Hey Guys,
Want some opinions on what you would do in this scenario. Maybe @13COBRA can chime in with some advice.
Bought my R/T new in 16' with a bit under 300 miles on it. First year was great. No problems. Second year, I noticed that every time I come to a stop, there is a hard downshift from 5-4 and then 2-1. So, did some digging, get on a durango forum, find out it is a common issue and most have the dealer look at it. This is when the long process starts.
First time in, I leave the car for a couple of days, they drive it around and tell me they cannot replicate the issue and that they did an update and the problem (according to them "if" there was one, is fixed). Fast forward a week, issue is back, and slightly more noticeable. I call back, explain it and get a tech to do a ride along. This is now visit # 2. I'm driving and make sure I can get up to speed to slow down enough from 5th gear. The tech notices the "surges" every time the car downshifts from 5th to 4th and then coming to a complete stop where the car jumps forward an inch or two (from what it feels like) and this is from 2-1. They do another update, reset the parameters on the shift points and the next day I pick the car up.
A few months pass and this is going into my 3rd year of ownership. The issue is back. I try to deal with it for a few more months and eventually cave. This time, I send an email to the service department explaining the situation from start to finish in writing so nothing is lost in translation. I get a call from the General Mgr. of the dealer and he is frustrated my issue hasn't been fixed and assures me they will make it right. I then start to work with the Customer Service Mgr. and he said he is having his best tech diagnose it. So, I'm game at this point.
I meet with the master tech, explain everything, we go for a ride. He notices the issues immediately. He also says he knows exactly what to do and that he will have to contact "STAR" for support. The plan was for him to drive the car to and from work (about 70 miles round trip) daily as he troubleshoots the issue. About a week later, they call and advise the car is perfect. They did a complete relearn on the ECU, PCM, TB and the Transmission. They also reset all of the shift points and manually configured them and reset the pedal sensor as well. So, I'm stoked it's finished and the issue is gone. Get it back, drive it around. After about a month, the issue comes back. This is when I kind of throw in the towel. Then COVID hit, the dealer closed for a while and I gave up.
Now, when you drive the car, not only does it have the rough 5-4 downshift and 2-1 when you come to a stop, but if you're doing 30-40 MPH and floor it, the car will actually jump and it feels like you just got rear ended and it won't go anywhere for a second and then it finally shifts and goes. This is pretty consistent. Now I'm at the point where I am tired of this thing. The dealer has put hundreds of miles on my car, gone through more than a tank of gas troubleshooting it and made several attempts to fix the car. Others I've talked to that had the exact same issue, their dealer replaced the transmission and no further issues occurred.
It's been over a year since I had the car back. What would you guys do? My warranty expires in a year and I don't want to be stuck with a paper weight since the transmission is over $4,000.
Sorry for the long read. I've gone back and forth with many people on Mopar FB groups, dodge forums, etc. My wife thinks I should call and tell them to flat out replace the transmission since all of the electronic work they do does absolutely nothing and the problem is only getting worse. Or I find another dealer, but then I feel like they are going to start from scratch and do exactly what the previous dealer did. Now, management with that dealer I've been going to has changed and all of the staff that worked on my car, including the big bosses have been replaced.
The car is now 5 years old and barely has over 30K miles.
One thing I can say, is the car isn't going anywhere. It will be paid off next year and I do love this thing so much. I just hate the constant shifting issues and it leaves a bad taste in my mouth about the car. So, I won't be selling or trading for something better as I don't want a payment for another 6 years. LOL.
Thanks folks
-Chris
Want some opinions on what you would do in this scenario. Maybe @13COBRA can chime in with some advice.
Bought my R/T new in 16' with a bit under 300 miles on it. First year was great. No problems. Second year, I noticed that every time I come to a stop, there is a hard downshift from 5-4 and then 2-1. So, did some digging, get on a durango forum, find out it is a common issue and most have the dealer look at it. This is when the long process starts.
First time in, I leave the car for a couple of days, they drive it around and tell me they cannot replicate the issue and that they did an update and the problem (according to them "if" there was one, is fixed). Fast forward a week, issue is back, and slightly more noticeable. I call back, explain it and get a tech to do a ride along. This is now visit # 2. I'm driving and make sure I can get up to speed to slow down enough from 5th gear. The tech notices the "surges" every time the car downshifts from 5th to 4th and then coming to a complete stop where the car jumps forward an inch or two (from what it feels like) and this is from 2-1. They do another update, reset the parameters on the shift points and the next day I pick the car up.
A few months pass and this is going into my 3rd year of ownership. The issue is back. I try to deal with it for a few more months and eventually cave. This time, I send an email to the service department explaining the situation from start to finish in writing so nothing is lost in translation. I get a call from the General Mgr. of the dealer and he is frustrated my issue hasn't been fixed and assures me they will make it right. I then start to work with the Customer Service Mgr. and he said he is having his best tech diagnose it. So, I'm game at this point.
I meet with the master tech, explain everything, we go for a ride. He notices the issues immediately. He also says he knows exactly what to do and that he will have to contact "STAR" for support. The plan was for him to drive the car to and from work (about 70 miles round trip) daily as he troubleshoots the issue. About a week later, they call and advise the car is perfect. They did a complete relearn on the ECU, PCM, TB and the Transmission. They also reset all of the shift points and manually configured them and reset the pedal sensor as well. So, I'm stoked it's finished and the issue is gone. Get it back, drive it around. After about a month, the issue comes back. This is when I kind of throw in the towel. Then COVID hit, the dealer closed for a while and I gave up.
Now, when you drive the car, not only does it have the rough 5-4 downshift and 2-1 when you come to a stop, but if you're doing 30-40 MPH and floor it, the car will actually jump and it feels like you just got rear ended and it won't go anywhere for a second and then it finally shifts and goes. This is pretty consistent. Now I'm at the point where I am tired of this thing. The dealer has put hundreds of miles on my car, gone through more than a tank of gas troubleshooting it and made several attempts to fix the car. Others I've talked to that had the exact same issue, their dealer replaced the transmission and no further issues occurred.
It's been over a year since I had the car back. What would you guys do? My warranty expires in a year and I don't want to be stuck with a paper weight since the transmission is over $4,000.
Sorry for the long read. I've gone back and forth with many people on Mopar FB groups, dodge forums, etc. My wife thinks I should call and tell them to flat out replace the transmission since all of the electronic work they do does absolutely nothing and the problem is only getting worse. Or I find another dealer, but then I feel like they are going to start from scratch and do exactly what the previous dealer did. Now, management with that dealer I've been going to has changed and all of the staff that worked on my car, including the big bosses have been replaced.
The car is now 5 years old and barely has over 30K miles.
One thing I can say, is the car isn't going anywhere. It will be paid off next year and I do love this thing so much. I just hate the constant shifting issues and it leaves a bad taste in my mouth about the car. So, I won't be selling or trading for something better as I don't want a payment for another 6 years. LOL.
Thanks folks
-Chris