Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!

Ford Mustang Transmission Problems

13

Comments

  • spitfire2212spitfire2212 Member Posts: 2
    I see a lot of us are have issues with our mustangs. My 06 makes the weird clunking sound too. It has 47000 miles. It goes in and out of gears OK. First and reverse can be difficult, especially after sitting overnight. My question is, is it normal for the clutch to be so stiff?
  • browneyes2blubrowneyes2blu Member Posts: 16
    the only thing i can say is i think we been stiffed with some bad trainies.ive own a 07 and now own a 08.ive got a lot of issues,thats not normal with your trainy.i keep getting the go around with ford.if you reply,ill tell you more later,got to run.
  • ponyboy3ponyboy3 Member Posts: 2
    Sorry didn't respond sooner, work a lot of hours.
    It is, so Ford tells me. Their are lockout devices in place for both first and reverse, to prevent from accidently putting it in that gear while tranny is engaged. I get that, as far as the clunking, they tell me that it is because drivetrain, is not top of the line for v6, that we will experience some kick back due to the design. I'm told that is normal and is not hurting anything. I do find that if i back off in first to second, and be fluid with my shift that I don't have that issue. I've had no major problems with clutch or tranny so I am taking them at their word. Hope this helps.
  • spitfire2212spitfire2212 Member Posts: 2
    Thanks for your comment. My mind has been put at ease seeing other people with similar issues. I've had my Mustang almost a year now and the clutch/tranny have been the same. No changes at all. I really love my Mustang even in this Spokane winter, I'll just accept it for what it is and just be happy.
  • martihmartih Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2005 Automatic Mustang, if I apply the brake hard it will not be in gear for a minute or so and then pops back in, is this a transmission problem?
  • browneyes2blubrowneyes2blu Member Posts: 16
    im not sure,but i think it may be a safety switch.get another opinion.
  • stangbangstangbang Member Posts: 2
    I have a '10 GT that has an intermittant problem shifting.....it is extremely hard to shift into 1st, reverse etc....took it to the dealership...they are feeding me BS about the clutch being worn....it only has 16,000 mellow miles driven on it....if it was the clutch it wouldn't be intermittant...it's still in the shop....I think these cars have some slave bearing problems and other issues....
  • stangbangstangbang Member Posts: 2
    Ford called....definitely a slave bearing.....came apart.....
  • richiejvorichiejvo Member Posts: 1
    i have this GIANT problem that when i try getting out of park, it doesnt get out it stays stuck on Park. Its like the Button to move the gear stick stays stuck so i cant change gears from Park to Reverse, it takes FOREVER.

    can anyone help?
  • chopper1033chopper1033 Member Posts: 1
    I bought 2011 automatic V6 mustang after 16 years with a standard Mustang. When I pull out to pass or want to merge onto the highway, I try to accelerate but there is a pause of 2 to 3 seconds, and a high revving sound…but no forward movement, forcing me to abort my effort to merge or to pass. It is dangerous. Service department denied the problem. However, I went on a drive with one of their employees and the same thing happened. In front of others, he said, “yes” there’s a problem to his boss. I left the car with them to fix. (It’s under warranty with only 2,000 km.). now they’re saying the guy really didn’t think there was a problem…I have sent the service manager, with whom I’m now dealing, all of the comments from the forum that show others are having the same problem. Has anyone come up with a solution? Does it require replacement of the transmission? What??? Any help is appreciated. If anyone wants to get together on this to consider legal action if things don’t improve please let me know… I am in Toronto area.
  • dragonfly47dragonfly47 Member Posts: 26
    1. Check to see if a fuse has blown.
    2. Check to see if your brake lights work.
    3. If the fuses are ok but you have no brake lights, the problem is most likely due to a faulty brake light switch up under the dash or a bad electrical connection to that switch. A faulty switch will lock out your ability to get out of Park.

