Part of the usefulness of a manual-gate in an automatic transmission is that it can be used in (all too common) bumper-to-bumper freeway traffic in Los Angeles. How? By neatly toggling between first and second gear, the car isn't freewheeling in third or fourth gear at 25 mph. This way, I don't need to constantly cover the brake pedal; rather I can simply ease off the throttle as traffic slows, and squeeze some more if it picks up. I've done this for years in literally hundreds of vehicles, but on repeated occasions, our Sonata resisted my technique.
I wish I could replicate the circumstances with precision, but under what conditions the following happens is not exactly clear. In the manual mode, the transmission is in first gear. Traffic begins to pick up (to about 25 mph) so I select second gear. The transmission accepts my request, upshifts to second--momentarily--then shifts BACK to first gear. The revs zing up to (I'm guessing) 4000 rpm as I'm now traveling about 30 mph. And if I'm not still accelerating, the nose dives as massive engine braking begins. If I'm quick to push the shifter forward at this point, the transmission goes back to second gear--momentarily--and then again, back to first. From the outside, I must look like a kid learning how to operate a clutch as the Sonata lurches like a bucking bronco. Now, I might not be using the transmission properly, but like I said, I've used this same method hundreds of times on other cars and I've never experienced this kind of random shift logic before. Nor is this scenario repeatable on demand. We'll try to get to the bottom of this shifty business and let you know what's going on. Chris Walton--Chief Road Test Editor 14,505 miles
ribbonspeakers says:
11:09 AM, 06/21/06
Bummer. Do you agree it appears to be some type of software glitch? Maybe if the dealer simply re-loads the tranny software all will be well.
ahightower says:
05:59 AM, 06/22/06
I wonder if it has anything to do with the temperature. The automatic transmission on my Dodge Stratus (it's a company car, I would never buy this dog with my own money) gets kind of worked up in hilly areas when the cruise control is on. It's not exactly the same issue, but it doesn't seem to occur until I've been driving over a couple hours, and if I stop for a rest break and get back in, it seems normal again. Does your problem happen after a significant length of time in traffic? Maybe it's getting overheated? I'm not real mechanically inclined, but it's the only thing I can think of.
ahightower says:
06:00 AM, 06/22/06
... what I mean by "worked up" is that is gets confused and holds lower gears too long and jumps around much too often.
cwalton1 says:
06:54 AM, 06/22/06
After I posted this yesterday, I did a little Web sleuthing to see if there might be a recall or TSB on the Sonata's transmission. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, there wasn't. Luckily, we have a former Hyundai engineer (chassis, not powertrain) on staff who can call the guy who designed the "shift scheduling" on this car. We'll get to the bottom of this soon, so keep checking back.
The problem doesn't seem to be related to heat or duration of use. Almost from the moment I get on the freeway (I-10 east in Santa Monica, CA) one block from the office, I'm in bumper-to-bumper traffic and the problem begins. It really seems to be a software anomaly I've stumbled upon, and whatever I'm doing seems to flummox the programming.
Chris Walton--Chief Road Test Editor
billt9 says:
05:11 PM, 06/23/06
You need to think like a Korean. Your thought process is incompatible. The Sonata is doing it right. It is you who want to force it to do it the western way lol!
edmund2001 says:
07:20 AM, 10/ 7/06
I have also had the 1, 2 shift problem in the manual mode on my 2006 Sonata LX. After shifting into second gear it goes back into first gear on its own and of course raises the revs to 5000 rpm or higher! At this point you start to panic a little bit but I immediately let off on the gas and return it to the automatic mode & recover from the situation. I've taken it twice to the Hyundai service department and of course it did not happen when I went for a ride with them. Its occurance is very unpredictable. Has any one else had this problem and was it fixed?