1995 Saturn SLl1 - PCM Code 11????

[jbadenoch]

have a 95 saturn sl1. occasionally has a trans shifting issue to where it stays in gear way to long. Sometimes wont even upshift until you shut the car off then re-start. After re-starting it will work fine for an hour or day or when ever it decides to do it again. I flashed a code 11 from pcm. Ive looked thru mitchell and cant find a listing, they start at 12. Thru the grape vine, i heard it means "transaxle code(s) present. Has anyone had experience with this issue or code? Any info would be greatly appreciated. P.S. also when putting it into reverse, it wont engage till rpm gets to around 1200 then slams into gear. Fluid is clean and full. Vehicle has been well taken care of as far as maintenance goes. Have a great day gents.

[steven kiser]

You are correct, it is a transaxle code. It stems from a communication issue between tcm and pcm. I've found bad tps's causing this issue as well. With the scanner watch % of tps while slowly pressing the accelerator slowly. There is also a relearn procedure that may resolve the issue but I doubt it. These have issues with wiring so I would check all the fuses as well as printing out a schematic and picture of the plugs and check continuity. I know of a guy that just works on Saturns and knows them inside and out. I've called him on a few occasions and since he respects me will help me out. If all else fails call me and I'll give him a call. This wasn't used to jump a car was it. Possibility of crossed cables and PCM damage.

[jbadenoch]

Steve, thanks for the reply. So far have only flashed codes, jumping the adl conn. I'll have her (my daughters) car in here this weekend. Gonna see what i can find. As far as i know, it has not jumped off any vehicles. It did however, catch a curb a while back, which deployed both air bags. Have since replaced and repaired srs system. From memory,(wait, what was i talkin bout?) it seems this trans issue slowly started after that, "it seems" could just be me trying to fit things together. Its nice to know i have help to turn to if needed, thank you. Will get back to ya Sat or Mon and post some findings, or, no findings.

[jbadenoch]

Well, got this beauty in over the weekend and hooked up to verus. I did find a code 23, which says "no 3rd gear". I've driven this thing several time and have not experienced the symptom. I did check all the related wiring and pin connections and fuses, powers and ground. The only thing i found was the trans tem sensor had its wiring weaved thru the trans lines and had a bit of a bare spot. I repaired the wiring. That did seem to go hand and hand with the sensor reading -40 in the freeze frame data. My daughter describes it like this; "I was getting on the highway and it was over 3 on the guage and kept going up as i went faster. when it sounded like it was gonna blow up, i pulled over and shut it off, then started it again, and when i sped up to get back on the highway everything was fine" We'll see if she has any further symptoms. Im really not sure if i've fixed anything, but i'll keep ya posted. Steve, i still may use you yet, thx

[jbadenoch]

Just an update here. So far the car has been ok as far as trans goes. Now cooling fan has lost its ground trigger. Turn on ac for a second or two, then back off, fan comes on and cools down to temp then shuts off. New ect and relay. Maybe it is a pcm issue after all, which makes me suspect that the trans shifting issue is just taking a break for a bit. I'll get into heavy diag this weekend and I'll keep an update going on this "Saturn Saga".

[steven kiser]

I think you hit the nail on the head. I bet the board is cracked or there is a interruption in a ground circuit. It may be within the harness or where the ground point for the pcm is attached to. Usually on a ground feed I find were it is in the pcm or bcm plug and run a secondary ground wire from the power distribution box to that wire. I don't cut it out and splice, I join them just incase there is another ground feed off of that wire. The new connection will back feed it eliminating any chance of other issues. The only thing that can't be overlooked is if the primary ground point is a multiple point and has a bunch of ground wires attached there and it's been compromised the whole group could pull ground from your new connection and burn the crap out of everything. That's why I'll run a new ground wire to that plug as well. My techs call it overkill but I tell them on a car they're working on in their driveway do it their way but here in my shop do it this way. I've been tagged by "this will never happen" once to many times.