    A temporary work around is to turn the ignition key to position one, then put the vehicle in Neutral and start.
  • ramharbramharb Member Posts: 1
    hello there, i own a 2001 ford mustang v6 automatic.
    i have a problem when driving, and the gear 2 shifts to gear 3, it only shifts at 2200 rpm, which makes the car slow when going up. why is the gear 2 shifting so quickly, it should be on 3000 or 3 500 rpm...??
  • jammin81jammin81 Member Posts: 1
    My '10 GT also had intermittent shifting problems. I noticed a lot of rattling noise at low rpm in 1st, 2nd and 3rd gears. I could feel weak synchronization downshifting into 2nd and 1st gears. The problem was especially bad after I had taken the car down the Interstate and had it warmed up good. At 22,000 mild miles, Ford is rebuilding my transmission under warranty. They replaced 2nd and 3rd gears and other miscellaneous parts. Had I not given them specific details about the problems in each gear, and the fact that the car had to be driven a while first to notice the problems they may not have validated the issue. The only main problem is that the car has been in the shop for 2 weeks waiting for back-ordered parts from Ford. I should have it back tomorrow and I really hope that it drives as well as my '01 Bullitt GT did. I just feel like these new cars aren't put together as well. If you need more info let me know because your car may need the same things replaced that mine did.
  • topdown11topdown11 Member Posts: 1
    I have a '94 Mustang 6 cyl with an automatic transmission. I have been having episodes over the last year and a half of what feels to me like the transmission dropping out of gear into neutral . It seems to happen at random times. I'll be driving along when all of a sudden I can feel the engine start to race. When this happens, my tachometer will jump about 1000 points. Sometimes it happens when I am accelerating. Other times when I'm slowing down or just maintaining my speed. It seems to happen with the cruse control on or off. When it happens, I take my foot off the gas or deactivate my cruse control and after a couple of seconds my car returns to normal although it's more prone to reoccur within the next minute or so. I had it to a transmission repair shop, but they couldn't detect any problem. Any ideas?
  • chucknorthchucknorth Member Posts: 1
    2011 Mustang V6 6-speed auto tranny is junk. Upshifts so soon that it gets all the way into 6th gear when the car has travelled only 1/2 a block in urban traffic. What it the tranny doing in 6th gear at 30mph? Lug, lug, lug. Stepping on the gas produces a long delay (very poor throttle response) before the tranny downshifts. Then, of course, in city traffic, the tranny is constantly banging up and down through gears trying to figure out what gear to be in - it is always in too high a gear, unless the gas it floored. Same thing at freeway speeds - constantly hunts up and down to be in what the tranny thinks is the right gear - which is annoying to say the least. And, the tranny will not shift down into 1st gear when the car is comming to a stop until the car is actually stopped. Therefore, "running starts" cause the tranny to clunk (very loudly) down into 1st gear (where it should have been to start with). Cluck, clunk, clunk. The V6's engine's very poor throttle response in conjuction with the too-soon-shifting-always-in-too-high-a-gear 6-speed tranny makes the car uncomfortable to drive. The car always feel "gutless" which is rediculous with the 305 HP engine. I know Ford is try to get good gas milage out of these cars, but making the car hard to drive does not seem a practical solution. I have ordered a chip that claims better throttle response and later shifting - if that doesn't fix things the car will be traded in at a non-American non-Canadian car dealer for a car that runs properly. And, the 6-speed standard tranny has that stupid skip-shift feature - unbelievable. DO NOT BUY A MMUSTANG.
  • gzgtpgzgtp Member Posts: 83
    I have never understood a Mustang with an auto tranny. Sorry to hear your problems. Next time try a V-8 Manual.
    Your last sentence should read DO NOT BY A MUSTANG WITH AUTO TRANS.
  • bamajoebamajoe Member Posts: 1
    Thank You. This was a big help. It my daughters car. One question, where is the brake light switch at under that dash, and what's it look like?
  • dragonfly47dragonfly47 Member Posts: 26
    Here's the part: brake switch 95 Stang.

    It's attached to the top of the brake pedal arm."
  • jesslajessjesslajess Member Posts: 1
    edited September 2011
    I've been having the same problem. My V6 94 Mustang 3.8L for the past few years has been having tranny problems. It's not all the time, but every so often the tranny will slip or try to grab when it's changing gears. So the revs will shoot up and when it finally grabs it shakes the whole car. Anyone have any ideas? I've tried tranny lubricant and SeaFoam and sorts of ****, but to no avail.
  • wizard8wizard8 Member Posts: 1
    Same problem, but, a wise old mechanic let me in on a simple explanation as to why it drops out of gear.
    The OD clutches have wear/are wearing out.
    To avoid the inevitable expense of the repair he pointed out that all you have to do in the interim is push the OD button & turn the Overdrive off.
    Problem solved, with a loss of feul economy.
    I've been driving for 5yrs this way with no slipage.
  • bjtigbjtig Member Posts: 1
    MY 2011 MUSTANG AUTO.TRANS. HAS A DELAY WITH THE TORQUE CONVERTER ENGAGING UPON COLD START. IF I DO NO WAIT AT LEAST 6-10 SECONDS AFTER CRANKING ENGINE THE CAR FEELS AS IF IT IS STILL IN NEUTRAL.

