Auto Tranny Holds Gears Way Too Long

[Orcasupreme]

First off, let me start by saying I love my '23 Mojave. It allowed me to sell my JKU and Ram 1500 and get down to 1 vehicle that does everything I want. But, I've got almost 3k miles on my up-to-now stock truck, and my 2 biggest complaints are the fuel economy I'm seeing and just how long the transmission seems to hold gears. I have to believe the former is due partly to the latter.

I'm averaging roughly 14mpg, unladen and with very relaxed driving. I came from a 2013 JKU Sport with a manual transmission and 35" tires, and I never dipped below 15mpg when I was dogging it hard, ~17mpg when I was just driving normally. I knew people complained about fuel economy in these things and I was resigned to low numbers, but it sure seems like most folks are posting much better numbers than I can achieve.

Now about the transmission. As an example, when I'm driving through my neighborhood going up a slight incline, the transmission never wants to upshift. It holds second gear all the way up to 5k rpms; I have to manually force an upshift just to keep the neighbors from staring at the noisy Jeep. I've also noticed this a bit when going down inclines where it feels like it's trying to engine brake. Again, this is with just me in the cab and nothing else in the vehicle. It feels like it's stuck in a tow/haul mode (which I don't think exists). This can't possibly be normal for this powertrain, right? It does seem to get better as the vehicle warms up, but still. I've got a similar setup in my 2016 Durango and it behaves beautifully, returning 20mpg all day long and shifting in a rational manner. I know it's not shaped like a brick like the Glady, but that can't fully account for the poor shifting behavior.

Is there anything I can do myself to try to reset the transmission computer before throwing in the towel and getting the dealership involved? I really hate dealerships.

Any insight or suggestions are appreciated.

-- Dave

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[RJinPV]

I have a ‘23 Rubicon and have similar experiences. Mine seems to hang onto lower gears longer than I would’ve thought too. However, my mileage is slightly better than yours. I am getting around 16 mpg in normal driving. I am interested if anyone has answers to your questions!

 

[NERokToy]

Went from a Willy's to a Rubicon, and this was somewhat noticeable in the Willys but rather annoying in the Rubicon. The Rubicon feels like it is geared to deep and the transmission doesn't know what to do. Often trying to cruise on fairly flat ground with minimal throttle input the truck would hold a gear that kept RPM between 3200-3700 at speeds between 40-55mph

Wife is the primary driver and has always at least hit the estimated city MPG for the vehicles we have owned... except the Gladiators, 14.5 with the Willys and 12mpg in the Rubicon with the same exact commute.

Recently went to 35x11.5 Tires (without reprogramming the computer) and the Rubicon is much more pleasant to drive, no more letting off the gas frequently to get the tranny to downshift, and in the first couple hundred miles the computer is showing 15mpg.

 

[JW Jeep]

wow !! I’m glad I went the overland route !! Mine holds onto gears a little but nothing like that and only when on an incline. I’m getting around 21 , 22 mpg around town with stop and go with winter gas. I have seen 26 mpg on the interstate but drops significantly over 75 mph. These things do learn as they go with transmission shifting and other stuff.. your mpg should also get alittle better as it breaks in ? I came close to going with the Mojave and still wonder if I made the right decision ? I don’t do much off road so went with the overland.

 

[Slipshodman]

21 JTR, I notice it on inclines when moving at some speed, just holding onto the gear
Its a daily drive, I don't drive excessively but do give it a bit here and there so I thought I had caused the behaviour by the transmission learning something from my driving style. I don't remember it in the beginning.
I would love to find out if it could unlearn because it does bug me a times

 

[Mr._Bill]

You can take it to the dealer and ask them to put it back in learn mode.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

You can take it to the dealer and ask them to put it back in learn mode.

Yeah, because unless he's holding throttle on that, 5,000 rpm up a hill is a bit much. Mine holds gears a lot around here, especially since we are again in a windy time. I note I don't hit 7th or 8th much and it sticks to around 2500 RPM for a lot of our driving around - and that's changed in recent weeks. It never used to do that, but I think the cold weather and winter gas are having an impact as well.
I'm used to seeing higher RPM recently, but nothing like he is.

 

[SoK66]

I have a new ‘23 Willys. I live about 900 feet above town where I work, shop, etc. it’s a steady, gradual 45mph climb of about 3 miles. The JT usually wants to hold onto 4th gear and 3,000 rpm the entire way. Occasionally but rarely it will shift to 5th gear on its own and drop to about 2,500 rpm. I can manually do the upshift and it is just fine, not lugging, etc. I thought perhaps the tire size calibration was off (I upgraded to 285/70s) but per GPS I have it on the money. This just appears to be something in the programming. Goofy.

