Anyone have both AT light & CEL on?

[UpNorth]

Coming home today (via a short in-town drive) I noticed that both my AT & CEL were on. I plan to call the dealer in the morning, as the manual says that when the AT light comes on, it means the transaxle has an electrical problem and that driving more may cause damage.

I haven't seen others mention the AT light so I just thought I'd see if anyone else had had one. (This is also my first CEL, but the manual says that can come on due to electrical problems so i'm assuming this CEL relates to the AT light.) I had to look it up in the manual to know what the AT stood for and can't claim to know what it does.

The car didn't feel quite right driving home, but maybe I just thought so because of the lights. Power of suggestion you know.

 

[AWmustang]

AT stands for Automatic Transmission.

 

[UpNorth]

AT stands for Automatic Transmission.

Thanks. I'm easily confused by terms I don't know. The dealer said I need to bring in it, but I can't get an appt until June 8th. I am less than pleased. He said it is probably OK to drive it, so long as it doesn't act worse, but I don't want to risk it. "Probably" is not reassuring.

 

[TheMAN]

if they can't get to it until the 8th, just drop it off and get a loaner/rental

 

[UpNorth]

if they can't get to it until the 8th, just drop it off and get a loaner/rental

That's a good idea. Sorry to ask another question, but is that only an option if I purchased extra protection beyond the basic warrantee coverage?

 

[mikey1981]

Whats your mileage?

 

[UpNorth]

Whats your mileage?

I'm between 1100 and 1200. (I don't drive much, as I can usually walk to work.)

 

[mikey1981]

wow, anyways, thats too bad, hope it works out.

 

[UpNorth]

wow, anyways, thats too bad, hope it works out.

Thanks. I'll add a post when I learn what the problem was.

(Until I got this car, I was delighted that I walked to work most days. But now, even though I know walking is good for me & conserves energy, I can't help but have a twinge of regret when I walk past my CX-7.)

 

[UpNorth]

Stuck in 3rd, major clunking

OK, I made the wrong call in deciding to keep my car until my appt on the 8th to fix the CEL & AT light. the dealer said I could drive it but I generally haven't been. I hadn't driven the car in a week, but today I decided to try to take the car to run a short errand. The CEL was on when I started and shortly thereafter the AT light came back. Then the real fun began.

It didn't feel its usual smooth while driving, but then when I stopped at a light, it stayed in 3rd. I tried to manually change the gears but no luck. I had to start from a stop in third. The rest of my driving was in third. While waiting at the next light, I was getting concerned whether I could get into reverse (and in and out of my driveway) so I tried that. I did it but I got a heck of a clunk. When I switched back to drive, it was again illuminating the number 3. I had already abandoned my errand & just went home and parked on the street. I was able to use reverse, but not without a big clunk.

I'm not a happy camper, knowing this won't get fixed until Friday. I hope it is nothing major (or at least not a mystery) and that my adventure in third didn't do real damage.

I'm supposed to drop off my car Monday at the body shop to get a nasty scratch fixed (that was caused by the dealer while doing their courtesy inspection on my last visit - yes, they are paying.) The body shop is about a block away from the dealer. Now I'm wondering if i'll be able to keep my appt Monday. I'd like to let them just dump the car at the dealer when it's done on Tuesday. The clunking and being in third will probably freak out the auto body folks.

any advice is welcome.

 

[TheMAN]

STOP making the dumb choices NOW

bring the car to the body shop LATER
call mazda roadside assistance and get the car towed to the dealer instead of limping it over and potentially causing more damage than there is right now

GET A LOANER CAR

YOU HAVE WARRANTY, EVERYTHING IS FREE
get the car to the dealer NOW, not later

NO, it is NOT "OK" to drive with the "AT" light on... the service advisor at your dealer was stupid for even saying that

 

[UpNorth]

Thanks. That's what I needed to hear. Part of me knew that what I was being told was wrong, but I of course ignored that part of myself guided by common sense.

The tow truck just left and I guess we'll sort things out next week. (The service dept is closed on the weekend.)

 

[mikey1981]

my advice: outside of service, have the dealer touch your car as least as possible. My dealer does a courtesy wash which basically means they scratch the s*** outta ur car every single time. Whenever my car was going in id leave a tag inside it with NO WASH. in about 5 months they put more scratches and lines into the cherry black i had than some of my previous cars accumulated in years. screw the dealer.

 

[UpNorth]

my advice: outside of service, have the dealer touch your car as least as possible. My dealer does a courtesy wash which basically means they scratch the s*** outta ur car every single time. Whenever my car was going in id leave a tag inside it with NO WASH. in about 5 months they put more scratches and lines into the cherry black i had than some of my previous cars accumulated in years. screw the dealer.

