# Aisin AF40-6 downshift



## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

mine after it warms up will down shift a tiny bit rough untill very hot. have you flushed the trans yet?


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

No I haven't. Actually email a local amsoil distributor to see how much for a case of signature series atf.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

im not sure ok Km to miles conversion but sever manual recommends 45k miles. im at 17 and i may just do it at 25k... i drive mine quite hard


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

I drive mine easy but it's almost 100% city


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

Same here 90% city and its very very hot here in florida. At least once a day i do a wide open throttle pull


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

Gm should have done a better job with trans shift software. It still fells like it was taken for a gasser and hap haphazardly tuned for a diesel. Especially first 2nd and 2nd converter lock up. The down shifts are horribly slow and i hate that shift denied bs


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Shift denied makes me furious so I don't use manual shifting at all. Trifecta tune is supposed to smooth out the shifting but it's currently like $750 with Exchange rates to Canada.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

> shift denied makes me furious so i don't use manual shifting at all. Trifecta tune is supposed to smooth out the shifting but it's currently like $750 with exchange rates to canada.


just go with fleece 100% emmisions delete ( for off road vehicles only) and fix that while problem


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Still have 2.5 years of power train left and 4.5 years of extended warranty.


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## Snipesy (Dec 7, 2015)

No one can *actaully* tune the TCM except for Aisin itself.... Shame really, there's nothing inherently bad about the transmission itself.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Don't worry, the gas programming is terrible too. One of the worst I've ever driven.

They seem to have done a much better job with the transmission in 2nd gen/2016 Cruze.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

The af40 is actually described as a smooth shifting transmission on other vehicles. Wonder why ours is so firm.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

money_man said:


> The af40 is actually described as a smooth shifting transmission on other vehicles. Wonder why ours is so firm.


So is the 6T40 on other GM vehicles, but it is terrible in the Cruze. I've got to wonder if they favor lock-up scenarios with the programming as much as possible and "quick" changes rather than slurring shifts with the torque converter on these cars for max. fuel economy.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Not sure. Would love to smooth out that harsh downshift.


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## CruzeDan (May 17, 2015)

jblackburn said:


> So is the 6T40 on other GM vehicles, but it is terrible in the Cruze. I've got to wonder if they favor lock-up scenarios with the programming as much as possible and "quick" changes rather than slurring shifts with the torque converter on these cars for max. fuel economy.


BINGO. Its all about the MPGs. The way these cars shift they are in lockup much more than cars in the past, and other vehicles in the lineup, for maximum power transfer without loss. I don't find my 6 speed in the diesel offensive, but I wouldn't call it smooth. And it isn't any better than the gassers, they have their own quirks as well.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

I don't mine city driving my diesel but I do find coming to a stop after a long drive to have a weird firm downshift, not sure which shift it is though.


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## DslGate (Jun 29, 2016)

Snipesy said:


> No one can *actaully* tune the TCM except for Aisin itself.... Shame really, there's nothing inherently bad about the transmission itself.



Weve tuned MB AMG cars transmissions very successfully. There's several tuners who do both ECM and trans as a package with much success. Eurocharged is one such tuner.


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## spacedout (Dec 7, 2010)

I know its not he same transmission, but with my 2012 1LT gas cruze the 5th to 4th downshift at 28mph was strange. If you were completely off the gas the shift was drawn out, slowing the car from compression braking considerably while it shifted. On the gas very lightly but loosing speed though the shift point was abrupt but not harsh at all. Now if you were on the gas anything more than lightly and you slowed through that speed it would clunk harshly into the lower gear. The 5th/6th shift at 40mph would also sometimes behave the same, I just learned to use very light throttle inputs when driving near those speeds. 

Only car I've ever owned where my throttle inputs seemed to have any effect on the shift quality. Interestingly the same exact transmission in my 2015 sonic doesn't seem to have this issue or its much less pronounced.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Kind of curious if there's any transmission software updates yet for the diesel


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

Mine has always had a harsh downshift from time to time, but the Amsoil definitely smoothed it out.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Seriously thinking about changing to amsoil atf soon. Waiting for a local company to quote me on a case of fuel efficient signature series atf


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## kmfinley93 (Oct 2, 2015)

The six-speed in the Diesel cruze is not an ideal matchup. 

I don't know how much merit this has, but my dealer explained to me that the tranny spends a certain amount of time "Learning" the driving style of the driver. My girflriend drives this car during the week and is always late for work, so I imagine her city commute is very jumpy, under 45mph and with a lot of up and downshifting. 

I have a completely different driving style as I am extremely smooth with the pedal and attempt to keep the engine from shifting at constant speed. For the first 50 miles or so I drive it, it shifts like crap every time and then smooths out. Especially when I coast up to a red light, I'll lightly tap the brakes to slow down slowly and hopefullly have it turn green before I get there, but the car downshifts as soon as I tap it and you lurch forward.

When the CEL is on, apparently this "learning" system goes into lockup, and I can feel it because it shifts like absolute garbage. 


No matter who's driving it or when, this car HATES 35mph and all the roads around me are 35. the 2-3-4 shifting is clunky going up and down and it is really quite miserable to drive downtown. 


All of this being said, we all knew when buying these cars that they are highway warriors, and nothing I've seen has contradicted that.


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## IndyDiesel (May 24, 2015)

I came out of a 14 eco 6 speed which was pretty good if not excellent on highway, I did get tired of shifting in city driving. While the CTD Transmission is a bit different and not perfect, I really like it and have had zero trouble with it. I only have 16k miles on it, ready for a long road trip again, the CTD is for sure the happiest on the open road. I do plan on changing transmission fluid but just haven't decided when just yet.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

I've done a couple highway runs (6 hour round trip and 8 hours round trip) and it's definitely not even working on the highway. Acts like 70mph is no big deal no matter how much stuff in the car.


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## CruzeDan (May 17, 2015)

Kmfinley93, you are correct, the car does learn driving behavior to adjust shifting, but so has every electronically controlled transmission for quite some time. This transmission is not an ideal matchup from a smoothness and comfort standpoint, but GM chose it because it is beefy enough to handle the diesel motor. In that regard, it has been an ideal match, cause they have rarely failed.


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## IndyDiesel (May 24, 2015)

money_man said:


> I've done a couple highway runs (6 hour round trip and 8 hours round trip) and it's definitely not even working on the highway. Acts like 70mph is no big deal no matter how much stuff in the car.


Your right and still have plenty of power at 70 if you want to speed up. The Eco I would have to downshift at 65 to 70 to have much power left and the engine would seem to work much harder. The diesel just pulls and pulls and doesn't feel like it is straining at all.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Figured gm would have an update out by now to make it shift smoother but I guess if they aren't breaking, there's nothing to fix


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## MilTownSHO (Oct 9, 2013)

money_man said:


> Trifecta tune is supposed to smooth out the shifting but it's currently like $750 with Exchange rates to Canada.


Honestly have not noticed a difference in how it shifts.


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## MilTownSHO (Oct 9, 2013)

money_man said:


> Kind of curious if there's any transmission software updates yet for the diesel


There is not


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