 

[Badunit]

I can't say that I've seen this with my '23 Rubicon. There have been a few times it didn't upshift quite as soon as I thought it could but, in general, it has been pretty good and never anything like 4-5K rpms. I have noticed that, if it does have to downshift and I'm still going up the same hill, it may hold the lower gear until it is sure about upshifting. That is preferable to gear hunting. My typical complaint with automatics is they won't downshift soon enough, and I don't have that complaint with my Rubicon either.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I have a new ‘23 Willys. I live about 900 feet above town where I work, shop, etc. it’s a steady, gradual 45mph climb of about 3 miles. The JT usually wants to hold onto 4th gear and 3,000 rpm the entire way. Occasionally but rarely it will shift to 5th gear on its own and drop to about 2,500 rpm. I can manually do the upshift and it is just fine, not lugging, etc. I thought perhaps the tire size calibration was off (I upgraded to 285/70s) but per GPS I have it on the money. This just appears to be something in the programming. Goofy.

Not goofy at all - it's seeing the need for power/torque, it's putting it in the most efficient mode for mpg and power with the valves in high lift mode and the oil pressure at a higher level.
Forcing it under 2500 isn't doing it any favors. Run it at 2500 or even 3,000. That's where mine is happiest on our long uphill entrance ramp, then yet another climb up out of the river valley area here. I don't see mine dropping RPM down, shifting up for a couple of miles and it's just fine. These have smarter programming than the drivers that operate them believe.
To force an upshift and drop the RPM down under that load isn't ideal, it's back down into low power area and where now the thing has to back timing off to prevent detonation (which you can't always hear)

Me ........ let 'er rip. It's how it should be.
I have trouble understanding the need to keep engine RPM down in these. It's not operating it in the best heat rejection area, nor the most efficient mode of operation.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

if it does have to downshift and I'm still going up the same hill, it may hold the lower gear until it is sure about upshifting. That is preferable to gear hunting

Definitely preferred to hunting.
And have you noticed that at times, it drops back TWO gears, not just one? That's by design - it determines what's ahead based on current and immediate past needs and may often jump down two gears instead of one at a time, saving wear on the transmission and adding to the efficiency of the whole thing.

 

[legacy_etu]

First off, let me start by saying I love my '23 Mojave. It allowed me to sell my JKU and Ram 1500 and get down to 1 vehicle that does everything I want. But, I've got almost 3k miles on my up-to-now stock truck, and my 2 biggest complaints are the fuel economy I'm seeing and just how long the transmission seems to hold gears. I have to believe the former is due partly to the latter.

I'm averaging roughly 14mpg, unladen and with very relaxed driving. I came from a 2013 JKU Sport with a manual transmission and 35" tires, and I never dipped below 15mpg when I was dogging it hard, ~17mpg when I was just driving normally. I knew people complained about fuel economy in these things and I was resigned to low numbers, but it sure seems like most folks are posting much better numbers than I can achieve.

Now about the transmission. As an example, when I'm driving through my neighborhood going up a slight incline, the transmission never wants to upshift. It holds second gear all the way up to 5k rpms; I have to manually force an upshift just to keep the neighbors from staring at the noisy Jeep. I've also noticed this a bit when going down inclines where it feels like it's trying to engine brake. Again, this is with just me in the cab and nothing else in the vehicle. It feels like it's stuck in a tow/haul mode (which I don't think exists). This can't possibly be normal for this powertrain, right? It does seem to get better as the vehicle warms up, but still. I've got a similar setup in my 2016 Durango and it behaves beautifully, returning 20mpg all day long and shifting in a rational manner. I know it's not shaped like a brick like the Glady, but that can't fully account for the poor shifting behavior.

Is there anything I can do myself to try to reset the transmission computer before throwing in the towel and getting the dealership involved? I really hate dealerships.

Any insight or suggestions are appreciated.

-- Dave

That is nothing like my Mojave. I vote for something is wrong. I'm broken in at 8k miles, run regular fuel and get 17 mpg pretty regularly and I don't baby her. My transmission also doesn't hold gears at all like yours. Almost sounds like it's stuck in off road mode..... But that shouldn't even work in 2wd.

 

[WILDHOBO]

There’s nothing wrong. These are high rpm engines. And the computer is designed to keep them running. When it’s quite cold out for instance, the transmission will stay in lower gears longer, until the transmission starts to warm up. Those higher rpm’s help warm up the tranny faster, thus preventing damage from running them under 100 degrees for miles.

 

[MPMB]

Mine always has a "hang" and has since the beginning.

I also have noticed it drops 2 gears sometimes. Yesterday coming home with my wheels and tires in the back, I noticed I was bouncing between 7 & 8, and then it dropped to 5th when I accelerated.

With the constant weight I carry, lift, and soon 37s, my MPG numbers are irrelevant.

 

[Wheelin98TJ]

If you don't think it's right, I'd take it in to the dealer and at least get it documented.

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