Hello everyone, I have a 2003 Stratus Sedan 2.4 A604 transmission. My problem is I have a very harsh 4-3 downshift, everything else on the trans works like new, smooth upshifts, smooth lockup and smooth downshifts except for the 4-3 shift. It happens when decelerating and I hit about 30MPH, If I switch it to auto stick mode and manually put it in 4th gear then shift down to 3rd it's even worse, at any speed and any throttle position, tried from 20mph up to 70mph, same thing, just a huge thump, kind of like the wheels locked up for a millisecond and the dashboard makes a cracking sound everytime from the jolt.

Anyways, this started happening a couple days ago, the transmission had 197k miles on it so I figured it was probably worn seals, maybe a pump failure, fluid breaking down, I'm wasn't sure. I understand as much about how the insides of transmissions work as much as I understand how women work. So I pulled a used transmission out of an 03 PT cruiser at the junkyard with 90k on it, got the torque converter from it too all for $50 thinking this would fix the problem. Well it shifts like new now, no more mildly harsh shifts or harsh lockup like the old one, but that harsh 4-3 downshift problem is still there on this second trans also.

Now I'm at a loss, could it be possible that the second trans also has the same failure as the first one did even though every other shift on it is flawless, along with all new fluid and filter, or could it be something external to the transmission like a sensor, wiring, maybe even the solenoid pack? I haven't heard too much about pump failures on these units but maybe low fluid pressure, I have no idea. All the sensors and solenoid pack came with the second transmission and I didn't touch them, but the wiring harness is the same old one.

Additional information:
No codes stored, at least with the key trick.
Once it downshifted to 3rd all by itself at about 50MPH when I was going around a bend, wasn't in autostick mode.
The speedo was working perfectly the whole time, never saw it jump around or drop to 0.
Drove it about 40 miles so far with the new transmission in, highway and city.
Never went into limp mode once, the auto downshift to 3rd was weird but upshifted after a few seconds.

Hopefully I added enough information here, always better to have more than not enough I'd say. If anyone has any ideas where to look or what causes only a 4-3 hard shift when everything else works perfectly, I would really like to know.
Thanks for your time and reading all that.

 

Have you tried following the factory service manual steps on quick learning or relearning your transmission driving habits?

 

Yes, the only thing the service manual says on a quick learn is connect a DRB-III tool and select quick learn. I heard for older cars there's another way to do it without the scan tool, or you could also just drive it around for a while until it relearns itself, but the transmission bearings and snap rings will probably be in bad shape if I did that.

I've also seen a TSB for a PCM flash update that addresses this issue.

 

Hey guys, I own 2017 Dodge Durango R/T. I'm having same problems but only when driving on the highway for a while.... slowing down to stop hard shift from 5-4 and 2-1.... also if going at certain speed and in need to accelerate same issue with downshift from 5-4 with a hard bump like someone rear ended me.... also when start in the morning long first shift 1-2.... of course been at the dealer of course they can't replicate the issue.... at this point not sure what to do, do not want this transmission to fail when warranty expires ..... I've read the whole tread about flash updates, I guess it worth a try to go talk to the dealer and see what they say...
Anyone else still dealing with this???

 

Different transmission, different problem. But, luckily they all work pretty much the same.
In my case with my 4 speed transmission a Quick Learn and/or flash update solved the problem (Not sure which, Dealer did both at the same time for $90).
How many miles are on your car? When was the last time you changed the fluid and filter? And if it was done, was the correct ATF+4 fluid used?
I change my fluid and filter every 33k miles and the same car from the first post now has 389k on it and still shifts silky smooth. Maintenance is key!

 

HI NK.970,
Sorry to hear you are experiencing this concern, we certainly understand why this would be concerning. If you end up addressing this with your local Dodge dealer again, please let us know via PM. We'd be more than happy to provide you with an additional layer of assistance for that process.
Rob
DodgeCares

 

i have a 2003 grand caravan. changed the trans fluid and filter , then started getting a hard downshift 4th to 3rd. what fixed it was, i pulled out my otc genisys and did a quick learn.. fixed it.. dont know how long it would take for the trans to learn on it own but, this was fast...

 

Thanks for letting us know. A quick learn seems to be the solution everytime but only for a harsh 4-3 downshift. Seems like this issue comes up more often right after changing the fluid and filter with an extended drain time. 350k now on the used transmission in my car and it's still working great.