Fix Durashift Gearbox Problem Easy.

[Thd]

Sorry, I've not had a chance to say thanks again for the advice.

I spoke to a mechanic friend yesterday and told him what I had done so far. I haven't sent the tcm off yet but freed the actuator and checked the wiring.

My current situation, to recap, is that the actuator moves when I change the gears, so I know that is working and the motors in the actuator are working too. However, even though the lcd says that the car is in neutral, the car will still not start, not even turn over.

My friend said that he doubts the tcm is faulty. He has a friend who works for ford and has dealt with a lot of actuator problems and has spoken to him previously about my car.

He thinks that the reason my car won't start is that when my car broke down due to the actuator issue, the car was in a certain gear. When I took the actuator off and freed it, I may have inadvertently moved the gear stick in the car and thus the reference point for the actuator. The micro switch within the car that tells it that it is in neutral has lost its reference point.

His suggestion was to adjust the actuator position by one notch while the gear stick stays in neutral. Hopefully I will find the notch in the actuator motor that corresponds to neutral.

I'll try it this weekend and see if it helps.

Does anybody have any other ideas?

[Thd]

I forgot to add.

If anybody cannot start their car and they aren't sure if the have an engine/starter problem rather than actuator, if you get access to your ignition and connect a wire from the top wire on the ignition to the plus terminal of the car battery, this will Hotwire the car and surpass the 'eliminator' switch. At least you know the engine and starter are okay and the problem is more likely to be the actuator.

I'm going to try this too, when the weather improves.

[TTT]

Excellent tip. Thanks.

Somewhere on the net there is advice about resetting if its been moved. Think it suggested trying 1 notch at a time.

Good luck - let us know.

[TTT]

The clock on this forum is 10 mins fast ?

[Thd]

I've just moved the motor on the actuator one notch at a time. The car was in neutral throughout this (I jacked the front wheel up to make sure it would turn).

I did it twice but no luck starting the car (I moved the motor one notch forward while the car was in neutral and tried starting it, twice over).

I took the ignition apart to try to Hotwire it but no luck there either. The wiring was a little confusing so I'll have to look up how to Hotwire a fusion.

I'm scratching my head again. I will talk to my mechanic friend and think about sending the actuator and tcm off for a check. My concern is that I have moved the moron around in the the actuator so it may not be positioned correctly when I put it back on to the car.

Phew.

Something that confuses me. The car is in neutral. It won't start even though it is in neutral. The led screen says it is in neutral too.

[GingerFlame]

The clock on this forum is 10 mins fast ?

It is indeed. Has been for at least 12months

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

[GingerFlame]

I've just moved the motor on the actuator one notch at a time. The car was in neutral throughout this (I jacked the front wheel up to make sure it would turn).

I did it twice but no luck starting the car (I moved the motor one notch forward while the car was in neutral and tried starting it, twice over).

I took the ignition apart to try to Hotwire it but no luck there either. The wiring was a little confusing so I'll have to look up how to Hotwire a fusion.

I'm scratching my head again. I will talk to my mechanic friend and think about sending the actuator and tcm off for a check. My concern is that I have moved the moron around in the the actuator so it may not be positioned correctly when I put it back on to the car.

Phew.

Something that confuses me. The car is in neutral. It won't start even though it is in neutral. The led screen says it is in neutral too.

The immobilisor won't allow you to hotwire it.. So have fun trying

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

[mr_chaela]

Hi All

I've reamed the bushes in the actuator, put it back together and found that the car would sometimes start.

After digging around the net I discovered the most common next cause is the carbon brushes in the clutch actuator motor, so I removed the TCU, took the cover off the clutch motor and sure enough the brushes were completely worn out. I have replaced the brushes, refitted the unit to the car but am having problems reverse bleeding the clutch.

This is what I'm doing:

remove cover from reservoir

open bleed nipple by turning approx 180deg. (It hits a stop)

When I pump oil into bleed nipple it builds up pressure until the tube blows off the nipple. No sign of air bubbles at the reservoir. Its as if there is a blockage somewhere.

Any ideas whats wrong

[mr_chaela]

All fixed now and working.

When I took the cover off the motor the rotor spun due to a spring behind the gearing, which had the effect of putting the plastic 'master cylinder' (where the Hydraulics connect) on the end of the unit in the clutch pedal down position, thus preventing me reverse bleeding the clutch.

