Hi,


I have an 04 Sable with 70k miles that I have owned for six months. It shifts hard going into 2nd gear. It downshifts fine. The fluid level and color seems normal, and does not indicate that burnt smell. Can anyone provide any info as to what may be going on here?

 

I''ve seen this issue on most Ford front wheel drive vehicles since the early 90s. unfortunately I don''t know if it''s a problem or just the way the transmission control computers were programmed. If it was a mechanical transmission (like in my 88 MGM) I''d say the transmission cable is a little too tight and to let it out a mm or 2. in the case of computer controlled trannies though... I just don''t know. One of the other folx around may know if it''s a problem or not.

Has it always shifted that way for you? is this a new development?

 

Do you have an O/D indicator light on your dash? Does the car have a second gear start option? Let me know.

 

I just had a scan performed today and it threw no codes. No indicator light, and it does not have a second gear start option.

 

<img>This is totally a personal opinion, based on observation of my 1996 Sable LS Premium. It exhibits some come and go "hard shifts" as described. It has had a recent tranny flush, new plugs and wires, and was recently certified for licensing (a provincial requirement for out of province vehicles), and I maintain it pretty religiously (it''s my wife''s daily driver). My thinking, when I drive the vehicle, is that the engine computer has become used to my wife''s very conservative driving. If I can, I like to get the rev''s up on the highway, and you can usually feel some surging and miss-firing, and this is a recognized characteristic of fuel injected vehicles with DOHC engines, which are essentially designed for high rpm operation, but seldom see much. The run on the highway serves as a mini-tuneup, and the car seems to run better thereafter. There are no transmission problems evident, and I believe it''s the electronic control that produces the unusual shift pattern, and may just be in the "nature of the beast". But, as said at the start, my opinion based on my experience. P.S. I''d actually like to find my wife another car, since these Sables have a way of endearing themselves to you. Ours is Red Nightmist Metallic (looks purple, morphs to bronzy red in bright sun) and is quite a "funky" ride, seldom see another quite like it on the street. Hope I helped in some way. Happy 2009 everyone!

 

The car runs perfectly other than the shift from 1st to 2nd. The transition from 1st to 2nd is hard and abrupt; all other upshifts and downshifts are perfect. No codes, and the tranny has been flushed. Oh well, when I figure it out, i will post the issue. Maybe it will help someone in the futue.

 

Well, I had to replace the battery today, and thenwent up the road about 40 miles to visit some relatives. On the way, my wife commented that the car was not "jerking" anymore from first to second. Car runs great now, keep my fingers crossed...

 

the computer was reset and is re-learning the driving patterns. If it starts it up again, disconnect the battery and wait 5 minutes and reconnect the battery. that should reset the computer again and make it re-learn the shift patterns. There is a fix for this from ford but it requires reprogramming the computer and is not free. It basically makes the shifting ignore 1st to 2nd shifts and just use a stock pattern for those gears.