Transmission in too high gear at 45 - 55 mph

[DanielP]

Has anyone experienced the auto transmission being in too high of a gear when driving on country roads?
This started after I had around 6,000 miles on the odometer. When driving on hilly country roads, my XLT might be in the 6th or 7th gear when reaching a speed of approx 40-45 mph, and once I start going up hill the transmission struggles shifting down to the proper gear in order to maintain speed. When that happens you get this distinctive and annoying deep drone sound. For the tranny to finally shift I have to press the gas pedal hard as if I made an attempt to pass a car in front of me. I mentioned this to my dealer and received confirmation that this was normal. I never had this happen to my wife’s Focus - same engine! Any feedback would be appreciated.

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[Meeka]

Has anyone experienced the auto transmission being in too high of a gear when driving on country roads?
This started after I had around 6,000 miles on the odometer. When driving on hilly country roads, my XLT might be in the 6th or 7th gear when reaching a speed of approx 40-45 mph, and once I start going up hill the transmission struggles shifting down to the proper gear in order to maintain speed. When that happens you get this distinctive and annoying deep drone sound. For the tranny to finally shift I have to press the gas pedal hard as if I made an attempt to pass a car in front of me. I mentioned this to my dealer and received confirmation that this was normal. I never had this happen to my wife’s Focus - same engine! Any feedback would be appreciated.

Unfortunately they all ( 8 speed trannys) do it. My 24 Eco XLT does it also, from day one.

 

[JasonDroninAround]

Yes. Mine does it, too. Usually when I am running in eco mode, in the hills, less than 50 mph. When it annoys me, I just bump it up to sport mode temporarily until I got through the slow area

 

[dalola]

Yep, Ford totally whiffed by not having Select-Shift as at least an option. Should be standard on ANY truck, like it is on F-series, Ranger, Bronco...

You have to drive it with your right foot. More aggressive throttle inputs will trigger quicker downshifts, but unfortunately, they don't hold very long. Tow/Haul mode also helps, if you have it. Sport mode works well in city traffic, but way too aggressive on the open road.

 

[TORQUERULES]

Try driving in tow mode. Good middle ground between normal and sport.

 

[Dslaughterbeck]

Your wife's Focus didn't have a 8 speed gearbox I had a focus st with a 6 speed manual and ya that vehicle didn't do that, she must of had a ST too because the regular focus had 190 hp engine not the 250 hp one

 

[Tbone289]

I'm with @TORQUERULES. Tow/Haul mode is the answer, especially in the hills.

 

[Meeka]

I'm with @TORQUERULES. Tow/Haul mode is the answer, especially in the hills.

Tow/Haul just revs too high all the time for my liking.

 

[Tbone289]

Tow/Haul just revs too high all the time for my liking.

Like it or not, that's exactly what the OP wants--higher revs.

 

[Chops]

Yep, Ford totally whiffed by not having Select-Shift as at least an option. Should be standard on ANY truck, like it is on F-series, Ranger, Bronco...

Agree. Select-Shift is standard on the Lobo - but it should be at least an option on the other Maverick models.

Most folks would not use it often, it is nice to have. I actually drive my Lobo like a manual - doing all the shifting myself. Computer is my clutch

Edit - I did not realize the 25 Tremor had the Select-Shift too.
I chose the Lobo because I thought it was the only model with it. I might have gotten a Tremor if I had known better. That said, I really like my Lobo with the “quick shift” seven speed transmission!

 

[dhaskit]

Yes, mine sometimes does that as well but it stops when I let off the gas then punch it a little bit. Seems benign to me. I can’t imagine that it’s going to cause any damage. Just a quirk that it has. All vehicles have some kind of weirdness to them.

You might also try; let off gas, shift to neutral, back to drive then resume acceleration. Works for me.

 

[BLUEOVALRACER]

Yep, Ford totally whiffed by not having Select-Shift as at least an option. Should be standard on ANY truck, like it is on F-series, Ranger, Bronco...

You have to drive it with your right foot. More aggressive throttle inputs will trigger quicker downshifts, but unfortunately, they don't hold very long. Tow/Haul mode also helps, if you have it. Sport mode works well in city traffic, but way too aggressive on the open road.

I agree about the Sport Mode it revs to high for Highway driving.

 

[BLUEOVALRACER]

Has anyone experienced the auto transmission being in too high of a gear when driving on country roads?
This started after I had around 6,000 miles on the odometer. When driving on hilly country roads, my XLT might be in the 6th or 7th gear when reaching a speed of approx 40-45 mph, and once I start going up hill the transmission struggles shifting down to the proper gear in order to maintain speed. When that happens you get this distinctive and annoying deep drone sound. For the tranny to finally shift I have to press the gas pedal hard as if I made an attempt to pass a car in front of me. I mentioned this to my dealer and received confirmation that this was normal. I never had this happen to my wife’s Focus - same engine! Any feedback would be appreciated.

I think they do that for mileage ratings use sport mode or tow haul or press the gas pedal harder to let the Transmission drop down to lower gears.What year is Your Maverick? I had the JMS Pedal Max on the BS BB I had and IMO it helped with letting the transmission downshift faster and I loved the Pedal Max.Throttle response was also improved big time with it. I didn't know if it would have worked with My 2025 Maverick so I left it go with the BS BB.

 

[JasonDroninAround]

Agree. Select-Shift is standard on the Lobo - but it should be at least an option on the other Maverick models.

Most folks would not use it often, it is nice to have. I actually drive my Lobo like a manual - doing all the shifting myself. Computer is my clutch

Hopefully they changed some stuff from the 25 Tremor. The manual mode in my Tremor is a joke. It refuses to use 2nd gear at all and will ignore a manual downshift all together if it means it will put the engine above about 3500 rpm. Funny part is that in auto with cruise, it will use 2nd gear and will downshift to over 3500 rpm, if cruise control thinks it is using the brakes too much. I do applaud this programming in the auto transmission. This just means that if you are going down a long hill at any speed and you wish to supplement with a little engine braking, you are better off with auto, cruise, and tow/haul because manual mode will not let you down shift.

 

[Joshoc88]

Sport mode is more fuel efficient on slower back roads and hills. The motor makes power at 3k rpm, use it

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