To remedy I took the motor cover off and turned the rotor clockwise, looking from the hydraulics end, until it reached its stop and held the rotor whilst replacing the cover. The strong magnets in the cover effectively prevent the motor spinning against the spring pressure.

A couple of tips for anyone trying this:

The brushes MUST be zero Ohm Copper Graphite brushes.

It is not necessary to disconnect/bleed the clutch!!

When removing the unit from the vehicle remove the 2 torx screws holding the Hydraulic 'Master Cylinder' to the unit and pull the unit apart from the hydraulic cylinder. I think its called an Easytronic Valve. The actuator rod in the unit has a ball end that clips into a plastic socket in the plastic hydraulic part.

[TTT]

Good Info. Thanks for posting.

Use good brushes, but I have been told they should last and last and last unless the motor is corroded or is bumping around for some reason.

Not sure if its called Easytronic - think that is a Vauxhall word.

[Eurodat]

Thanks to all. I have these symptoms randomly on my Fusion too.

I've removed the gearshift unit, all ok.. Checked all the wiring.. OK. Removed the clutch actuator yesterday hoping to find the brushes worn but they look ok. All back together now and working but for how long I wonder.

Great tip about removing the clutch hydraulics from the actuator so you don't have to bleed it all!

Could anyone let me know where I would be able to buy new brushes please?

[mr_chaela]

@ Eurodat

I have pm'd you

[Eurodat]

Well it looks like my efforts made no difference. It's lasted less than 24 hours.

The car started and went into reverse ok but then trying to put it in a forward gear it wouldn't move. The yellow cog light is lit on the dash now which I haven't seen before. It starts fine as long as I wait for the gear LCD to show N, it shows an 8 with a line through it for about 5 seconds and won't start. Once it shows N you can start it but it won't engage gears. It just stays showing N.

I'm wondering if I should just change the clutch actuator brushes anyway.

One thing I did notice.. The rotor in the motor doesn't unwind when you remove the motor cover unless you give it a little help to get it going. Maybe an issue with gears inside the actuator.

ArghhArghhh.. Just went back to it and it's now working.. 30 mins after it had refused to work. Very annoying... Any suggestions anyone?

[mr_chaela]

@ Eurodat

Thats how my daughters fiesta was playing up after I reamed the shift actuator bearing.

Check brushes in clutch actuator, change if necessary. Then if it shows any signs of problems check brushes in shift motors.

Her fiesta had done 80K miles and the clutch motor brushes were shot. The shift motor brushes still have about 1 - 1.5mm of wear left, should last another 20K miles.

[Eurodat]

Thank you for the extra info.

I decided to remove the clutch actuator again and re-examined the brushes.

I've attached a couple of images of the commutator etc. The brushes look OK to me but maybe someone with a bit more knowledge could comment on if I should replace them. Moving the commutator from side to side doesn't completely break the connection between the brushes and the commutator by the way.

@ Mr_C.. Any chance you could indicate where the bits are that I need to snap off to remove the existing brushes please.

Any other issues that may be obvious, please can you let me know.

[mr_chaela]

@ Eurodat

Tongue to break

Brush on left is replacement I got from eBay.

Brush on right shows how it should look after reshaping, the brush shown was my first attempt and didn't work because it was a carbon brush (should have been copper carbon with zero resistance), the thin braid would probably have burnt out with the current it has to take.

[Eurodat]

@Mr_C

When you turned your rotor fully to the end stop did it want to unwind of its own accord? This one doesn't.. You have to manually rotate it a few revolutions before the spring takes over so I'm wondering if the problem may be in the gearing inside the clutch actuator.

Am I right in thinking the rotor can only go one way under power and completely relies on the spring to unwind or can it be powered both ways?

[Eurodat]

Me again..

Forgot to mention.. I see a P335 DTC error most times along with the Durashift problem. This is a crankshaft position sensor circuit A error apparently.

Another thing I spotted today was that the rev counter shows the correct rpm for about 5 seconds then drops to zero even though the engine is still running.

If I clear the fault on the DTC on most occasions the gears start to select again and the rpm gauge works. The durashift issue may not always clear though (can't be certain).

Could this actually be another error (crankshaft position sensor for example) that is making the durashift act strangely?