    NEITHER THE FROD DEALER NOR FORD CAN CORRECT. NOW, FORD SAYS TO WAIT 8-10 SECONDS TO SHIFT INTO GEAR AFTER CRANKING.

    ANYONE WITH SIMILAR PROBLEM????
  • darealbigdaddydarealbigdaddy Member Posts: 1
    Well Iv'e got a 2006 GT and I just started having the same issue. Dealer found a number of items wrong. LSS, they completely rebuilted the Trans under manufactures warranty. The car has 78000 miles. Got it back and as soon as it cooled down, I tried to engage it into drive and it acts as if it in neutral. As soon as I give it some acceleration, it jumps into gear very aggressively. it is headed back to the dealer in the morning. :mad:
  • prince18prince18 Member Posts: 1
    Bought 2011 V6 Convertible Premium from No. In. dealer in April of 2010. one of first on market,(turns out it was a demo, but that is another story) all black, beautiful car. Paid $995.00 extra for six speed trans. You would think a 75 year old would know better than buy a first year anything!
    Now the bad news.
    Let car sit in garage a couple days. Start engine shift into reverse, nothing, a few seconds later car backs out of garage. similar ro problems of #123.
    Like # 117 car shifts when it feels like it, seldom the same.Has the worst case of driveline slack/backlash I have ever seen on any car, especially one with a $33,000 window sticker.
    Local Ford dealer (not the one that unloaded the car on us) had car for 8 days and couldn't find a problem.
    As a warning to future buyers, this car has no sparetire! Just a made in CHINA plug into lighter air pumpwith some gummy substance in it. Have anything but a puncture and you are screwed, roadside service will only put on spare, where you are needing a rollback. I tried to buy a spare from Ford but they ignored me.
    I would sign off by saying I doubt very much if a bunch of overpaid engrs. at givr a damn what an old man in In. has to say about anything.
    Thank You and happy motoring!!
  • fixer199fixer199 Member Posts: 1
    edited December 2011
    Check TSB 11-11-11 for cars built before 12/20/2010. It's for the delayed engagement & also 2-3 & 4-5 upshift problems and requires replacement of 3 shift solenoids plus some other parts. It also affects some F-150s.

    Unfortunately, the required parts are not available anywhere in the Ford system as of mid-Dec 2011. The dealership is "referred to vendor" but nobody can tell us when the parts will be available.

    Yes, I too am sick of the Ford warranty process! I never ever thought I would say this, but I wish I had bought a Hyundai! That's truly sad!
  • wilcoxwilcox Member Posts: 582
    edited December 2011
    I think he's spilled some kind of nasty carbonated beverage on his shifting console.

    Beer or coke will mess them up. Generally, the shop will have to quickly replace the whole shift selecting mechanism and not have to mess with the transmission insides. It's easier to replace the whole assembly rather than trying to find the corrupted component. I know this much from experience.

    That's the reward we get for having beverage holders located right next to that key piece of equipment. :cry::cry:
  • jfiore11jfiore11 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2002 Ford Mustang v6 automatic, and I have been experiencing surging. My car chugs a little when I turn her on, and then is fine until about 30-45 mph she starts to surge. Once I get to 50 mph the surging ceases. What confuses me is that it does not surge every time I am around 30-45 mph, only when I am trying to hold a steady speed, not if I am purely accelerating (like getting on the freeway).
  • jerryrhojerryrho Member Posts: 1
    my wife bought a new 2006 mustang v-6 auto. the thing has never been right. dealer says they all have a delayed shift. this is b.s. hers takes 3 to 4 seconds to decide to clunk in gear (when she gets it out of park) there is no way that is normal.has anyone had there dealer fix one on warranty she only has 60000 miles on this one and has been acting this way since about 26000
  • agoodcaragoodcar Member Posts: 1
    I am having the same problems on my 2011 mustang V6 coupe.
    I noticed that if I deactivate the Traction control it seems to shift better
    for awhile.
    Also, if I drive aggressively the shifting seems tighter.

