a/t p38 loss of drive................

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gti power

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hi guys my a/t p38 lost drive today halfway home like a slipping clutch on a manual is the only way can describe. it will how ever reverse,all gears select but no drive.and the gearbox fault is displayed on dash.the aa man said could be a sticking valve inside the box anyone?
anyways of diagnosing?
 
sounds similar to mine try pulling off in 1st then if it pulls off drive it like a manual but when you come to a dead stop you will have to put in 1st again if it does,it could be the spragg clutch if so it could be deeeeeeep pocket time
 
andrew j said:
sounds similar to mine try pulling off in 1st then if it pulls off drive it like a manual but when you come to a dead stop you will have to put in 1st again if it does,it could be the spragg clutch if so it could be deeeeeeep pocket time
Click to expand...
it wont pull off at all.
 
done a search and this sort bof fault seems to pop up with the mention of a snapped band within the box anyone care to add?
 
right spoke to few people today an the one said that there is a 5plate paddle clutch for the forward drive gear and a seperate on for the reverse thinks would be this due to the reverse still working and next sugestion was a inhibitor switch but as i was driving along in "d" when it failed i can not see it being this?plus it felt as a slipping clutch in a manual car would so im with option 1 anyone care to add some simple a/t diagnostic tips before i dive in?
 
Could be a sensor fault... When you get a GEARBOX FAULT the box goes into some sort of safe mode with very poor performance. I had a problem with my gear position switch that resultet in a gearbox fault every time i put it in reverse. That gave the exact same symptom. If you try to start the car twice without moving the gear lever, at least my error went away and I could drive like normal until next gearbox fault.

Best thing to do would probably be to get it hooked up and read what causes the GEARBOX FAULT.
 
tnfno said:
Could be a sensor fault... When you get a GEARBOX FAULT the box goes into some sort of safe mode with very poor performance. I had a problem with my gear position switch that resultet in a gearbox fault every time i put it in reverse. That gave the exact same symptom. If you try to start the car twice without moving the gear lever, at least my error went away and I could drive like normal until next gearbox fault.

Best thing to do would probably be to get it hooked up and read what causes the GEARBOX FAULT.
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is that going to be a main dearler/ specialist jobby?
 
I believe there is a gearbox speed sensor connector mounted below the expansion tank :confused: try unplugging it and clean the contacts
 
If it is the sensor you do it yourself in 30 minutes if you have a new one and 1-2 hours if you fix the one you have. It is really easy to access.

A gearbox fault can of course be coused by a lot of other errors as well, my point was that the loss of power you feel was excactly how it was for me, and it was just a sensor fault, nothing mechanical (and expensive) in the gearbox. So before you start to take the gearbox apart, check the sensor and maybe get the car hooked up to a Rovacom/Faultmate to see what causes the error.

If you have been driving in wet weather lately I think it sound like the sensor can be the fault. Can you feel any difference in how the gear selector feels? When mine was full of water since the breather hose had fallen off, The selector went smoother between the gears, not the distinct 'clunk' for each position. I also noticed that the selector position, indicator light by the selector and the dashboard indicator did not match. When the gearbox fault came up, the gear indicator on the dash dissappeared completely.

I made a post with some pictures of the sensor here some time ago.
 
tnfno said:
If it is the sensor you do it yourself in 30 minutes if you have a new one and 1-2 hours if you fix the one you have. It is really easy to access.

A gearbox fault can of course be coused by a lot of other errors as well, my point was that the loss of power you feel was excactly how it was for me, and it was just a sensor fault, nothing mechanical (and expensive) in the gearbox. So before you start to take the gearbox apart, check the sensor and maybe get the car hooked up to a Rovacom/Faultmate to see what causes the error.

If you have been driving in wet weather lately I think it sound like the sensor can be the fault. Can you feel any difference in how the gear selector feels? When mine was full of water since the breather hose had fallen off, The selector went smoother between the gears, not the distinct 'clunk' for each position. I also noticed that the selector position, indicator light by the selector and the dashboard indicator did not match. When the gearbox fault came up, the gear indicator on the dash dissappeared completely.

I made a post with some pictures of the sensor here some time ago.
Click to expand...
right cheers well the dash does match the gear but i dont get the clunk into gear exept in "r" so are you saying you was driving along just as i was when yours failed?that is called an inhibitor switch
 
No, mine started to flash the lights, I had it in D, the light next to the stick showed N and the dash display showed 1. SOmetimes I had other combinations and then suddenly it would work for a few days.

I got the gearbox fault every time I put it in R. But, I guess it could be all kinds of results of a fault in the sensor. Mine was wet inside, and I guess that led to unpredictable combinations of what signals the sensor sent.

As mentioned, it is quick to take off and check. If you have very soft shifts from the different positions, that was the exact feeling mine had as well. As soon as it was dried, it was back to the old clicks. Would be very quick to go under the car with a flashligth to check if the breather hose is connected. If it is not, it is wet inside for sure.
 
worth a try clean both multi plugs under coolant expansion tank
 
gti power said:
done this but will try switch weekend
Click to expand...
done this and the breather was on removed but did not open up as im not convinced this is my fault,its something internal i think the forward drive clutch has burnt out as i have removed the sump that somone mentioned would have a broken band on if this had failed? im not sure as i think after the sump i was looking at the valve block(cast alloy with lots of torques bolts) think the box is comming out tomorrow anyone wanto add?
 
I would still recomend you to get it hooked up and read the fault code that causes the gearbox fault. This will probably give you a good idea what is wrong.
 
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