Intermittent transmission tries to shift itself into park and the door locks are erratic

Tiny
PHILIP GOODELL
  • MEMBER
  • 2015 CHEVROLET SONIC
  • 1.4L
  • 4 CYL
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 110,547 MILES
So sometimes when i'm driving my car wants to put itself in park and the door locks go crazy. Also the TCS light comes on. I don't hear any grinding or what not with the transmission. I did from other help disconnect the negative terminal on the battery that fixed my issue temporarily. So is it a computer issue or something else like a sensor? Checked all my fuses they are fine so if you know please help. Honestly I do not like this car it gives me nothing but trouble. First car I've ever bought and I can't work on the darn thing something goes wrong and it's never simple. No hand room for anything and you have to take off a million thing to do one thing including the belt. Whoever thought this cars design worked.
Tuesday, June 23rd, 2020 AT 5:58 AM

6 Replies

Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
I don't know you, but I like your attitude. I say the same thing all the time. LOL

Okay, do me a favor. When this happens, check to see if the shift indicator is jumping back and fort between drive and park. There is a range sensor on the transmission that may be going bad.

The other thing one would consider is a bad or weak ground. However, each door lock has it's own separate ground, so for all to go bad is unlikely.

Last, the body control module is also involved with the lock and unlock control.

To support your original comment, the wiring schematic for the door locks is two pages long. If you want them, let me know. Also, let me know about the gear indicator light.

One last thing. Take a look through this link. I suspect this is what should be done on this vehicle. It explains how to scan the CAN bus system. CAN stands for computer area network. Because of all the things that require wiring, the manufacturers now use one or two wires to connect all the modules. The idea of scanning the CAN bus system basically will help identify which module is creating the issue.

https://youtu.be/InIlnsjOVFA

Let me know what you find or if you need anything.

Take care,
Joe

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Tuesday, June 23rd, 2020 AT 7:04 PM
Tiny
PHILIP GOODELL
  • MEMBER
  • 4 POSTS
So yes it does jump from park to drive.
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+1
Wednesday, June 24th, 2020 AT 3:34 AM
Tiny
PHILIP GOODELL
  • MEMBER
  • 4 POSTS
But the shifter is on drive it does not move but on the dash it says p for park and the car jumps a little while I'm still driving. This car has the weirdest mechanic problem.
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Wednesday, June 24th, 2020 AT 3:37 AM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
Hi,

I have a feeling it is either a ground related issue or it could be the integral range sensor. Are you able to have the CAN bus scanned?
Joe
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Thursday, June 25th, 2020 AT 8:21 PM
Tiny
PHILIP GOODELL
  • MEMBER
  • 4 POSTS
I don't know.
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Friday, June 26th, 2020 AT 6:13 AM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
Honestly, I feel that is what should be done at this point. That way you can determine if it is a module related issue and which one is the cause.

Joe
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Friday, June 26th, 2020 AT 8:42 PM

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