We just got back home from the camping trip, and I am truly stumped.
On the way back, I started driving with the gear selector in 3, as I was on a low-speed road and didn’t want to put it in D.
It wouldn’t shift out of second.
I drove a few miles farther and found a place to safely pull off, shut it off for a moment, then started it back up. I put it D, got back on the road, and it shifted normally. Splendid! I thought ah ha! - an electrical problem!
Ten or so miles later, while in OD I depressed the accelerator to make it downshift, as I was only going 55 mph and going up a hill.
It seems to downshift to second, then third. At a stop sign I quickly shut it off and started it, put it in D, and it stayed in 3rd gear for the last 20 miles of the trip. Fortunately we were on a two-lane road with a 55 mph speed limit. I kept it at ~2500 rpm, which is about 55, and got home.
I start wondering if I’ve somehow toasted the transmission.
FWIW, the charging system seems to be working fine. The gauge stayed right around 14v the whole time, with and without headlights and wipers on. And when it shifted, it did so smoothly.
My GF (who is not very mechanically inclined, but observant) noted that this failure to upshift only happens when we are towing the camper. The hard shifting, on the other hand, occurred both with and without a trailer. Thinking back, she is correct, and now I have to conclude that the trailer may be a significant variable.
The first thing I’m going to do is go for a walk, even if I have to put a raincoat on. Because I think better during and after a walk. When I’ve come down a bit from the trip and unhooked the camper, I‘ll start doing what I can do. First thing is to check the negative battery terminal to see if it has somehow managed to loosen up.
Then I’ll go for a drive sans camper and see how the Subdivision plays. And I’ll do so with the voltage gauge installed that @Road Trip suggested (it arrived during our absence).
Depending upon the results of the above, I’ll call the transmission guy, who has been recommended by three different knowledgable sources, tomorrow morning. Fine. I have a plan, of sorts.
My GF again floated the idea that maybe we need a different tow vehicle; that selling the Subdivision just might be the thing to do. I replied that we’re not yet to that point; it’s a vehicle with a finite number of components, only a very small subset of which is likely causing this problem. In other words, it’s solvable.
She actually seemed to take this response rather well, and didn’t press the matter.
However, we both agree that there are no more trips until this issue is solved. Our next trip is scheduled for the last week in September, to the mountains. We had hoped to squeeze one more flatlands trip between now and then. Perhaps that’s not realistic.
Looking over this thread, I’m feeling a bit foolish, to tell the truth. It has to be a bit like watching a tennis match from the sidelines - back and forth, back and forth. Fixed, not fixed; fixed, not fixed.
Whatever. Whining won’t help. I really need to sort this thing out. Sooner than later. And could really use some help doing so.
But first I’m going for a walk.
On the way back, I started driving with the gear selector in 3, as I was on a low-speed road and didn’t want to put it in D.
It wouldn’t shift out of second.
I drove a few miles farther and found a place to safely pull off, shut it off for a moment, then started it back up. I put it D, got back on the road, and it shifted normally. Splendid! I thought ah ha! - an electrical problem!
Ten or so miles later, while in OD I depressed the accelerator to make it downshift, as I was only going 55 mph and going up a hill.
It seems to downshift to second, then third. At a stop sign I quickly shut it off and started it, put it in D, and it stayed in 3rd gear for the last 20 miles of the trip. Fortunately we were on a two-lane road with a 55 mph speed limit. I kept it at ~2500 rpm, which is about 55, and got home.
I start wondering if I’ve somehow toasted the transmission.
FWIW, the charging system seems to be working fine. The gauge stayed right around 14v the whole time, with and without headlights and wipers on. And when it shifted, it did so smoothly.
My GF (who is not very mechanically inclined, but observant) noted that this failure to upshift only happens when we are towing the camper. The hard shifting, on the other hand, occurred both with and without a trailer. Thinking back, she is correct, and now I have to conclude that the trailer may be a significant variable.
The first thing I’m going to do is go for a walk, even if I have to put a raincoat on. Because I think better during and after a walk. When I’ve come down a bit from the trip and unhooked the camper, I‘ll start doing what I can do. First thing is to check the negative battery terminal to see if it has somehow managed to loosen up.
Then I’ll go for a drive sans camper and see how the Subdivision plays. And I’ll do so with the voltage gauge installed that @Road Trip suggested (it arrived during our absence).
Depending upon the results of the above, I’ll call the transmission guy, who has been recommended by three different knowledgable sources, tomorrow morning. Fine. I have a plan, of sorts.
My GF again floated the idea that maybe we need a different tow vehicle; that selling the Subdivision just might be the thing to do. I replied that we’re not yet to that point; it’s a vehicle with a finite number of components, only a very small subset of which is likely causing this problem. In other words, it’s solvable.
She actually seemed to take this response rather well, and didn’t press the matter.
However, we both agree that there are no more trips until this issue is solved. Our next trip is scheduled for the last week in September, to the mountains. We had hoped to squeeze one more flatlands trip between now and then. Perhaps that’s not realistic.
Looking over this thread, I’m feeling a bit foolish, to tell the truth. It has to be a bit like watching a tennis match from the sidelines - back and forth, back and forth. Fixed, not fixed; fixed, not fixed.
Whatever. Whining won’t help. I really need to sort this thing out. Sooner than later. And could really use some help doing so.
But first I’m going for a walk.
