Edited on 2013-07-01 15:34:35

This evening I had a terrorizing (to me, anyway) amber warning with the words "GEARBOX FAULT" showing across the display when I started the car.

When I drove it a short distance it was clear that shifting was not occurring as it should. When I tried to climb a steep driveway the car would not do so and it was clear that I had major slipping going on.

But, now, is the big mystery: After turning the car off and restarting it later the warning disappeared and everything behaved normally.

No "Check Eng" light is triggered for this warning.

Obviously with 150K miles and this warning having occurred I need to take the car for a transmission service. What I'd like to know is what I might be able to expect in terms of probable issues (and, if possible, costs).

I've loved this car since I bought it in 2005. However, at this point if this becomes a "replace the transmission" kind of issue it's just not worth doing for a variety of reasons. I'm just wondering if that might be what I'm looking at straight out of the shoot. I'm also not sure whether any of my local transmission shops will likely be able to service this transmission or if I'm looking at having the car hauled to the nearest dealership (which is 1.5 hours away).

Any guidance will be most appreciated.

Submitted by vogelbp@gmail.com on Thu, 08/22/2013 - 17:58

Edited on 2013-08-22 18:01:31

Edited on 2013-08-22 18:00:13

Hello All,

Just dropping in to report some additional information. I have received the "GEARBOX FAULT" warning at least four more times since the original, but discovered that, so far, anyway, if I simply turn the car off, and then turn it on again, the fault clears. Other than the first time, I have never driven the car when the fault occurs but simply do the automotive equivalent of the computer "graceful shut down and restart."

The check engine light is never triggered for this fault. The fault virtually always occurs upon starting the car or very, very shortly after.

Do these additional data points suggest anything specific to those who've "been there, done that?"