2004 Jeep Liberty OVERDIVE LIGHT KEEPS COMING ON

BEADLBRAIN

MEMBER
2004 JEEP LIBERTY
6 CYL
4WD
AUTOMATIC
36,000 MILES

Hi,
I have a 2004 jeep liberty w/only 36,000 miles
My overdrive light will come on, sometimes stays on for a bit, then goes off.
Sometimes especially lately it will do this and also flash quickly on and off.
Recently driving on the interstate, it did this and while doing this the car would jerk each time it came on.
I took it to the jeep dealer today and they say they ran every test and couldn't find a problem at all.
They took it out for 2 test drives and he said they did tests while driving, still found nothing wrong.

After I left the dealer, go figure, it starts doing it again and did it all the way home (THIS time though it did not do the jerking)).
I did notice that when stepping on the brake while going on a small hill the light would come on most time. Allthough not sure if this has anything to do w/it. Because it does it while not on a hill or stepping on the brake.
Appreciate any help or suggestions.

3 Replies

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
33,737 POSTS

Hi beadlbrain. Welcome to the forum. Acting up regularly on a hill might be a significant clue. One possibility is a bad spot in the throttle position sensor making the computer think you're going to slow down so it shifts out of overdrive. A misadjusted brake switch can cause strange things too if one section turns on. This can happen more or less on an incline but will usually occur on bumpy roads too. Intermittent connections in electrical connectors can cause problems.

One thing the dealer can do is connect a scanner to monitor sensors and switches related to the transmission while on a test drive. They can press the "record" button when the problem occurs. Because the data is passing through the scanner's memory, the recording actually starts a few seconds before the button was pressed. Later, that data can be replayed slowly while watching for what changes that will affect the gear selection. There is a version of that scanner that can be left with you in the car as long as necessary for the problem to occur, but that tool is used so little, many mechanics aren't even aware of it.

Caradiodoc

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Friday, June 18th, 2010 AT 3:12 PM

BEADLBRAIN

MEMBER
2 POSTS

Thank you very much for the advice.
I called the dealer that I took it too, and they were nice about it & I scheduled an appointment for the first of the week to have it looked at again.
They are going to drive it longer this time to see if they can get it to occur, I'm also going to let them know about this advice.
Thanks again,
this is a wonderful site that we'll be using alot. And suggesting to many friends!
VERY happy w/fast service
Kim

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Friday, June 18th, 2010 AT 4:48 PM

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
33,737 POSTS

Happy to hear you're happy, but be warned, we aren't always this fast. Sometimes we stop to sleep for an hour or two! Looking forward to finding out the cause of the problem.

Caradiodoc

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