letting it sit.

[SumJongGuy]

Have you checked the at fluid level and condition? If it's black or brown you need to change it along with the filter, especially with unknown service history
. It sound alike your not building pressure on cold start it can be as simple as your low or old at fluid. I WILL guarantee it won't have problems when you drop it off unless they're willing to hold it for a week and try every morning after letting it sit.

Ya I took it for a drive just now to put gas in it. I'm not 100% sure what happened when the kid said it "wouldn't go" at the stop sign where I showed up. turned the key off and on and it ran fine.

All it did for me a little over a week ago was run BuMpY off the start in 1st gear real slow in the driveway.. put it in park then back in D and it was fine... for me. I asked her if it was running BuMpY sometimes at start up and she said.. "a little" but hardly ever.

I don't have a problem letting the transmission folks change the fluid and filters anyway if they can confirm it's not the solenoid or any other discernable issue. I've been in cars with a failing and slipping automatic transmission, more than once over the years. It's downhill fast usually IIRC..

I'll just trade cars with her for a few weeks if the shop can't nail it down this Monday when we drop it off.. I WFH so it's no big deal for her to take my car. She's getting a college parking sticker for it tomorrow.

And thanks everyone! Sanity checks and good advice here as usual.

[easyrdr]

My daughters 2022 bronco had a similar problem. She would stop at a light and it wouldn't go, totally at random, she would turn it off, start it again and it would go just fine. Other times it would get stuck in 1st gear for a while before it would finally decide to shift. She complained about it for 3 weeks. I would drive it and never had an issue. I finally traded cars with her and after driving it for 2 weeks it finally happened to me. Light turned green and I didn't move, nothing. Took it to the dealer, total transmission failure. After a lengthy discussion on a car bought new from said dealer and with only 6000 miles on it I kindly made them take the piece of shit back. Now she drives a subaru. Hopefully the fluid change fixes the problem.

[Timberridge]

Trans fluid or oil? Oil was changed ever 5K conventional and now every 10K synthetic. Bought the car a year and a half ago so no clue on the rest if it.. It was checked bumper to bumper by a highly recommended shop right after we bought it. No major issues.

Ok let’s try this again. How many miles does it say on the little odometer thingy on the instrument cluster?

[warthog]

My daughters 2022 bronco had a similar problem. She would stop at a light and it wouldn't go, totally at random, she would turn it off, start it again and it would go just fine. Other times it would get stuck in 1st gear for a while before it would finally decide to shift. She complained about it for 3 weeks. I would drive it and never had an issue. I finally traded cars with her and after driving it for 2 weeks it finally happened to me. Light turned green and I didn't move, nothing. Took it to the dealer, total transmission failure. After a lengthy discussion on a car bought new from said dealer and with only 6000 miles on it I kindly made them take the piece of shit back. Now she drives a subaru. Hopefully the fluid change fixes the problem.

Bronco or Bronco Sport?

[easyrdr]

Bronco Sport

[SumJongGuy]

Ok let’s try this again. How many miles does it say on the little odometer thingy on the instrument cluster?

140K

[SumJongGuy]

My daughters 2022 bronco had a similar problem. She would stop at a light and it wouldn't go, totally at random, she would turn it off, start it again and it would go just fine. Other times it would get stuck in 1st gear for a while before it would finally decide to shift. She complained about it for 3 weeks. I would drive it and never had an issue. I finally traded cars with her and after driving it for 2 weeks it finally happened to me. Light turned green and I didn't move, nothing. Took it to the dealer, total transmission failure. After a lengthy discussion on a car bought new from said dealer and with only 6000 miles on it I kindly made them take the piece of shit back. Now she drives a subaru. Hopefully the fluid change fixes the problem.

My 09 Forester does that hunting for 2nd gear thing sometimes... especially when it's really cold.. Then it goes BAM!!! when it finally hits 2nd gear 15-20 MPH faster than it should have hit 2nd. I've had it serviced twice in the 120K it has now.. Forester forums are full of other people complaining about the problem. But at least I don't have to shut it off and restart it at intersections.

