Stuck in 2nd gear

[polo]

I read the threads by Sweetair and JoeSyko, but my problem was a little different.
I was accelerating fairly quickly in Sport Mode, and the car shifted from 1st to 2nd, but would not shift to 3rd. I let off the accelerator, and it stayed in 2nd gear for around 4-5 seconds, so I slid the shifter over to Drive, and the tranny shifted out of 2nd.
Sweetair and JoeSyko said that moving the shifter to D didn't help them at all.
It only happened once, so I'm not worried about it, but I definitely hope it doesn't happen again! I'm having a heck of a time with this tranny! I know the stock tune sucks, and I'm going to get it tuned soon, but it seems like the car was perfectly fine for the first 2.5 weeks I owned it, and now it's shifting like shit. I hope every G8 with a stock tune doesn't run this bad. It's down right dangerous sometimes.

[sweetair]

I hope it doesn't happen again either. It if does and you are stuck in 2nd whatever you do, turn the car off, remove the key, open and close the door, wait 3 mins. and restart. A code will be thrown, tranny light on, on the dash, but is should shift fine, until it happens again.

My issue was the TCM.

[WickedMom]

would you like me to run your vin? (if i havent yet) to see if there has been an update to your TCM...

But, also, if you were doing some spirited driving, it may have been the design of the transmission... to hold a gear to allow for acceleration into the next turn...and not actually a problem. If it truely was stuck I dont think putting it into normal shift mode would of solved the problem.

JoeSyko had two codes stored in his TCM.

[JoeSyko]

Mine shifted like shit from day one. Even after the update it still shifted like shit and would lock in 3rd. Once Jessika's dealership replaced the valve body & module it was a whole new car. Now, I've got the VMS tune and now instead of shifting like shit...it IS the shit!

[dandragonrage]

LOL guys, this is normal for sport mode. It holds second when it thinks you are doing sporty things like corner carving at high speed. It will shift after a few seconds of you letting off, or if you get the revs up high enough that it has to shift.

This is basically what sport mode is FOR on these cars. Some of the reviews mention it favorably, too.

It does seem weird at first though.

[MANOFSTEEL69]

LOL guys, this is normal for sport mode. It holds second when it thinks you are doing sporty things like corner carving at high speed. It will shift after a few seconds of you letting off, or if you get the revs up high enough that it has to shift.

This is basically what sport mode is FOR on these cars. Some of the reviews mention it favorably, too.

It does seem weird at first though.

I doubt this is normal. I had this issue happen to me on Sunday, and I wasn't doing anything sporty except accelerating, and I wasn't even being hard on it. (I usually am in Sport mode all the time). The tranny stayed in 2nd even after letting off the throttle and getting back on it. It wouldn't disengage from 2nd gear without me placing it into Normal mode. I have the TCM update, and a trans tune. I suggest all of you that have this happen to you make a note of it with your service advisor, as there may be something more serious going on.

[dandragonrage]

If it does not ever disengage from second then that is wrong. Google it - it does hold second in sport mode when you corner at/near WOT. But it's not supposed to hold it forever, and mine does not hold it forever.

For those of you driving in sport mode not having this happen, you just drive slow!

[96Prix]

LOL guys, this is normal for sport mode. It holds second when it thinks you are doing sporty things like corner carving at high speed. It will shift after a few seconds of you letting off, or if you get the revs up high enough that it has to shift.

This is basically what sport mode is FOR on these cars. Some of the reviews mention it favorably, too.

It does seem weird at first though.

I've had the exact same thing happen, and it went well beyond the slightly delayed shift in Sport mode. I rolled up to 45 and backed off the throttle and it still wouldn't move from second. We're talking a good 5 seconds or better before I finally put it back into D, then everything was fine again. Only happened once, but definitely not something that the car should have been doing. I've felt the Sport shift plenty of times, and for me anyway, this was something else. For the record, I've had the TCM update done.

[dandragonrage]

I've had the exact same thing happen, and it went well beyond the slightly delayed shift in Sport mode. I rolled up to 45 and backed off the throttle and it still wouldn't move from second. We're talking a good 5 seconds or better before I finally put it back into D, then everything was fine again. Only happened once, but definitely not something that the car should have been doing. I've felt the Sport shift plenty of times, and for me anyway, this was something else. For the record, I've had the TCM update done.

5 seconds is not long enough to wait. It's normal behavior in sport mode with certain driving conditions. If you don't like it, don't use sport mode. you can also accelerate further (if you're not speeding, or if you intend to speed, not that I suggest that) and it will shift past second, and can also hold third. Either way, it will hold the gear until it thinks you don't want it to. Shifting to D is fine, but it's not an actual issue.

Some people are going to come out and say it's not normal. They are wrong. Again, search for it on Google. I read at least one review that mentioned it, too.

One example:
http://www.autosavant.com/2008/07/25/2008-pontiac-g8-gt-review/ "Set in Sport Shift mode, the transmission would hold revs if I accelerated briskly. Even better, when I was braking hard approaching a corner, the transmission would do a rev-matched downshift to a lower gear, and would hold the gear until I had powered out of the corner and eased off of the throttle"

Seems most of you have no idea what sport mode was meant for. It is meant for sporty driving, which means cornering.

[sweetair]

Sounds to me like some people have some problems. Just my .02

I understand the shift hold and this does NOT sound like that.

