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New member here looking for some troubleshooting information and advice regarding the automatic transmission in my 2005 TSX. The car has about 160k and has started shifting funny, but only on specific gear changes. The 1-2 upshift is usually harsh, often enough to scratch the tires going into the next gear even with only moderate throttle. The other trouble spot is a flare in rpm up shifting from 3-4. All other gear changes are as they should be, no trouble codes are logged in the ECU, the 'D' for drive light is not blinking, and the fluid is at the full mark. The fluid has also been changed a few times over the last 15 years, at 36k, 65k, 112k, and 152k so it has been maintained well. I am curious if there is a way to test shift solenoids for these specific gear changes? I've also read about cleaning the shift solenoids because there are mesh filters that can get plugged over time in this thread.
If the parts check out and the transmission is still shifting strangely, I'd like to replace it with a low mileage JDM unit. From what I can tell the transmission is a MCTA model used in the 2004-2008 TSX. Are there any year to year differences I need to watch out for?
From your description it could actually be the accelerator pedal position sensor causing these issues. Reason being bc you said it's mostly when switching from 1st to 2nd. Do a lil research on the app sensor and see if you think that could be it. I've read a lot of ppl with similar aged Acura/Hondas that have had similar issues and the prob was related to the drive by wire system, and the majority ended up fixing the prob by replacing their app sensor.
I could very well be wrong but just thought I'd put it out there since it is a possibility. Sorry it took awhile to reply..I had this page open in my Chrome browser and just now found it again.
It'd suck to replace the transmission only to find that there was nothing wrong with it to begin with, ya kno? And since you mentioned that its been maintained properly and no signs of probs as far as fluids or anything..that also leads me to believe it's more than likely something to do with the drive by wire..(sensors etc)
Thanks for the replies guys. I did some more research on my problem and found a couple of failing solenoids on the transmission. The were easy to check with a couple of test leads and 12v power. A good solenoid has a good clunk while the failing solenoid wasn't making much noise and worked inconsistently. The 3-4 soft/flaring shift was definitely caused by this. The 1-2 shift was also a likely candidate for a bad solenoid, but once I looked at the cost of replacing both I just went with a used 50k mile JDM transmission for $300. I didn't want to waste a fluid change and solenoids on an already compromised transmission when the cost was not much more. If someone else is having issues read into the factory service manual and there are good troubleshooting steps provided.
07-15-2019, 09:00 PM
