Honda 2005 element. AWD. 4 speed automatic. Could go through all the gears, and no forward motion. Just revs. Then works, then doesn't. Blinking D. Changed the computer (in glove box) worked for about a month. Then sgame problem. Changed out whole transmission. Same problem. Now the problem isn't losing the ability to grab a gear. Start car, runs good to 3rd gear. 4th won't engange, runs high RPM ...eventually it kind of lurches forward, the D starts blinking. Then I'm stuck in 4th. I have to slow down, almost completely stopped to get 1st to engage. Otherwise, I move like turtlespeed at 2500 rpms, back up to 4th. Changed every sensor imaginable, even on the 'newer' trans, thinking maybe one was bad. kept getting the solenoid b I believe code. That was changed out just to make sure. Wiring harness(whole engine replaced) 3 different computers(thinking one or more) was bad. 3 different trans shops! Nobody knows???? Its my mail vehicle, so finding and fixing this makes my job so much easier... it's a mystery.
This sounds like a TCM (Transmission Control Module) issue to me. It almost has to be software-related at this point.
I think, in this case, it may be worth your time to pay a dealer to diagnose the problem. It could be any number of things, but I'm thinking something is haywire in that module and it isn't sending the correct data through the data bus.
@mod_man jorie9699 comment is here for you to answer back.
@Yaser has a good question. Has this vehicle ever been in an accident or does it have a salvage title?
That's what is even worse! We brought it to Honda, 2 different honda dealers! The first one tried to tell us that it don't require programming. We paid for the reprogramming also. It's to the point, I want to try and get a hold of the higher ups if it was possible and scream how do their own Honda dealerships not realize that it needed to be. We finally brought it to the other dealer. They programmed it(after convincing them also)at first it wouldn't come out of park after doing that. (at this point I can't remember exactly what was done to get it out of park) Could they have BOTH reprogrammed it wrong? Wondering who/where to take it , if both dealers can't understand the science behind their own vehicle they are servicing .
One question for you: do you know the history if the car?
