Thread: Td5 auto - sticking in 3rd under load.

Is your gear dash display flickering when it happens? If so, it could be an xyz switch fault - mine did this in 2nd and 3rd. A clean up of the switch contacts sorted it.

Otherwise it could just be the gearbox acting in a different way due to temperature/MAF or any number of things. When you read about the inputs that the ECU has it can make gear changing decisions based on a number of combinations - road speed, load, temperature....

If it's shifting smoothly then I'd suggest it's okay and just feels as though it wants to hang onto that gear in high load situations to protect itself.

Thought it could be the xyz switch, but I haven't noticed any flickering, I'll keep my eye on it.
If you juuuuust ease back on the throttle it will shift, just gets a bit annoying.

Don't they lock into gear when under load?

No idea, not a transmission type person

Is it only when the transmission is cold? In the mornings it takes me until Ammerdown hill before mine locks up the torque converter - its actually 4th unlocked rather than 3rd gear.

No, I quickly worked out that it normally takes me to chinamans bend before the TC locks up fully, but this can be after a full day of driving, or only an hour.
If I just ease up slightly it shifts up.

I've found that even towing an empty trailer it stays in third until I hit about 80kms is this the norm?

MAF has an input to trans shift points, suggest you try another or clean yours and see if there is any change.

JC