# 1995 HYUNDAI SONATA — POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)
> NHTSA complaint `658239` · 2008-02-20 · Hyundai Motor America
## Severity
- **Deaths:** 0
- **Injured:** 1
- **Fire:** No
- **Crash:** Yes
- **Police report:** No
- **Medical attention:** No
- **Vehicle towed:** No
## Vehicle
- **Make:** HYUNDAI
- **Model:** SONATA
- **Year:** 1995
- **Manufacturer:** Hyundai Motor America
- **Component:** POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)
- **Miles at failure:** 142,000
- **Speed:** 55 mph
## Narrative
I'M THE OWNER OF A 1995 HYUNDAI SONATA, 2.0L DOHC, AUTOMATIC. DRIVING ON A ICY ROAD IN MICHIGAN THE TRANNY DOWNSHIFTED BY ITSELF FROM 4TH(OD) TO 1ST GEAR AND LOCKED IN 1ST GEAR THROWING ME IN A SNOW BANK! IF IT WASN'T FOR THE SNOW BANK TO STOP THE CAR, I WOULD'VE ENDED IN FRONT OF A INCOMING SEMI! THE TRANSMISSION HAS HAD HARSH SHIFTS/DOWNSHIFTS SINCE I PURCHASED THE CAR, BUT I NEVER HAD ANTICIPATED LOCKING UP WHILE DRIVING. AFTER DOING SOME RESEARCH I FOUND A HYNUDAI TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN STATING THAT 1995 MODEL TRANSMISSIONS CONTROL UNITS MAY NEED TO BE REFLASHED WITH NEWER VERSION SOFTWARE OR REPLACED WITH NEWER UNITS. APPARENTLY HYUNDAI DIDN'T MAKE A PRIORITY IN NOTIFYING THE OWNERS ABOUT THE TRANSMISSION COMPUTER CAUSING ERRATIC SHIFTS/DOWNSHIFTS! AFTER TALKING TO A HYUNDAI DEALERSHIP ABOUT THE ISSUE I GOT THE FOLLOWING ANSWER: "THE 1995 MODEL SONATA IS KNOWN FOR RANDOM TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS, AND LIMPING MODE ISSUES? .."  I WAS SPEECHLESS KNOWING OTHER PEOPLE OWN AND DRIVE THIS MODEL AND THAT SAME THING MAY HAPPEN TO THEM. PLEASE, SOMEBODY NEEDS TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS ISSUE.  *TR
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*Source: [NHTSA ODI](https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/downloads/) · AI Analytics · CC0 1.0*