Paul,
I have that too - shudder when going from reverse to drive on a cold fluid.

It gets better if you wait a couple of seconds AFTER shifting to drive. Or simply do not step on accelerator first few seconds - just let the car drift on first gear.

Not sure if it is a problem. I do not have any leaks and I change fluid regularly at 24,000 kms.

The more I drive my Sonata, the more frustrated I get at the transmission behavior. It's WAY too slow to downshift. I had the dealership reset it and it seemed like it was better for a while, but now it's back to the way it was.

The biggest problem I have with it is the fact that it often refuses to downshift. It's really backwards, you push on the gas and it opens the throttle in whatever gear it happens to be in, realizes it can't accelerate at your desired pace at that gear and THEN decides to downshift. I understand the principal behind the behavior, but it infuriates me to no end.

When I floor the gas pedal, the transmission should know immediately that it will have to downshift. It shouldn't take about 2 seconds to think about downshifting, it should be immediate. The delay kills so much of the fun of acceleration, it really makes me angry. It's so stupid, it makes me want to scream! I've never driven a car with such a stubborn transmission!

The system behavior needs a complete overhaul. It doesn't feel like a V6. And yes, I get the shudder at 40-42, cuz that's when the car thinks it needs to shift into 5th gear. It's a good engine, but I don't think it has enough torque to shift at that speed comfortably. I think it should shift to 4th at about 35 and 5th at maybe 50. 5th is too tall to be shifting to it at 40-42, in my opinion. Maybe it wouldn't be such a problem if the car wasn't so afraid of downshifting, but that makes it a huge pain in the butt.

And using higher gears more is supposed to get us better gas milage, but I'm convinced it drags the engine and makes milage worse.

I dont know if anybody can remember back in oct. 2005:
http://www.hyundai-forums.com/t6559-sonata...-3-problems.htm
when i first made attention to what i called bumping at approx the same speed 65-70/km/h. First i thought it was the tires - But no - Different tires - same vibration/shudder - tried almost everything with the tyres, etc. to no use.
Maybe - now after almost 3 years of ownership - there is light at the end of the tunnel...
Really hope the will come out with a similar TSB for the V6, which have the same identical problem. - At least as far as i can see - Shudder between 61-68 km/h

The shudder/booming was very obvious. See if your 'dead spot' start at 39MPH when the torque convertor locks (you can notice when it does this as you are already in 4th at 35-37 MPH or so but the RPM dips while gently accelerating when the TC locks. You can check to see what gear your in by throwing it into shiftamatic at 37 MPH. Mine is always in 4th at this time unless Im mashing the gas. If your dead spot is related to the TC - this may help. If not, Im not sure I would have them flash it. Apparently is doesnt affect all the 2008s and it depends upon how the car adapted to your driving.

BTW and off topic - does anybody actually use the shiftamatic thing? I guess its neat to have but seems totally useless unless you want to feel like you are a race car driver but have none of the power as its a 2.4L engine.



This post has been edited by imabiggles: Jun 2 2008, 10:04 AM

Called three large dealers in the Chicago area to update the ECM and none of them new what we were talking about.

We use the Shiftronic very seldom.

This post has been edited by mdale007: Jun 2 2008, 02:42 PM

Shiftamatic :banana:

Shiftomatic :460:

I have a SHIFTRONIC! :P


Here is a fun list! :thumbsup:

Other manufacturers use Tiptronic-like systems under different names:

