KyEdge Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 I have a 2011 Edge SE FWD with 5,000 miles. I drive about 40 miles to work, part of which is through an area with several steep hills. If I am going downhill at 55-60 mph, and have to hit the brakes because a slower vehicle is in front of me, the transmission is shifting down one or two gears, which is forcing the RPMs up from 1,500 to 3,500. The transmission will not shift back up until the vehicle is on level ground again. My dealer says that this is "normal" and as long as the shifts are not rough, I should just ignore it. Does anyone else have this going on, and do you think it is normal? I don't see any logical reason for it to do this, and I find it worrisome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 I have a 2011 Edge SE FWD with 5,000 miles. I drive about 40 miles to work, part of which is through an area with several steep hills. If I am going downhill at 55-60 mph, and have to hit the brakes because a slower vehicle is in front of me, the transmission is shifting down one or two gears, which is forcing the RPMs up from 1,500 to 3,500. The transmission will not shift back up until the vehicle is on level ground again. My dealer says that this is "normal" and as long as the shifts are not rough, I should just ignore it. Does anyone else have this going on, and do you think it is normal? I don't see any logical reason for it to do this, and I find it worrisome. From the owner's manual: The automatic transmission shift strategy has the ability to detect hilly terrain or mountainous areas and will provide a limited amount of grade assist features automatically. Refer to D (Drive) with Grade Assist or SelectShift for more information. The engine is simply providing limited engine braking to offload the brakes. You get more engine braking by using the O/D switch and even more by changing to L. It should go back to normal when you hit the gas again. If not, try turning the O/D off and back on again. It's perfectly normal to engage - not sure about it not disengaging. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nextime Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 Akirby there is no O/D switch on a 2011 Edge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nextime Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 Akirby there is no O/D switch on a 2011 Edge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 Akirby there is no O/D switch on a 2011 Edge. There is according to the 2011 Edge owner's manual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waldo Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 I don't see any logical reason for it to do this, and I find it worrisome. Sure there is, it's saving your brakes and it's saving you fuel. When the engine is in engine braking mode, it shuts off all fuel. So even though it's running at higher rpms, it's actually using less fuel then it would if it didn't have this feature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nextime Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 Like I said there is no O/D switch on a 2011 Edge, that is a grade assist button and your picture clearly states that. What that does is cancel Overdrive and puts the transmission into a different mode that alows it to brake when the vehicle meets certain conditions. Please read the picture that you attached so you can understand it is not a O/D button and so you can actually find out what the transmission does when you activate the grade assist feature. I cant find anywhere in the Manual where it says there is an O/D button on a 2011 Edge. Now on older vehicles there is a O/D switch and it does turn off O/D and that is all it does, on a 2011 Edge that switch does much more that the old school term you are using. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 Like I said there is no O/D switch on a 2011 Edge, that is a grade assist button and your picture clearly states that. What that does is cancel Overdrive and puts the transmission into a different mode that alows it to brake when the vehicle meets certain conditions. Please read the picture that you attached so you can understand it is not a O/D button and so you can actually find out what the transmission does when you activate the grade assist feature. I cant find anywhere in the Manual where it says there is an O/D button on a 2011 Edge. Now on older vehicles there is a O/D switch and it does turn off O/D and that is all it does, on a 2011 Edge that switch does much more that the old school term you are using. Ok, there is a "Transmission Control" switch that you can press that turns off overdrive and if you press it again it turns overdrive back on. It also enables and disables Grade Assist. On my 2008 the button works exactly the same way (including Grade Assist) but is labeled O/D. I don't know if the 2011 button is also labeled O/D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waldo Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 My phone doesn't have a dial anymore, yet I still use the term "dialing the phone". 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbonedge+ Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 Now on older vehicles there is a O/D switch and it does turn off O/D and that is all it does, on a 2011 Edge that switch does much more that the old school term you are using. actually turning O/D off in older vehicles does do more than just turn it off. It actually acts the same as the grade assist. I generally run w/ the O/D in the off position and when I begin to slow down (tap the brakes even on level grades) it actually down shifts quicker than when O/D is on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KyEdge Posted March 3, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2011 Thanks for the info guys. If all else fails, read the manual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frumpy311 Posted March 10, 2011 Report Share Posted March 10, 2011 actually turning O/D off in older vehicles does do more than just turn it off. It actually acts the same as the grade assist. I generally run w/ the