[The Maverick]

This is an A10 symptom that I don't recall reading about before so I wanted to share it here.

On my commute home tonight, at about 9900 miles on the odometer, I tapped the throttle pedal to downshift into Performance Shift mode while decelerating. Instead of a rapid downshift like normal accompanied by raised RPMs, there was a thunk/thump (that could be both felt and heard) and the revs didn't seem to raise meaningfully. However, the display did confirm Performance Shift mode had been activated.

I figured I had just entered Performance Shift mode at a poor RPM. The car was otherwise shifting and accelerating normally. However, the next few times the car entered Performance Shift mode over the course of the drive, it made the same loud and audible thunk/thump in the general area of the transmission tunnel. The symptom was occurring at speeds/RPMs where I knew for sure that something abnormal was going on compared to my past use of the Performance Shift mode. The symptom seemed to be consistent and I had never experienced the A10 shifting like that before. I also remember there was at least one low speed, part-throttle upshift, when I don't think I was in Performance Shift mode, where I got the same sort of thunk/thump during the shift. My initial impression, based on the feel and sound, was that it was a mechanical issue. I took it easy for the rest of the 15-20 miles home.

Once I was within a few blocks of the house, I rolled down the windows and decided to get a better "ear" on what was going on to determine if I needed to schedule a warranty appointment or if should jack the car up when I got home to see what I could see. I tapped the throttle into Performance Shift mode and got the loud, distinct thump sound and feel again. I was going to give it another try, so I moved the shifter over into manual mode and then back into auto mode (an action that allows you to immediately exit the Performance Shift mode).

Oddly enough, that seemed to have eliminated the symptom. I did a few more downshifts into Performance Shift mode after that, by tapping the pedal, and each time the car made the normal quick downshift when entering Performance Shift mode, just as it normally had done in the past. What with the recent thread talking about the PITA transmission fluid level check procedure, I wondered if this unusual symptom was caused by the transmission fluid level being off a bit...

I will be commuting again on Friday, at which time I'll see if this symptom recurs. I don't think there is any benefit to rushing to the dealership if I can't replicate the symptom. In the meantime, I was wondering if anyone else here has experienced this symptom with the A10 or has any thoughts about what might have caused this.

Thanks!