Acura: Sequential SportShift
Alfa Romeo: Sportronic, Q-Tronic
Aston Martin: Touchtronic
Audi: Tiptronic, Multitronic (CVT)
BMW: Steptronic
Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep: AutoStick
Citroën: Sensodrive
Ford (Australia): Sequential Sports Shift
Holden: Active Select
Honda: iShift, S-matic, MultiMatic
Hyundai: Shiftronic, HIVEC H-Matic
Infiniti: Manual Shift Mode
Jaguar: Bosch Mechatronic
Kia: Sportmatic
Lancia: Comfortronic
Land Rover: CommandShift
Lexus: E-Shift
Mazda: ActiveMatic
Mercedes-Benz: TouchShift
MG-Rover: Steptronic
Mitsubishi: INVECS, INVECS II, INVECS III, Sportronic, Tiptronic
Nissan: Tiptronic
Opel/Vauxhall: Easytronic
Peugeot: 2Tronic
Pontiac: TAPshift
Saab : Sentronic
Skoda Auto : Tiptronic
Subaru: Sportshift (system developed and name used under license from Prodrive Ltd.)
Smart : Softip
Toyota: Tiptronic
Volkswagen : Tiptronic
Volvo: Geartronic


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiptronic


This post has been edited by MiamiLX: Jun 2 2008, 02:59 PM

Mine didnt either when I talked to them on the phone. I brought in a copy but the service consultant already found it on her site. The dealer I use is out in aurora.


Bah - Im sticking with shiftamatic, I like that better than the others :bwekk:

This post has been edited by imabiggles: Jun 3 2008, 09:01 AM

I assume the dealer was Gartner and did they flash the ECM for you?

Yep, they flashed both the ecm and tcm per the TSB instructions.

Gartner is known to be one of the better Hyundai service centers in the Chicagoland area. I did not mention their SALES dept., which I know nothing of, but their service is better than many of the other dealerships.... That's one in the South. Up North there is a place in Libertyville called Liberty-Auto which is very good.











This post has been edited by mamamia: Jun 3 2008, 04:15 PM

Mamamia thanks for the Liberty-Auto tip. I will give them a call.

Hi

i have hyundai Sonata 2008 2.4 the car is shutter. i took it to the shop..it was there more then 17 days. they could not fix it...the problem still there...

from the menufactor they said " it's Normal" i send a letter to the menufactor for deffective car and now i am waiting...i am going to start a process of LEMON CAR.

I SEE I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE AND I AM NOT GOING TO GIVE UP ABOUT THIS.

Print out the TSB and take the Sonata back to the service department and have the ECM & TCM updated.

http://jerrystout.us/sonata/tsb.htm

This post has been edited by mdale007: Jul 1 2008, 03:14 PM

Hyundai already updat the program 2 times it did not help. if you have any other sugestion i will be happy to hear.

I would regap the iridium spark plugs and be careful not to break the tips. I suggest tht the gap is too large and needs to be tighter.

After Computer reset/flash car runs without issues. But i think it'll use more gas now, because before it's used to switch to 1500 RPM around 40MPH. Now it's doing 2000+ RPM.

* I had to point their noses to the TSB on the internet to get Computer flashed.
* I hate that dealership. After I took car it started pulling to the left!!! Now have to go back and fight again.

This post has been edited by idiom: Jul 3 2008, 03:16 PM

Why make your life miserable, rony? Especially since you're banging your head against the wall. Your car is not a lemon, and Hyundai will not treat it as a lemon, nor will any judge. The fact this is a KNOWN issue with some, or even many Sonatas (mine, I have to REALLY pay attention to notice a subtle humming noise at the said speed), it is part of the way the car is designed. You may call it a flawed design, but that sure doesn't make your car a lemon...

Don't waste your time and energy. Every new car has some issues. The first 2 years of the previous generation Accord (2003-4) were TERRIBLE for all Accord owners, when their transmissions were breaking down and finaly needed replacement.... The new Camry has been a disaster in many aspects.... We're LUCKY to have a modern car with VERY few real issues.

Besides, I'm sure Hyundai is still working more on a fix.

There is MUCH to enjoy about your car, Rony.

....AND, BTW, BOBAD WAS MENTIONING TOYOTA HAVING THE SAME EXACT PROBLEM... OWNERS OF THE NEW '06 CIVIC HAVE BEEN GOING ABSOLUTELY NUTS OVER AN ANNOYING NOISE AND SHUDDER AT 1,500 RPM....






This post has been edited by mamamia: Jul 4 2008, 01:33 AM