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2002 Santa Fe: Transmission delay shift and "clunk" (especailly in cold weather)

All:

I have a 2002 Santa Fe, 110K miles. Powertain warranty ending at 120K.

About three months ago, I had to have the heads rebuilt on the Santa Fe. At that time, I also had the remainder of "major" service performed, including a tranny flush.

From that day forward, I have had increasing problems with the tranny

delaying to shift into 1st and 2nd for the first minute or so after starting the car, regardless of how long it idle it. Sometimes it was less pronounced, but the recent cold weather has made it very obvious with very big (and scary clunks).

A second problem I am having is that within the first 5 minutes or starting the car of stopping, the car will stall out at a traffic light. This was the more obvious problem initially, but I could not get the dealer to "recreate" it, and I had to ignore it for some time.

Again, these problems (along with a radio that went from somewhat mediocre AM reception to less than zero when the engine is running --- some grounding or misplaced sheilding problem during the rebuild ???) have me less than pleased with my dealer.

I'm trying to get this to them to sit overnight in the cold so they can test it first thing in the morning, but my luck, the cold snap is ending, and the problem is likely to be less obvious.

Any suggestions or comments welcome.

Reply to
Dave
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Since you had the transmission service done at the same time as the warranty head work, I'm presuming that the work was done at the dealer and the proper fluid (SPIII) was used. If not, you'll need to start by flushing the transmission and installing the proper fluid.

Your transmission issue is most likely a wear issue with the transmission itself. Leaving the vehicle overnight for the dealer to test drive when cold is exactly the correct approach.

Stalling out at stops tends to be an indicator that the vehicle's idle control system isn't working properly. Again, you're using the correct approach for the dealer to duplicate.

Your AM reception issue may be a bit stickier. These vehicles had lousy reception from the factory. You could have a problem with the radio, the antenna in the left rear glass, or anywhere in the cable in between. It will probably require significant time and expense to find the cause.

Reply to
hyundaitech

Dropping the vehicle off overnight for the dealer to check when cold is exactly the correct approach. If I were to guess, I'd suspect that you have a transmission wear issue and will need a transmission replacement. Flushing the transmission may have exacerbated an already present problem.

When diagnosing the stalling, I'd hope the dealer checked for any trouble codes. Many things that cause a vehicle to stall will store a trouble code. Beyond that, it's difficult to get a good idea what system may not be working properly without having testing equipment hooked to the vehicle when the problem is occurring.

The Santa Fe's with antennas in the left rear window never had good AM reception. Additionally, this type issue may be difficult to diagnose. It could be in the antenna, the cable, or the radio.

Reply to
hyundaitech

Thanks HyudaiTech!

Of course, the cold weather pretty much passed, and the problem isn't as obvious, but I'm going to take it to them tommorow.

I am well aware of the ATF fluid requirements. Frankly, I am concerned that when they flushed it, they may have used the wrong fluid, since they are one of these mega-delears and service all types of vehicles. (Speculation, but this dealer has hosed me once -- I won't let them touch my Sonata.)

I've read reports that if the tranny is replaced under warranty, hyundai has them tested to check if "unauthorized" fluid was used. Is this true?

If so, I can see me getting screwed because of THEIR error.

Reply to
Dave

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