Quest transmission slip, hard start.

[cooper3197]

Hey guys, new to the club. I got a tough one for ya. My 04 Quest runs great when it is cold but when it gets warmed up the transmission will have a hard shift between 2nd and 3rd. After it does this one time, the check engine light, tcs, slip, and abs lights all come on. If I shut it off and try to restart, I have to give it gas to keep it running. It also will go into almost like a limp mode. No power but it will get up to speed eventually, just won't pull a hill. It also is draining the battery in about 48 hrs. I have had the CEL checked and there are no codes stored. I sent the ECM away to be checked and it came back good. Has anyone got any ideas? I am stumped. Thanks in advance..

[MinisterofDOOM]

I think you have a charging system problem of some kind, or possibly a bad ground elsewhere in the system. That combination of lights is very common in low-voltage scenarios. The fact that you're seeing battery drain over 48 hours fits with that as well. Low voltage can cause odd sensor behavior, but I'm not totally sure your transmission issue is that directly related. It kind of sounds like TCS is freaking out and interfering (or going into a limp mode as you say) when voltage drops too low, but that's just a wild guess.

If you have a multimeter available, I'd suggest testing voltage at the battery terminals with the car running. If voltage is less than 13.5, there's your problem. If it's over 13.5 I suspect a grounding issue or some other electrical issue that's causing parasitic drain on the battery while not running. If you don't have a multimeter, go grab a $5 one at Walmart or Harbor freight; it'll be accurate enough for this.

[wa-chiss]

Although it could be 2 separate issues all together.

How's the transmission fluid level? Over full? Have you tried getting DTC's from the ECM when the lights come on? Autozone will read them for free and print them out for you. It'd be nice to have some direction to help you by having DTC's.

[cooper3197]

I will check the battery when I get some time, thanks for that info. I really haven't had a chance to get the codes checked when the CEL comes on. I live about 20 minutes from town and I am afraid to drive it that far. When I do a ECM check without the tester though I get 0000. The transmission fluid is right where it should be. If it is a ground somewhere, what would be the best, (easiest) way to track it down? Thanks for the info guys..

[wa-chiss]

Best bet would be to check them all honestly. Start with the battery terminals, the ground near the batter on the body, and the ground on the transmission. Take them loose and clean them.

[cooper3197]

I'll try that. Thanks..

[far raf]

Read the codes, mine was doing that when I had a code for the camshaft position sensor. Replaced the front bank camshaft position sensor with the one made by Delphi from Rock Auto and it works fine now.

[cooper3197]

Thanks, I replaced both of those a while back, but I used the cheap ones off of ebay. Maybe I should order some OEM ones and try that.

[far raf]

Do read the codes first before you throw away the money!
A USB or bluetooth OBD scanners are cheaper than parts/labor.

[cooper3197]

Just read the codes. U1001, and P0462. The one is a fuel level indicator. Still haven't gotten a chance to check the grounds yet. Will let ya know if I figure anything out.