Hello to all and happy new year,

I am experiencing a weird issue, which appeared around mid November, when the error code "Cruse not Available" showed up all of a sudden.
Since then, the car is changing the 3rd gear after increasing RPM for 1-2 seconds by 1000 - 1500, and most importantly during the first cold start of the day, it doesn't accelerate smoothly.

Feels more like giving some throttle, then stopping, and keeps this loops for 3-4 minutes, and the only way to keep on, is by increasing RPM by 4000 - 5000.

Few days later, the engine fans kept on spinning, even when the car was shutdown, which was indicating a coolant liquid leak.
After paying a visit to the mechanic for a quick inspection, he confirmed that the coolant liquid tank is leaking, and have already set up an appointment to first of all repair the leaking tank, and then look for any other issues.

The questing is, does by any chance, the leaking tank could possibly cause this behaviour I get during the first cold start? (Error codes Cruse not available / gearbox fault)
Also, why after driving for about 10-15 minutes, the car then accelerates normally, and even if I shut it down for 2-3 hours, and then start it up again, the car still accelerates without any issues.

Before these errors showed up, the car was driving smoothly with 0 issues, which is why I'm trying to figure out what the cause might be.

Thank you in advance.

 

Found out that this is related to the Transmission fluid level, which apparently needs to be replaced.
So if anyone is experiencing the same issues, check your transmission fluid at first, before doing anything else.
Can't tell yet if due to the low fluid levels / liquid being overused, it caused damage to the transmission, but hopefully it didn't....

 

Hi SavvasR,

With respect to changing the trans fluid....there are a lot of threads about this subject covering:-

• Isn't the transfluid for the life of the vehicle?........general consensus among members is 'no way', change at typical milestones for automatics.
• What trans fluid to use,
• Where is the drain plug (be very careful identifying the plug as you can mistakenly release the reverse band and create a nightmare for yourself)
• Where is the filler point (a small bung on the housing visible to the left of the battery - access best with battery and battery box out unless you use a turkey baster, or narrow funnel and pipe?
• How to successfully drain, check or set the trans fluid level - as there is no dipstick for these transmissions.

Save yourself a lot of time and potential misadventure by using the search function to pick up some free knowledge that might just save your bacon on these subjects.
Good luck with your car.

 

SavvasR,

I'm no certified mechanic, but I've done enough repairs on mine to feel I know my way around. I'm not entirely sure the low tranny fluid is the root of your issue. I replaced my fluid (per the directions on this forum) and I was a little short on my refill. It was very noticeable that the fluid was low as the gears performed what sounded like a heavy metal concert at certain RPMs. I was but only marginally short on my fluid refill, but it let me know and there was never a "gearbox" fault and "limp mode".

HOWEVER, I have had the Gearbox Fault message along with the Cruise not Available message. A few times.
I've had the Gearbox fault - and only the gearbox fault - +limp mode (which keeps you in a low gear to limp home) when my plug(s) were failing, or my coil(s) were failing. Of course there's the vacuum leak and a dash message, but with that it kind of more made the RPMs pulsate, not throw the GB error.

The only time I ever had the Gearbox Fault + Cruise not Available at the same time, followed by limp mode, was when my throttle body acted up. In my case the wires in the harness plug to the TB were obscurely loose/damaged and there was not a consistent connection causing low resistance and then a fault code. I replaced the TB twice before figuring out it was the plug and not the actual TB. Nonetheless, you may want to check the plug connection and clean the throttle body to see if that does anything. I suspect its the TB, or at least the connection, because you say the fault is intermittent. The Cruise control is controlled through the electronic doohicky on the TB and to get a Cruise not Available fault the TB should be the first place you look. Check the plug on the wiring harness that plugs into the TB.

Not sure what year you have, but I read a lot on the forum when I was troubleshooting my issue that the TB's were temperamental. Do you have a code reader to see if there's a code?

 

Hello h2o2steam,

Many thanks for your response, found all the information very valuable, as it covers all aspects of changing the transmission fluid.

The car is at the mechanic since a few days now, and there's not a final outcome yet, but at least the leak from the coolant tank has been located and fixed.

What remains, is the gearbox behaviour, which remains to be seen.

 

Hello ugotmale,

Could also be the TB, as I found several different issues which result as a "Gearbox Fault" - "Cruse not Available".

But due to the leaking coolant tank, it was impossible to use the car, as the temps were getting crazy after 10-12 minutes, so I left it at the service garage.

Year is Dec 2004, and the car overall is in great condition, with low milage. The most concerning is clearly the Gearbox, and as I have never experienced something similar, my first guess went toward the transmission fluid, since all the marks pointed towards the fluid. (burning oil smell when driving, slipping on the 3rd gear)

Hopefully it will be the TB connection, like you already suggested, will update once there's more news to share.

 

When I first got my X type the message "Cruise Control not available " came on on my first drive. It was just a slightly discharged battery which can sometimes throw up these error codes.. The car had hardly been used in the previous 12 months and the message has never come on again once I gave it a decent run to charge up the battery.
Might be worth checking out the battery condition as you say it's ok for a couple of hours after a run.