[dandragonrage]

Sounds to me like some people have some problems. Just my .02

I understand the shift hold and this does NOT sound like that.

Well, I can't say 100% that it is, and I can't say 100% that they aren't having issues, but from only what that guy described, I can tell you 100% that it is the gear holding. It's what he might not have put that still leaves the possibility of there being a problem open. But given that normal doesn't have problems, I do not think it really is a problem. The different between normal and sport is in the tuning, and the tuning isn't broken in this manner.

So I'm going to say I'm 99% sure what they are describing is normal and that if they don't like it, they shouldn't use sport mode. Or at least, they shouldn't be alarmed by it.

It surprised me at first, too. Difference is I actually researched to find out what it was instead of telling someone "Hey, my car doesn't do that, so yours is broken" just because I apparently drive like a grandma :nah:

[MANOFSTEEL69]

Well, I can't say 100% that it is, and I can't say 100% that they aren't having issues, but from only what that guy described, I can tell you 100% that it is the gear holding. It's what he might not have put that still leaves the possibility of there being a problem open. But given that normal doesn't have problems, I do not think it really is a problem. The different between normal and sport is in the tuning, and the tuning isn't broken in this manner.

So I'm going to say I'm 99% sure what they are describing is normal and that if they don't like it, they shouldn't use sport mode. Or at least, they shouldn't be alarmed by it.

It surprised me at first, too. Difference is I actually researched to find out what it was instead of telling someone "Hey, my car doesn't do that, so yours is broken" just because I apparently drive like a grandma :nah:
I think you are way off base on your line of thinking. I by no means baby my car or drive like a "grandma", so take your google results and file them somewhere else besides this post.Like I stated in my earlier posts, for those of you that experiance this, have your cars checked out, and or make a note of it with your service advisor. This is not the same as the Sport mode holding a gear to maintain power for cornering.
BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104

[dandragonrage]

I was only teasing you. Don't take it so personal.

Maybe you go fast on the straights. I don't know. I corner ridiculously fast. This happens. Reviews say it happens. Other people say it happens.

They're free to go to their dealers to double check, but I'm telling you, it's normal. Just because your driving style doesn't make it occur does not mean it's a problem. (Again, however, if it NEVER upshifts, or if it bangs the rev. limiter, then it definitely is a problem.)

[MANOFSTEEL69]

What part of "the car didn't shift out of second" did you miss? Up or down, without placing the car into normal mode. We get your how sport mpode is supposed to work point. It has been duely noted, now go find a new post to play in. Thank you.
BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104

[dandragonrage]

Yes, but there are other people that chimed in about it. I am not talking specifically to the OP.

Sheesh. Calm down, man.

[polo]

I've been driving in sport mode quite a bit since I made my original post, and haven't had the same problem again. I definitely know that it wasn't normal, because I've felt how sport mode holds the gear, and this definitely wasn't the same. I wasn't cornering, and I wasn't WOT when this happened. I was between 50-75% throttle, on a straightaway. I also failed to mention in my original post that I tried to shift manually to 3rd gear, but it wouldn't work.
My problem sounded exactly the same as the one Tigger had. It hasn't happened since, so it may have just been a fluke. I appreciate all of you who posted trying to help out.

[sweetair]

If it won't let you shift out of a gear tuck the info below into your memory.

I hope it doesn't happen again either. It if does and you are stuck in 2nd whatever you do, turn the car off, remove the key, open and close the door, wait 3 mins. and restart. A code will be thrown, tranny light on, on the dash, but is should shift fine, until it happens again.


It will come in handy.

[The Commodore]

Hey, 2nd gear is a pretty peppy gear.

[JoeSyko]

Hey, 2nd gear is a pretty peppy gear.

That it is...but it's not that great for doing 65+ on the freeway. :bleh:

[GAG8]

Sounds like you are experiencing normal transmission operation when in Sport mode.

From the Owners Manual:

Sport Shift Mode
The automatic transmission has a Sport Shift Mode. When you are in the Sport Shift Mode the vehicle will still shift auomatically. The transmission may remain in a gear longer than it would in the normal driving mode based on braking, throttle input, and vehicle lateral acceleration. To use this feature, move the shift lever over from D (Drive) to the right quadrant. The Sport Shift message in the DIC displays. If the shift lever is not moved forward or rearward, the vehicle remains in sport mode.

Performance Mode Lift Foot Mode
Within Sport Shift Mode there is a further performance feature called Performance Mode Lift Foot (PMLF) Mode. The feature is activated automatically when sports oriented driving is detected, based on cornering and on/off throttle application. PMLF allows the transmission to hold the current gear instead of upshifting when the throttle is lifted.

[96Prix]

Again, I've felt PMLF dozens of times. I drive around town in Sport mode more often than not. This was clearly different. Sounds like the exact same situation as Polo; straight road, into the pedal but short of WOT, car camped in 2nd. Mine was the better part of two months ago. I've tried several times to make it happen again, but to no avail. I don't remember whether I tried manual or not, but shifting to Normal mode fixed it for me.

[kyllekkc]

my car also did this right after i put a cai on it. it got stuck in 3rd i tried to manually shif up or down nothing just 3rd. tried all three driving modes still nothing. so i rolled up to auto zone still in 3rd and ran a test it said a miss fire on cylinder 2 and 4 i belive after the test i was heading up to the dealership and when i turned the car back on it was fine and it hasnt happened since... hopefully wont happen again.