babyboigsxr

At all times, no matter when, even when in a rush, I always take my time to shift gears. I never go from "reverse" to "drive" while the car is still in motion. I'm just a stickler like that with this car. I actually wait till the car is at a complete stop, then change gears.

Just as the title states is exactly what happened. 2nd time within a week, so now I'm slightly concerned and would like to get some opinions / experiences so that I can potentially do some preventative maintenance if needed.

Earlier today, I was leaving Target. Turned on the car, put it in reverse, backed out, stopped completely, shifted to neutral, then drive. As soon as I lightly pressed the gas pedal, the car didn't move. It just revved. I pressed the brake, waited a few seconds then tried going. At that point, it moved forward.

Any known causes or issues?


There's another thing that I noticed while driving, and I'm thinking it's somewhat related.

(This particular issue has happened several times before...) Driving in traffic at a speed that the car would most likely be in 2nd gear. Then the freeway opens up and I give the car a little bit of gas. But as soon as I do, there's a slight "knock" before the picks up speed. Not sure what that was.


As far as transmission service, I've had it done approximately 3k-4k miles ago. I paid the usual $280-ish for service. Fluids and all.


Has anyone experienced either of these or know what the problem may be?

Jack661199

How many miles does the car have? I have the same issue's and my mechanic who is a certified MB tech and also really close family friend says thats nothing to worry about its just taking the tranny a extra second to engage into Drive. As for the knock my car does that to sometimes when I also go accelerate and it drives me crazy but my mechanic has not a single clue what it is, because it never happens for him when he drives my car. Personally i think it has something to do with the torque converter but thats just my 2 cents

2000UZJ

Mine was hit or miss in the mornings. Did it happen before or after the accident?

babyboigsxr

The car has 87k. (Sarcastically says... would have been 82k if I didn't sell my beater to pay for my wife's B7 A4).

Since my ownership, and the previous two owners, the car has been meticulously maintained. I'm not worried about previous "abuse". We all like to open it up once in a while, but for the most part, it's been well taken care of.

I'm also not sure what that knocking sound is. My basic thought was... maybe it's due to the age / mileage of the car. Along with basic wear and tear. My reason for that thought is because it's been regularly serviced and preventative maintenance has always been done.


The knocking has happened once in a while before the accident.
The non-engaging on drive... first happened about 4 days ago (post-accident).

desired_speeds

check fluid level first. Has the transmission connector ever been replaced? It's a cheap part that can cause a fluid leak into your wiring harness.

babyboigsxr

Exactly what I was thinking. Taking it step by step first.
Going to check the fluid level.

As far as the connector, I wanna say it was most likely replaced during my full transmission service. Cause I mean... that's typically replaced during service, right?

C_DirtyTwo

My car lately has been doing this thing where when I put it in 1st gear, it will automatically shift to 2nd, 3rd, and so on....another weird thing I have no idea why...

desired_speeds

It's highly recommended, but most mechanics don't do it.

babyboigsxr

Interesting... a few months back, mine did somewhat similar. I popped it into "M" before running some dude next to me. When i tried shifting up with my paddle shifters, it never shifted. The tranny decided to shift on its own (way too early). And so I lost. But that's not the point.
My tranny has been doing some weird stuff lately. Hope it's not a bad sign.

Definitely going to have it checked out tomorrow morning. Fluid level and connector.

gjunon

Did they "flush" the transmission? It isn't recommended to flush the E55 transmission as it kicks up and lodges particulates.

babyboigsxr

To be honest, I don't know.
What I do know is that it was done the same way the MB dealers do it.

babyboigsxr

Update...
Found a well-rated shop (Yelp) in the area that was open on a Saturday afternoon.
Decided to swing by and have the car checked out really quick.
The car was placed on the lift and inspected by the tech, then shop owner.
No leaks anywhere. All was dry.
Transmission fluid level was perfect.
No signs of needing a new connector.
No engine leaks of any kind.

So the only opinion they came up with was... "maybe its something internal that we can't see."

I don't know much about torque converters. But based on my car's symptoms, is a torque converter related to any of that?