I agree 100%. My dealer doesn't offer courtesy washes in any event but if they did, I'd decline. (Last time I was there, I did notice they were starting to offer a for fee detailing service.) While the weather cooperates, I wash & wax the car myself. I love the car so much I actually enjoy it. In the winter I am stuck with the touchless washes, but at least they don't scratch & mar as much as a poorly done wash at the dealer.

 

[UpNorth]

New TCM ordered

I spoke with my dealer and the problem is I need a new TCM. One is being overnighted here, which means it wil probably get here Wednesday. They also said they'll arrange things with the body shop to get that other repair done before I get the car back. In addition, they will also repair the damage done to that little black plastic spoiler under the front of the car, as that was damaged by the cable used to pull the car onto the flatbed. The guy operating the truck was trying to be careful, I think he just couldn't get an angle where the cable didn't press on that plastic.

TheMan, you'll love this. When I talked to the service dept to get the diagnosis and plan, the guy remarked that he hadn't had a chance to drop the car off at the body shop yet today. With your voice in my head, I said shouldn't the car not be driven until the transmission is fixed to avoid further damage? I reminded him of the towing, being stuck in 3rd and the bad sounds. Then he agreed. All I can guess is they are too busy to have time to think.

 

[CX7_Scott]

You do know that the car ships with pull-hooks... right...? If you pop-off those plastic caps on the front, you thread-in the two, LARGE eyehooks into there and they can hook to those to pull you onto the flatbed.

(Well, I'm *assuming* they all ship with them... my GT did)

 

[UpNorth]

You do know that the car ships with pull-hooks... right...? If you pop-off those plastic caps on the front, you thread-in the two, LARGE eyehooks into there and they can hook to those to pull you onto the flatbed.

(Well, I'm *assuming* they all ship with them... my GT did)

They may well be there. I asked the tow truck guy if he wanted me to look things up in the manual as I remembered there was something about towing in it. (I didn't remember what it said.) He said he was fine & had it covered. I figured that since he was sent by mazda, I could trust him. I didn't see until too late that the angles weren't gonna work quite right.

So maybe we both blew it. When I get the car back I'll look for those hooks you are talking about. I just read the manual and it looks like those hooks are for tying down. I'm not sure if you can use them to pull the car up onto a flat bed.

 

[CX7_Scott]

ah - I haven't opened the manual since back in October '06... I may have misunderstood the use of those.

 

[SuperStretch18]

They may well be there. I asked the tow truck guy if he wanted me to look things up in the manual as I remembered there was something about towing in it. (I didn't remember what it said.) He said he was fine & had it covered. I figured that since he was sent by mazda, I could trust him. I didn't see until too late that the angles weren't gonna work quite right.

So maybe we both blew it. When I get the car back I'll look for those hooks you are talking about. I just read the manual and it looks like those hooks are for tying down. I'm not sure if you can use them to pull the car up onto a flat bed.

Never trust a tow truck driver. My buddy had alternator trouble in his GTI and his car died on the Pulaski Skyway (anyone from North Jersey can attest that this is the worst place to get stuck!). Anyway, calls AAA and requests a flat bed to tow his car (it's lowered and will get ruined by a regular tow). He then waits and waits, and waits and waits. Apparently a tow truck driver accepted, but then decided that he could not pick him up. After many calls to AAA and SEVEN hours later (in a dead car during a NJ winter), the driver finally comes with a regular tow truck. At this point, my friend is like "whatever" and tells the guy to be careful. He then proceeds to tow the car down Tonnele Ave in Jersey City. Potholes and loud bangs galore. Finally, about 8 hours (full day of work) after he started, he gets home. Driver goes to let his car down and accidentally DROPS the car! Total damage to the car = $3,000+. Needs a new rear bumper from being half ripped off by potholes and a new engine block to fix the 2" hole as a result of the two foot drop. Turns out that the driver was an "independent contractor" running a tow truck operation out of his house.

Sorry for the off topic, but just thought I'd share...

 

[UpNorth]

I got my car back last night and all is right with the world. Along with installing the new TCM, the dealer also did the new programming for the TCU. I drove around a little today and it reminded me of why I fell in love with this car. It was an absolute pleasure. (I never had the thought "why am I in this gear.")

Once the part comes in, they'll fix that little black plastic piece (bottom front) that got pinched by the tow cable too. Based on superstretch's buddy's experience, I guess I got off lucky that's all that happened.

They also sent my car to the body shop (after replacing the TCM) so the nasty scratch is no more either. The car looks like brand new. I am so relieved and happy.