Update time, its long, so here we go..

I reformatted my old XP laptop, wiping the hard drive clean and doing a fresh reinstall. SDD seems to work smoother and with less hiccups.

I read the vin, and started a new session.

Immediately i notice something slightly different.
With the old install, When i used SDD with my car it would ask me a long list of rather obvious accessory options, such as navigation (yes/no) rear seat climate control (yes/no), heated front seats, cruise control type, and many others. All in all, it had about 15 drop down menus I had to complete every time i start a session.


After the fresh reinstall, I was only asked 3 configuration questions.. so already i felt i was off to a better start.

I went ahead and loaded campaigns and tried to reflash the TCM again.

previously, SDD called up calibration file z63y5657x350ww.phx which I later found out was for a ZF 4.2L NA.

this time it prompted z65y5656x350fed.phx, which is for a ZF 4.2L SC!


Reflashing took 7.5 minutes and was successful; my transmission is back up and running!

I checked on the ECM file. It called up calibration file N69.s42pm.bin, which appeared correct. M1keh made a thread about flashing the wrong calibration file, and how the correct one for an SC car had 's' in the filename

I went ahead and attempted to reflash the ECU, and everything went to sh*t almost instantly.

I begin the reflashing and 20 seconds in it fails. All lights on dash are on now . SDD prompts me to rectify by unplugging battery and retry. I try again with no success, it fails again within 10 seconds

FINALLY the 3rd time the reflashing commences, and takes about 7 minutes to successfully complete. (Battery voltages were stable the entire time btw)
lol @ 'Smooth Road'. I assume theres a calibration file for Third World Gravel roads?

Car is doing its adaptation cycle now.. however Im wondering if I should RESET adaptations or if CLEARING adaptations is all thats needed?

Anyhow im happy the car is back in business.

I really appreciate the advice and knowledgeable folks willing to help out.


Now I have only 1 more issue to solve:
Why does my nav system thinks its an x400? as a result, my dual zone climate control doesnt work.

ill be posting in the other thread for this issue.

 

Outstanding news on your Transmission. Way to stick with it. Nice work and congratulations. You say back up and running. I'm anxious to hear if the squawk went away!

 

Congratulations! Your persistence has paid off!

Typically, the adaptations are cleared prior to reflashing the TCM, so I don't think you have to worry about it at this point. With the updated firmware I believe you should have a new blank slate, so just drive it for a few days and things should smooth out.

I'm anxious to know if the squawk is gone too!

Cheers,

Don

 

With that history I'd do AS LITTLE as possible. Definitely NO reflash of TCM or PCM (ECM).

 

Hi JagV8,

What is your reasoning? The OP is facing a potential valve body rebuild at the very least. What can it hurt to try a reflash first?

Cheers,

Don

 

Agreed and moot as he already flashed both modules, if I read that right.

 

My thinking is they seem OK now and a reflash is more likely to cause trouble than not - so as it's not needed don't do one.

I don't see any relevance of a valve body (or other) rebuild.

 

After driving for a few days I have noticed smoother shifts, however my 3-4 squawk is STILL there. Anything over 50% throttle and its a long consistent squawking noise (Approx 500ms- 1000ms) that eminates from what sounds like the rear of the car. Lighter throttle (10-20%) provides a chirp. it occurs 3-4 only (also on 4-3 slightly )

I'm going to try one more thing: Clear (or Reset?) adaptations, Reflash TCM, and making sure trans is correct temperature before carrying out adaptation drive cycle. Last time the car wasnt fully warmed when i began driving it.

I was hoping perhaps the additive takes a while to bead itself into the clutch packs, but there hasnt been any improvement in the noise

I'm pretty much out of ideas at this point..

 

I understood your previous post as saying you ALREADY reflashed the TCM. That already cleared the adaptations.

 

The procedure says to flash ECM then clear adaptations, then reflash TCM

i reflashed tcm first, then ecm after..

 

I am reasonably sure it always clears the adaptations any time you flash the TCM.

I am pretty sure I've read it somewhere but beats me where as it is a while ago.

But go ahead - it's not my car

 

If that was the case, then the TSB wouldn't explicitly list clear adaptations then Reflash TCM. Id rather just follow the instructions, especially since i carried out previous adaptions with a cold trans.

 

It does JagV8

 

Well, the TSB is old (and possibly mistaken in that detail) and IDS/SDD gets updated to do things they realised make sense or they forgot to do.

It never made sense NOT to clear the adaptations if reflashing!

 

Just a brief follow up.

Been driving a while, and my squawk is still present. Its literally not better at all. I'm completely stumped at this point.
Ive noticed the noise is notably worse once car has been driven a while and is up to temperature..

Im completely baffled why the additive didnt improve it whatsoever. seriously, what the hell? My trans shifts so smooth too..

 

This probably is a dumb question however when I reread this thread I do not see any specific details on how you did your two fluid changes which is why I ask.

What temperature did you complete the fluid change last time and did you do a check of the fluid level after driving it around a while after it cools back down to 40 degrees C as per ZF instructions? Plus was the transmission really level when you did this?

 

I performed my last fluid change when the transmission temp was 32C/90F (outside temp was 30C/86F)

I jacked up car level and verified with checking.

I filled trans, and once fluid starting dribbling out @ 40-42 degrees I tightened up fill plug.
I shifted through all gears as I filled. Once it was full I shut it off let it cool down and turned it back on later to verify level was good.

 

That sounds good.

I did the same on my transmission however after driving around a fair bit I checked my fluid level again at about 40 degrees C and I needed to pump in a bit more.

Even IF your transmission required a small additional amount of fluid, like mine did, it may not make any difference to your issue however if it were me I would want to cover all bases.

 

Brief update on this issue.

The squawk is still there, no notable improvement. It is most pronounced when car is up to temperature after driving a few miles. Hot ambient (>90F) may also be a contributing factor.

There's something seriously f*cked with my trans, as the flushes and the additive didn't seem to help at all. Transmission shifts great apart from the noise.

I emailed Klaus @ CTSC who told me its likely a ' clutch hardware issue' aka the E clutch is toast.

Looks like I'll have to deal with the noise until it becomes an actual problem..

 

Hi there, stham. I have the exact same issue. I plan on replacing all internal seals (mechatronic adapter and valve body sleeves) plus change the solenoids. WIll report back. Has your issue resolved?