2010 with shuddering / slipping transmission

browntown3

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cx9
Hello, i have a 2010 cx9 with 140k miles on it, within the past 5,000 miles it has started slipping/shuddering when shifting from 4th to 5th gear and has even slipped while in 6th gear going down the interstate. I researched for days online before i bought this car and never saw any issues with the transmission reported on these cars. however since having the problem ive found other instances where this has happend (of course my luck). I called my dealer and service manager said he could not honestly remember any cx9's coming in with transmission issues and he had been there for 20 years. Ive changed the fluid twice with mazda fluid myself and each time i change it, it runs perfect for a week or so with no slipping then slowly it would come back. A local shop recommended using lubeguard "shudder fix" which i tried with the second fluid change and it was great for a couple weeks, but now slipping worse than ever. Im pretty sure its the torque converter slipping, has anyone had this problem and what have you guys done to resolve? Im thinking new torque converter but they are over $1000 for this model, and thinking a rebuilt or used trans. would be of better benefit since the trans. would have to come out anyway? Mazda said all they would do would be put a new one in, so it looks like a transmission shop would be my better option? Just wanted some insight before i start throwing big money that i dont have at this thing!!
Thanks
 
Hello, i have a 2010 cx9 with 140k miles on it, within the past 5,000 miles it has started slipping/shuddering when shifting from 4th to 5th gear and has even slipped while in 6th gear going down the interstate. I researched for days online before i bought this car and never saw any issues with the transmission reported on these cars. however since having the problem ive found other instances where this has happend (of course my luck). I called my dealer and service manager said he could not honestly remember any cx9's coming in with transmission issues and he had been there for 20 years. Ive changed the fluid twice with mazda fluid myself and each time i change it, it runs perfect for a week or so with no slipping then slowly it would come back. A local shop recommended using lubeguard "shudder fix" which i tried with the second fluid change and it was great for a couple weeks, but now slipping worse than ever. Im pretty sure its the torque converter slipping, has anyone had this problem and what have you guys done to resolve? Im thinking new torque converter but they are over $1000 for this model, and thinking a rebuilt or used trans. would be of better benefit since the trans. would have to come out anyway? Mazda said all they would do would be put a new one in, so it looks like a transmission shop would be my better option? Just wanted some insight before i start throwing big money that i dont have at this thing!!
Thanks

It's a long shot but you can try 2 bottles of Lucas transmission slip lube. It's thicker honey type lube that helps the clutches in the transmission. It's worth a try. We used it in my buddies Expedition, it went from slipping to shifting like butter.
 
First I've had similar problems with a completely different vehicle (Jeeps), so take everything I say with a grain of salt.

My question would be: do you plan on keeping the car for a long time, or do you expect to get rid of it sometime soon? If it were my car, and my intent was to keep it for a length of time, I'd just get the problem fixed properly. That way I'm not doing any more collateral damage by continuing to drive with iffy components or by adding "fixes" to the system. You could go for a new converter, or see if you can pick up a used, low mile converter at an auto salvage yard? Same with the transmission, if you need one. You could also look into the aftermarket? Many companies offer aftermarket torque converters for multiple applications, and very often they are more robust and cheaper than stock. Again, not sure about the mazda applications, but I used to use Summit Racing and JEGS alot.

I know for the jeeps, rebuilt units are the norm, and save quite a bit of $$$, but I'm not sure what the market looks like for Mazda units.

Of course if you plan to get rid of the Mazda soon anyway, then I'd go the band-aid route and let it ride until it's time to move on.
 
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My recommendation is to ensure it is not a misfire by getting it diagnosed. My issue was similar and was misdiagnosed as a transmission issue. Ended up being a bad coil and plug. There were no codes until I asked the dealer to connect the laptop and drive the car. Good luck.

- ZoomFive
 
I have the same issue in my 2008 CX9 GT. The dealer suggested a TCM update/reset, which was performed. If this did improve the situation they said it would be the transmission. I only have 104K miles. The situation has not improved. I am going for a 2nd opinion as a new transmission is very expensive. If I go to a different dealership, would they know that this was already diagnosed? Do they have some sort of general database that they see?
 
I have the same issue in my 2008 CX9 GT. The dealer suggested a TCM update/reset, which was performed. If this did improve the situation they said it would be the transmission. I only have 104K miles. The situation has not improved. I am going for a 2nd opinion as a new transmission is very expensive. If I go to a different dealership, would they know that this was already diagnosed? Do they have some sort of general database that they see?

It's always your prerogative to go for a second opinion. That said, I believe other dealers may be able to see your service record. I don't believe that it matters as I'm guessing you're paying for the diagnosis being out of warranty. You can even tell them what they did to diagnose and tell them to see what they might have missed. Good luck.
 
UPDATE: I changed spark plugs and tested all coils, no luck on helping with transmission but did make the car run better. The dealer had never heard of any kind of updates on the ecu electrical components of the transmission go figure. I took it to two different transmission shops, there were no electrical codes at all with transmission at either shop, both suggested it was the torque converter which i believe it is too. One shop said they couldnt know until the took it apart and gave me a 1500-3500$ range which i didnt like. I like knowing exactly what its going to cost. The other trans. shop which i trust and have had other work done on another truck i owned believed the torque converter would fix it, it would be 1200$ or used transmission with 85K miles with 18 month warranty for $2500. He told me where he was getting the transmission and i searched online and its selling for 1000$ so is 1500$ the going rate for removal and replacement of a transmission on these cars?? seems a little high to me so thats my dilemma. The car is paid for, my wife and i both like driving it but the gas mileage is not what we need/expected out of it we drive ALOT of miles. A couple of other little issues keep popping up here and there so were about ready to just get rid of it. I dont want to try to sell as is b/c who wants to buy a car with trans problems, so im thinking of just replacing the converter and selling or keeping a little longer ? what are you thoughts guys? i appreciate all your replies. OH and also i just found a rebuilt torque converter for 250$ to add to the mix of "what to do" I cant find any info on how to drop the transmission yourself on these cars and taking a look it looks pretty tough job just didnt know if 1000 to put in a converter or 1500 to drop and replace used tranny is the going rate ? THanks
 