    I'm now getting slipping when I punch it a little from a dead stop.(not good)
    You mentioned a Chip to correct your problems. What chip were you
    referring to? Is it a tuning chip?
    Let me me know what it is, I might want to try it if Ford can't fix this problem.
    Thanks!
  • mustangheathermustangheather Member Posts: 3
    Mine does the same thing once awhile. I noticed if I turn the traction control button off it stops and drives like normal. I think I might have it replaced? The light doesn't come on anymore, does yours?
  • mustangheathermustangheather Member Posts: 3
    Thank you for your answers! My car was doing the same thing as the original poster in this thread. It fixed the problem!
  • browneyes2blubrowneyes2blu Member Posts: 16
    please pass on this message......if your not getting the service that you need for your problems,contack the local district management in your area and state.we have been (i believe ignored)with these problems.read my past postings.i still have the same problems and still working on this.
  • danthisdanthis Member Posts: 1
    I recently bought a 2002 v6 3.8l mustang with automatic transmission.
    I am experiancing a jerking bucking motion in overdrive when trying to hold steady speed.
    It aslo does it when at cruising speeds of 40mph and above when I take my foot off of the gas pedal.
    I have put the following aditives in the tranmission....
    lucas transmission treatment, bars leak transmission treatment, and shutter elimanator.
    nothing has worked, can anyone please tell me what im looking at before i have it checked out by machanic.
    please and thank you for reading
  • browneyes2blubrowneyes2blu Member Posts: 16
    try not use your overdrive unless your driving on open road 55 speed and over.
  • akirbyakirby Member Posts: 8,062
    There really isn't an "overdrive" per se - it's just 5th gear and there's no reason not to use it unless you're going up and down hills and causing it to constantly downshift to keep up.
  • cbellvillecbellville Member Posts: 1
    I have a 96 3.8 Mustang, 5 speed. Only in 2nd gear it has a rattle noise. If I let off the gas it goes away but gets louder with more acceleration. Has anyone else ran into this problem?
  • silver19silver19 Member Posts: 1
    well sorry to say it but that's how the tranny start messing up and boom it fails. mine failed at 87000 miles started doing the same thing as your wife tranny. I got a junkyard tranny on mine now with 40000 on it now but its OK for now. i did put lucas antislip tranny lube and it did make my car shift better and made it last. I dont know if it was low or what but just have it refill. seem like if these tranny run a lil low they will hesitate to shift when they in park or cold. i had mine refilled and it worked better. i must have a leak because every other 4 months it starts again. wish i had a dipstick. American muscle sells PA fluid pan with dipstick conversion for under 400. its worth if you want to check your level and dont want to wait at the dealer for hours to have it refill :/ fyi those damn dealers suck
  • js06gvjs06gv Member Posts: 456
    I know it's several months later but wanted to tell you thanks very much for he info. My 2011 GT automatic had been doing everything mentioned in your post. I googled the TSB, took it in to a Ford dealer with the printout and the Svc manager was already familiar with the issue. Left the car with them for a day, they got the parts late afternoon and I had it back that evening. Car shifts beautifully now, like new again. I have 18K miles and the bad shifting and hesitating seemed to have started at about 10K. It was definitely getting worse too. My gauge on that was my wife (her car) as she never notices anything but this was bad enough that she mentioned "I think there's something with my car..."

    2019 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, 2019 Ford Mustang GT Premium, 2016 Kia Optima SX, 2013 Ford F-150 King Ranch, 2000 Pontiac Trans Am WS6, 2001 Kawasaki Vulcan 800 Classic

  • rickel2rickel2 Member Posts: 1
    edited May 2012
    2011 V6 Mustang, auto tranny. Dealer replaced throttle and 3 solenoids. Car rides beautifully now. Never worked as it should have for a new car. Now, at 20.6k, the car runs as it always should have run from the gitgo. Thankful.
  • ezshift5ezshift5 Member Posts: 858
    2012 V-6 6M proved somewhat less than expected. Shifts seemed resistive and 'unsmooth'......... I drove home in my Gen7 Honda V-6 6M and have never looked back. All my high school buds urge me buy American. I'd really like to do that. However, the Ford's drivetrain just does not inspire much confidence for this sailor

    ez
  • soon2bwalkingsoon2bwalking Member Posts: 1
    Bought it used, trans did not slip on test drive, four days later it was slipping so badly it is not safe 2 drive, after a stop sign or accelerating sometimes it will not accelerate and revs come up as if in neutral, 60,000 miles! can not easily check fluid level or condition because the car does not have a dipstick! Car has no visible trans leaks, not sure I will ever purchase a ford car again
  • jb1950jb1950 Member Posts: 3
    Sounds like somebody got hosed on that sales transaction and now blames it on Ford!