[Eurodat]

On ‎19‎/‎01‎/‎2016 at 2:21 PM, Eurodat said:

Me again..

Forgot to mention.. I see a P335 DTC error most times along with the Durashift problem. This is a crankshaft position sensor circuit A error apparently.

Another thing I spotted today was that the rev counter shows the correct rpm for about 5 seconds then drops to zero even though the engine is still running.

If I clear the fault on the DTC on most occasions the gears start to select again and the rpm gauge works. The durashift issue may not always clear though (can't be certain).

Could this actually be another error (crankshaft position sensor for example) that is making the durashift act strangely?

Following on from this I ordered a Haynes Manual which arrived today.

It lists things to check if Durashift gears cant be selected or there is no drive...Guess what was there... Crankshaft Position Sensor failure! Fingers crossed...

[Eurodat]

6 days ago I reseated the plug on the Crankshaft position sensor and  sprayed it all with WD40. So far it's been fine everyday. 

I have bought a new sensor just in case I see the error and symptoms again. Hopefully I won't though. 

Thanks to all who contributed to this thread. 

 

 

[TTT]

Don't want to tell you how to suck eggs, but the WD40 needs to be applied regularly, or use battery terminal protector or similar.

[Harryzz]

Just completed this on a 2007 1.4 Lx fiesta. Works a treat. If anybody needs advise on this topic I am happy to help. Based in Ireland. Thanks a million to the original poster!! 

[jackdee]

hi, great info on this durashift problem which has happened to my 2003 fiesta with only 70k on clock. I have manged to sort out the gearshift actuators , but it seems the problem mat lay with the clutch actuator. how easy would it be to change the brushes and where can i get the brushes. any help will be appreciated. Thinking of sending the unit to get it refurbed but if its not that difficult will attempt myself.

thanks

 

[cs10wal]

The actuator from the video was my old actuator, ford have build a new actuator in my Fiesta at Feb. 2012 at 102.000km, now, 137.000km, since Dez. i have new problems, 2-3 Gang (?) it is hanging, etc..

Yesterday the Fiesta going to total error, no Display, no Motor-Start. At morning i have switched the new actuator, and now i verry happy ITS RUN, AND RUN, AND RUN, AND RUN, AND RUN :) :)

But i must reset the electronics, switch of the battery, turn on the lights, 3hours, and the Durashift going new learning; turn on the ignition (Zündung), but NOT THE MOTOR, the actuators runs forward and back, checking a lot off things, after any (verry long;) )minutes, all was ok.

at lasse, you are my hero !! :)

Now i have the other actuator, that have the same problem !

Greats, Holle

sorry for my bad english, in moment im verry happy-nervoesly ;)

when anybody have that durashift-problem at my location (Germany/ Steinhuder Meer), come to me, we make it together (not for money, i will give back, that i have becomes here) 

 

I had the same problem myself to my fiesta year 2006 and I want to announce that I followed your advice and I were very ajutor.momentan car was probably about 30km and it shows the guys and I hope ok.thx I have no problems

[greengumbo]

This is an excellent guide. Thanks to Lasse etc for all the good descriptions. I have another thread on my topic but thought this was the place to keep updates.

I followed this thread for gear actuator and it seems to be fine and not stuck. I think followed another thread on wiring and it also seems okay. 

Briefly I took out gear actuator, checked it was not stuck then tested the motor and it worked fine. Put it back on car, checked wiring looms....nothing wrong with them as far as I could determine apart from mud and grime. It did look like they had been replaced / checked previously. 

So the car did the usual nonsense when I turned ignition - N in display with yellow gear cog highlighted and no start. Tried a few times and it would intermittently go blank, give the -- sign or flash "auto". I went and had a look at gear actuator while my dad tried ignition and after a few attempts and moving the fascia I saw the gear actuator moving and engaging and the car started. He managed to put it into 1st and R plenty times and the cog sign was off. Drove forward about 10m and when I depressed the brake it then wouldn't engage even though display said 1. Turned off ignition and it wouldn't start again.

From what I can read and tell that sounds like the TCU/clutch actuator. So will have a read on removal and sent to ecutesting or solutions.

Is ABS involved at all in the durashift control ? Only ask because the ABS light comes on sometimes when these issues occur.

Cheers for help.....will let you know what happens. BTW anyway to recover radio / dvd codes - lost when I disconnected battery !