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UPDATE: I changed spark plugs and tested all coils, no luck on helping with transmission but did make the car run better. The dealer had never heard of any kind of updates on the ecu electrical components of the transmission go figure. I took it to two different transmission shops, there were no electrical codes at all with transmission at either shop, both suggested it was the torque converter which i believe it is too. One shop said they couldnt know until the took it apart and gave me a 1500-3500$ range which i didnt like. I like knowing exactly what its going to cost. The other trans. shop which i trust and have had other work done on another truck i owned believed the torque converter would fix it, it would be 1200$ or used transmission with 85K miles with 18 month warranty for $2500. He told me where he was getting the transmission and i searched online and its selling for 1000$ so is 1500$ the going rate for removal and replacement of a transmission on these cars?? seems a little high to me so thats my dilemma. The car is paid for, my wife and i both like driving it but the gas mileage is not what we need/expected out of it we drive ALOT of miles. A couple of other little issues keep popping up here and there so were about ready to just get rid of it. I dont want to try to sell as is b/c who wants to buy a car with trans problems, so im thinking of just replacing the converter and selling or keeping a little longer ? what are you thoughts guys? i appreciate all your replies. OH and also i just found a rebuilt torque converter for 250$ to add to the mix of "what to do" I cant find any info on how to drop the transmission yourself on these cars and taking a look it looks pretty tough job just didnt know if 1000 to put in a converter or 1500 to drop and replace used tranny is the going rate ? THanks

I don't know what a 8 year old CX-9 with 140,000 miles is worth, but you have to make a judgement based on the value of the car and the potential cost of this repair. If the rest of the car is in good shape, I'd probably fix it. If the current value of the car was well north of $2500, I'd probably get the used transmission installed. You might be able to get it done more cheaply if you do the legwork of finding a used low-mileage transmission from a salvage yard (with a warranty), and shipping it to another shop to do the install, assuming you can find one that will just quote you a labor rate. The last time I looked into this, the time required to remove and replace a transmission was in the 8-10 hour range, so $1000 would be the upper end of what I would expect to pay for labor only. In most cases, shops will add 30% onto the part costs as well, so that's probably why the total was adding up to near $2500: ~$1300 for the transmission, ~$1000 for labor, ~$100 for transmission fluid, ~$100 for miscellaneous stuff.

If the car has other issues, I'd probably sell it as is for as much as I could get and move on.
 
UPDATE: I changed spark plugs and tested all coils, no luck on helping with transmission but did make the car run better. The dealer had never heard of any kind of updates on the ecu electrical components of the transmission go figure. I took it to two different transmission shops, there were no electrical codes at all with transmission at either shop, both suggested it was the torque converter which i believe it is too. One shop said they couldnt know until the took it apart and gave me a 1500-3500$ range which i didnt like. I like knowing exactly what its going to cost. The other trans. shop which i trust and have had other work done on another truck i owned believed the torque converter would fix it, it would be 1200$ or used transmission with 85K miles with 18 month warranty for $2500. He told me where he was getting the transmission and i searched online and its selling for 1000$ so is 1500$ the going rate for removal and replacement of a transmission on these cars?? seems a little high to me so thats my dilemma. The car is paid for, my wife and i both like driving it but the gas mileage is not what we need/expected out of it we drive ALOT of miles. A couple of other little issues keep popping up here and there so were about ready to just get rid of it. I dont want to try to sell as is b/c who wants to buy a car with trans problems, so im thinking of just replacing the converter and selling or keeping a little longer ? what are you thoughts guys? i appreciate all your replies. OH and also i just found a rebuilt torque converter for 250$ to add to the mix of "what to do" I cant find any info on how to drop the transmission yourself on these cars and taking a look it looks pretty tough job just didnt know if 1000 to put in a converter or 1500 to drop and replace used tranny is the going rate ? THanks

Under a different thread "transmission issues?" GJ Molester suggested changing the transmission oil and solenoids. I am keeping this in mind once I can rule out the ignition coils. It has been too cold to try to work on the car
 
My recommendation is to ensure it is not a misfire by getting it diagnosed. My issue was similar and was misdiagnosed as a transmission issue. Ended up being a bad coil and plug. There were no codes until I asked the dealer to connect the laptop and drive the car. Good luck.

- ZoomFive

I had the same issue with my CX-9, 2007 with 129,000 miles on it. Tried everything from drain/fill of both differentials to a transmission drain and fill, even with the Lucas product in it and nothing worked. Found a great mechanic here that put it up on a rack. There they ran it through the gears and listened through stethoscopes and they concluded there was no issues with that part of the drive train. They then took the vehicle out for about a two hour long drive. During this drive they managed to get the check engine light to blink. That indicates a misfire. I had never had the check engine light come at all while trying to figure out what was happening. When they got back to the shop, they finally got a code to appear on their code reader. So the mechanic pulled the plugs and the coils. The plugs were ALL gapped incorrectly and TWO of the coils were bad. It is interesting that the code reader only returned that ONE coil was bad, not two. I had all the plugs replaced and both coils and have had NO ISSUES with shuddering since. Basically the car kept trying to stall out when it would shudder.
 
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