So Im driving my buddy home tonight and I turn up a steep hill and my car shifts into 1st with a jerk and quickly into second....'odd' I thought cause I wasn't mashing the gas, but I keep driving. Well a couple blocks go by and my CEL comes on (not flashing just on) and my car wont shift past second. So I bring it home and put it in park and back into drive. It jerks like a bitch now when i put it in gear. I checked the fluid and everything is fine. There was no warning for this and I haven't been abusing my tranny. Im gonna be pissed if I need a new tranny cause im 2,000 miles out of warranty.

Sounds like your car went into limp mode. What caused it, I dunno. Check your fluids condition, is it burnt? How many miles are on the transmission? Id be really careful and not drive it at all, so many complicated things that could be wrong and you dont want to compound them together into one.

You have a sensor out the question is which one. If you have a working speedometer then its the input sensor thats out. If the speedometer isnt working then its the output sensor. Either way itll cost you about $30 for the part and its about as difficult to replace as a spark plug. If you have any questions just let me know.

output speed sensor. my wires were so brittle they literally broke in my hand when i inspected them. since you're down there, go ahead and clean all the connections and all and check all the wires. i gaurentee you that's what it is.
later

yep either output speed sensor or the tps sensor will cause similar results, easy fix, just go buy a output and input speed sensor and swap them (do both trust me) then if after you reset the CEL by disconnecting the battery, if its still in limp mode replace the TPS sensor and youll be all set.

No worries, tranny is fine

ok, i ordered an output speed sensor today....(i didnt see your post or i would have ordered both) according to the dealer the input and output sensors have the same number but in the dsm manual they do not look the same, whats up with that? and also is it safe to drive for a couple days until the part comes in?

thank you guys so much. i was seriously getting scared. this is the first thing that has broke on my car.

Personally, I wouldnt drive if your cars in limp home mode.

Listen to ^^^^^^^ his car is always broken. Don't do it.

lol, damn dude, now you're making it personal;). But yea ive been in limp mode way too many times. talk about going 65 on the interstate at 4k on the tach.

I dont recommend doing it because the input/output sensors may NOT be the problem. Not out ruling them, but just saying it could be something else. Lets hope not though! If the drop or upshift to 2nd real fast wasnt very violent, dont worry about excessive damage. My shifts into limp mode were very violent.

joseph

I like electronic transmissions.

Just thought I'd say that.

im not sure its in limp mode exactly. I had to drive it today and it did shift into third. It just seems like it doesn't know what gear to be in because when I slow down a bit it slams into second. I can take back roads to all the places I need to go for the next couple days so I think I'll just leave it in 2 and go slow so it doesn't try to kill itself. Does autozone hook up your car to a computer to check the CEL? I may run it there tomorrow if they do. Satan wants $65 and they are booked till next week.

like i said, check the connections and wires. mine were very brittle and that's why mine wasn't working for a day. but yeah, just do that first before you buy a new sensor.
later

just thought id give an update. All of my wires and connections were fine. i replaced the output sensor...didnt work. flushed the tranny...didnt work. replaced input sensor...BINGO. btw for future reference if your car is giving a cell for: Incorrect ratio in gears 1-3, incorrect input shaft ratio, and 2 more (6 total) i cant remember, then the problem is probably the input sensor. Thanks for all the help...got me fixed in time to drive to the beach :thumbsup

Ive had both sensors go out. As soon as you described it I knew that it was your sensor. Its a good thing you replcaed both. They usually go out closetogether so if ones out now the other would fail soon but now you have two new sensors and you should be good to go for a long while now :thumbsup .

and just for future reference if its your output sensor thats bad your speedo/tach wont work. But its always best to replace both of them