O/D in the off position and when I begin to slow down (tap the brakes even on level grades) it actually down shifts quicker than when O/D is on. After purchasing my 2007 Edge just a couple of weeks ago with 23,000 miles on it, they told me about the overdrive feature. As I drive around Central, PA for work throughout the week I was very interested to know that this was a great feature to turn off when going up and down large hills (which is what most of district consists of). I wasn't used to the dramatic downshifts that are associated with turning O/D off, but it certainly helps with braking down my large hills and mountains especially when poor weather is involved. I was concerned with the high RPM's too, but after doing a little digging online it would seem that this is actually good for the engine instead of running it at low RPM's with overdrive on all of the time. With so many hills and mountains in my area, I consistently have O/D off unless traveling on level ground for extended periods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbonedge+ Posted March 11, 2011 Report Share Posted March 11, 2011 After purchasing my 2007 Edge just a couple of weeks ago with 23,000 miles on it, they told me about the overdrive feature. As I drive around Central, PA for work throughout the week I was very interested to know that this was a great feature to turn off when going up and down large hills (which is what most of district consists of). I wasn't used to the dramatic downshifts that are associated with turning O/D off, but it certainly helps with braking down my large hills and mountains especially when poor weather is involved. I was concerned with the high RPM's too, but after doing a little digging online it would seem that this is actually good for the engine instead of running it at low RPM's with overdrive on all of the time. With so many hills and mountains in my area, I consistently have O/D off unless traveling on level ground for extended periods. Well, if running at high RPMs is good for it, my Edge is in great shape! It's relatively flat here, but I turn it off more for the fun factor as it holds the shifts a bit longer at the higher RPM range. Otherwise it would already upshift and then have to downshift when you do get an opening in traffic. My commute is mostly 45 MPH zones (some stop and go and several traffic lights) with a nice 55 MPH stretch (27 miles total) and I'll leave it off until I hit about 65-70 on that particular section. Only 23k on a 2007??? Must have been somebody's Sunday driver... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
railroad Posted March 27, 2011 Report Share Posted March 27, 2011 Hmmm? Is there an O/D switch on a 2011???? Love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbonedge+ Posted March 28, 2011 Report Share Posted March 28, 2011 (edited) Hmmm? Is there an O/D switch on a 2011???? Love it. Not sure about the regular models, but I test drove an '11 Sport Friday. It did not have an O/D button that I saw but the design is much different than my '07 (so there may be something somewhere), but it did have an "M" instead of "L" on the shifter with paddles on the steering wheel to up and downshift. Edited March 28, 2011 by carbonedge+ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
11Edge Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 Like I said there is no O/D switch on a 2011 Edge, that is a grade assist button and your picture clearly states that. What that does is cancel Overdrive and puts the transmission into a different mode that alows it to brake when the vehicle meets certain conditions. Please read the picture that you attached so you can understand it is not a O/D button and so you can actually find out what the transmission does when you activate the grade assist feature. I cant find anywhere in the Manual where it says there is an O/D button on a 2011 Edge. Now on older vehicles there is a O/D switch and it does turn off O/D and that is all it does, on a 2011 Edge that switch does much more that the old school term you are using. First sentence of the picture says "Pressing the transmission control switch on the side of the gearshift lever activates Grade Assist and cancels Overdrive". Last sentence says "It is recommended that you return to O/D (overdrive mode) on flat terrain to provide the best fuel economy and transmissio function". The Grade Assist button is a dual function button. Turns on Grade Assist and turns off O/D. Press it a second time and it turns off Grade Assist and turns on O/D. At least that is how I read it. My Edge has manual mode and the button on the side of the shift lever is for manual shifting, so I will have to read about Grade Assist for my car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cal3thousand Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 First sentence of the picture says "Pressing the transmission control switch on the side of the gearshift lever activates Grade Assist and cancels Overdrive". Last sentence says "It is recommended that you return to O/D (overdrive mode) on flat terrain to provide the best fuel economy and transmissio function". The Grade Assist button is a dual function button. Turns on Grade Assist and turns off O/D. Press it a second time and it turns off Grade Assist and turns on O/D. At least that is how I read it. My Edge has manual mode and the button on the side of the shift lever is for manual shifting, so I will have to read about Grade Assist for my car. I've been trying to figure this one out myself. But from observation, it seems that the engine will kick down the transmission if going down a grade and I feather the brake. Could be in my head, but I'll continue to test it. If I really need the engine braking, I will throw it in Manual and downshift on my own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nextime Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 Yes it does kick it down into a different gear, I can go down a steep hill and not even have to touch the brake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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