    :cry:
  • batwranglerbatwrangler Member Posts: 2
    one thing about this ,,,why mess with it,,,stiff is better
  • bullitt683bullitt683 Member Posts: 1
    Do you still have Bullitt and is it fixed. I had same problem with my 08 Bullitt. Transmission and clutch were replaced at 30,000 miles after a lot of complaining. Veh came out as if it had 130,000 miles on it. "New" transmission was worse and I complained to dealer and Ford. Veh has been "checked" by other Ford dealer and no problems, yet transmission has vibrations and grines in all gears and will "pop" out of 4th. Of course Ford just told me that since their dealers can't find a problem ( Ford won"t pay them to fix it), they just ignore it waiting for after market waranty to fix it. I'm like you, I love my car and hoped to drive it a long time, but I will never trust Ford or their dealers to ever do the right thing. I have a 98 F-150 with 334,000 miles on it and it has never had a "Ford factory trained" mechanis turn a wrench on it. By the way, the gears grind in all tempertures.
  • lylemac59lylemac59 Member Posts: 1
    I purchased my 2006 Stage I Roush Mustang new in January of 06. I overpaid for the car but loved it. At about 30,000 miles, I noticed some oddities in the shifting but nothing too serious. Just more of clunking into slower speeds. I had my 5speed automatic transmission serviced at 35,000 miles. About 3 years and 50,000 miles, my transmission began to "Clunk" hard into reverse and into any gear at slower speeds. Since I was then going through a tough divorce and she was trying to take the car, I ignored some of these issues. Now at 75,000 miles, I had the transmission looked at by a local transmission shop. He removed the pan and found nothing out of the ordinary. He changed the filter and added new fluid. He basically said that Ford has not made a decent transmission in decades but felt that I should be able to get another 20,000 miles out of it. Today at 84,000 miles, my transmission is slipping terribly at freeway speeds and clunks very hard into reverse. I noticed that it took several miles at 75 MPH to finally shift into overdrive or 5th gear. 84,000 miles is not a lot of miles for a car of todays engineering. Toyota's can go into the 200,000 mile range before needing serious work.

    I have been quoted $2,700.00 for a top notch shop to rebuild my trans but I am leery as to if the actual issue is the transmission or is it an electronic issue? I would hate to pay that money and it continues. I am very disappointed in Ford and I do vow I will NEVER buy another Ford product again.
  • shunt8884shunt8884 Member Posts: 1
    So i bought an 89 gt...was on the way home with it and got about 20 minutes out of town with it before it would no longer go...there was some type of grinding/whining audible when i was driving it. I marked it down to a wheel bearing until i noticed it stopped when i pushed the clutch in...well not to far down the road it made a bang and then it wouldn't drive anymore...not an engine issue...so my question is did something just come disconnected? Did i blow a u-joint? My driveshaft doesn't seem to be hanging down so i dunno about the u-joint...am i going to need a new transmission? Please...any input would be great. Thank you!
  • mustang_brokemustang_broke Member Posts: 2
    After driving a short time the Safe Mode goes in and the car will only stay in second gear. Repair shop has not been able to solve the problem. It is a 2005. What you think?
  • guntinggunting Member Posts: 1
    I also have a 2006 Mustang GT with an automatic transmission with the same transmission symptoms. What did you end up doing? I guess Ford is not acknowledging an issue with the transmission.
  • mustang_brokemustang_broke Member Posts: 2
    It is my grandson's car. He took it back to dealer and they fixed something but the safe mode light is back on. I don't know yet what he is going to do other than take it back. :(
  • joe290joe290 Member Posts: 1
    The 2005 mustang has 105,000 mi and it was working great until yesterday tues.4/30/2013.when the automatic transmission started slipping on drive .but it doesnt slip when im over 20mph
  • lupa1lupa1 Member Posts: 1
    I have the same problem with my 2011 v6. brought into shop Monday and the for tech stated that rec'd service bulletin from ford that there was two bad solenoids in tranny that need to be replace as they have been having troubles as you described, plus mine sometimes will not move when you first put in drive, it takes a few seconds for it to catch. Still have not got it fixed parts had to be ordered from West Coast and have not all arrived yet.
Sign In or Register to comment.