[Name Redacted]

My daughters 2022 bronco had a similar problem. She would stop at a light and it wouldn't go, totally at random, she would turn it off, start it again and it would go just fine. Other times it would get stuck in 1st gear for a while before it would finally decide to shift. She complained about it for 3 weeks. I would drive it and never had an issue. I finally traded cars with her and after driving it for 2 weeks it finally happened to me. Light turned green and I didn't move, nothing. Took it to the dealer, total transmission failure. After a lengthy discussion on a car bought new from said dealer and with only 6000 miles on it I kindly made them take the piece of shit back. Now she drives a subaru. Hopefully the fluid change fixes the problem.

Ford....
I had a loaner Ranger (brand new, higher end model) , while my POS F150 was in the shop for a few months. The Ranger would just lose power, like none when I pushed on the gas pedal. Happened every once in a while, but for a brand new truck? WTF?

[SumJongGuy]

Looks like the fix it or fuck it threshold is still astronomical. Even a 2011 Fit is going for $15K here. Trade in value for her 2008 is like $2K. So dumping 2K in to a tranny is still the logical decision. God this sucks!

[oldnew_guy]

I’m in this same position with my VW TDI that threw a catalytic converter check engine light 2,000 miles after the warranty expired and the big 130,000 mile service coming up. Would like to replace but it makes no sense considering how much I drive now.

The kicker? I can’t even get anyone to look at it until the end of January. The dealer was booked out until the 1st of March. 2 months!

[MontuckyFried]

Looks like the fic it or fuck it threshold is still astronomical. Even a 2011 Fit is going for $15K here. Trade in value for her 2008 is like $2K. So dumping 2K in to a tranny is still the logical decision. God this sucks!

Welcome to Gravity's and my world, SJG. Fun, huh?

[El Chupacabra]

Sell the Fit to Gravitylover!

[MontuckyFried]

I’m in this same position with my VW TDI that threw a catalytic converter check engine light 2,000 miles after the warranty expired and the big 130,000 mile service coming up. Would like to replace but it makes no sense considering how much I drive now.

The kicker? I can’t even get anyone to look at it until the end of January. The dealer was booked out until the 1st of March. 2 months!

Just as I did with my Volvo(s) and VIDA/DICE, might I suggest you invest in an ODIS/VAS setup for your VW? Tons of ...ahem... "custom" solutions out there for the DIY'er these days. This stuff quickly pays for itself. Sometimes cheaper than diagnostics alone with a single trip to the dealer. Particularly with our aging European vehicles.

You might as well if you have to wait until freaking March anyway. At least you can check things out for yourself in the meantime.

[Timberridge]

So before you go swapping parts or trannys have them do a filter and fluid change on your trans. If the filter is clogged and the fluid is old it won’t shift properly.

[Touring_Sedan]

Welcome to Gravity's and my world, SJG. Fun, huh?

But y'all's cars are broken when you buy them.

[oldnew_guy]

Just as I did with my Volvo(s) and VIDA/DICE, might I suggest you invest in an ODIS/VAS setup for your VW? Tons of ...ahem... "custom" solutions out there for the DIY'er these days. This stuff quickly pays for itself. Sometimes cheaper than diagnostics alone with a single trip to the dealer. Particularly with our aging European vehicles.

You might as well if you have to wait until freaking March anyway. At least you can check things out for yourself in the meantime.

I’m well past DIYing this stuff unfortunately. I do have a cheap OBS scanner someone gave me as a gift. Can you still get the error codes that way or do you need VIDA/DICE now?

It’s a diesel so it would be nice if it would keep going for a couple more years at least, but it seems like it’s starting to nickel and dime me.

The Indy shop I am taking it to said “these are just coming off warranty, so we haven’t seen a lot of them so I can’t give you any idea of how long I will have it”.