Transmission Clunk from 2nd to 3rd

[kpv]

I recently had to use my donut spare for about 100 miles and I did travel at speeds of about 60mph on it. It was the right front wheel.

Ever since then, after the normal tire was reinstalled, I have a loud clunk when the transmission shifts from 1st to 2nd gear. It only happens between 1st and 2nd.
I mentioned the donut spare situation since I thought it may have something to do with it.

A while back I had the same shifting problem and, believe it or not, it turned out to be a fuse!! I had changed the fuse and the shifting clunk stopped! I checked all of the fuses and they all look good so I am now completely at a loss. Could it be a relay related to the TOD or something of that nature?

Does anyone have any idea what the cause may be? And, of course, how can it be fixed?

[Yefim]

Hmm... not sure if I am right or not but I think you are not suppose to use the spare in front. I think I recall reading about it in the manual... or maybe it is written on the spare itself. I am not sure if that would do any damage or not, I hope someone more knowledgeable will weigh in.

[SPAZZ]

so that's where my...um...little Mermaid Arial doll went........;Dp;

that's ok you can have her...I went out and bought a Life Size Barbie;eekp; ;Dp;

[Andrey]

do a "search" here you will find an answer. I had similar situation when fuse was going and loud bang was heard from the transmission. Left front wireing needed to be replaced to stop loud bang. Other people had similar issue, so it is documented. Even if you do not blow the fuse now the mod shifting unit on the transmission could've got hosed (hopefully not) so read about it in the foum and take it to the trusted mechanic with a printout from the forum so they can fix it faster. I did the same and boy, everybody were happy

Good luck

[angrylittleman]

I started getting hard shifts - mainly from 2nd to 3rd gear - today, and can't really find a reason as of yet. I see that some people have posted about a fuse; is there something in the manual that would tell me what fuse to look for? I guess I'll just start pulling them and see what I find.

One thing that maybe I should mention, since there is talk about a fuse or electrical issue - I was installing another amplifier on Saturday, and it seems that I was having a grounding problem with the power wire. I blew out 4 fuses tweaking the wire, and trying to find the spot where the wire was grounding. Could the grounded power wire and fuse blowing contribute to an electrical issue which would cause the shifting problem?

Any thoughts or suggestions from someone with any mechanical, technical, or automotive common sense knowledge would be greatly appreciated. I scheduled an appointment at the dealership, but I'm hoping I can figure out a simple fix before I go hassle with a dealer.

[Andrey]

look here http://www.vehicross.info/forums/sho...highlight=fuse

[Navigator]

3 zerks on the propeller if left alone too long will also cause a clunk

[kpv]

I took a look where you guys mentioned. I removed the airbox and looked very closely at the harness behind the driver's side headlight. I saw a few connectors but did not see any fraying. For good measure, I pulled the harness away from the body in this area.

Can someone post a picture showing me exactly where the fraying is prone to occurring???

I also looked at all of my fuses and found the rear defroster fuse blown. I replaced the fuse.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!!

[kpv]

I am still trying to determine the cause of my clunking from 2nd to 3rd. Can anyone lend some insight??

[kpv]

I have decided to take my VehiCROSS in to the dealer to try and fix the transmission clunk. Before I do, DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY IDEA HOW I CAN DIAGNOSE AND FIX THIS MYSELF???????

[Maugan_VX]

When was the last time you had the transmission serviced?

Have you checked for fluid leaks? The 4L30E is prone to leaking around the accumulator piston cover, which can cause funky things to happen in 2nd gear.

[kpv]

Maugan_VX,
I haven't had the transmission serviced and it has about 60K miles at this point. I was told the clunk can be one of two things

1. The mode switch and/or its electrical connections
2. A short in the harness behind the left front headlamp.

I looked at the harness behind the headlamp and I jiggled the harness to the mode switch.....or so I thought I did.
I just abhor taking any car of mine to the dealer!!
Any further thoughts?

[angrylittleman]

I had the same issue back in June; it was the mode selector switch causing the problem. Another good indicator of the switch issue is if you notice your LED's on the speedo panel jumping back and forth from D, N, R, etc.

Whenever it started to act up, I could move the shifter up and down thru the gears a few times, and it would "catch", and run fine until the next time I started up. You may want to give it a try...

[Anita]

My VX had the hard shifts and it ended up being the mode switch as well.

[kpv]

Thanks guys...........

OK, MODE SWITCH....................

As I understand it, this switch is attached to the side of the transmission on the driver's side.

Is that correct??

Were your instances the actual switch or the wiring or harness to the switch??