10r80 harsh shifts on track

[thornclaw]

24 DH has very hard shifts after a few laps on track. this is despite the fluid temp being 210 degrees. It shifts hard enough that it causes the car to lunge and forces you to slow down. the feedback i've gotten suggests it is the transmission temp, but that does not seem to be the case. has anyone else experienced this and does anyone know a solution?

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[AZ_Ryan]

Get the fluid level checked.

 

[krisk]

24 DH has very hard shifts after a few laps on track. this is despite the fluid temp being 210 degrees. It shifts hard enough that it causes the car to lunge and forces you to slow down. the feedback i've gotten suggests it is the transmission temp, but that does not seem to be the case. has anyone else experienced this and does anyone know a solution?

Are you running it in auto mode or manual with the paddle shifters?

 

[Ken H.]

What mode? Track. Sport. Other.
are you talking about about downshifts or upshifts?
Cars at Ford Performance School (now Wheelhouse) use track mode & manual/paddle shifters. No problem except one car did have a harsh upshift 4th to 5th at WOT. They sent it to the shop.

 

[AZ_Ryan]

Im going to go out on a limb and say he was using track mode since he was on the track lol.

Regardless of the mode, the shifting should not be like that. First thing id check would be the fluid level. Some cars come underfilled from the factory.

 

[thornclaw]

i was in sport mode
not using paddles
it upshifts hard
i put some amsoil tranny fluid in it. hopefully that will help

 

[Junkyard Dog]

I did not use my paddles, but let the transmission shift itself. I experienced no problems like this.

 

[Ken H.]

I did not use my paddles, but let the transmission shift itself. I experienced no problems like this.

The instructors at the Ford school talked about not using auto mode because with all the rapid changes in acceleration & deceleration, the trans would constantly be searching for the right gear. They had us use manual mode. Also, you said it accelerated after the shift requiring you to slow down. That suggests you weren’t in WOT (wide open throttle) or aggressively accelerating. Try it next time in manual mode to see if it happens. I’m guessing it won’t. Just speculating, but I think it’s probably a function of your driving style & throttle position. It doesn’t sound “normal” but it should also do it on the street wth spirited driving if something is wrong. Play around with different modes and acceleration levels. If it continues, I’d get it checked.
PS. I’m no expert. Not a mechanic or professional driver. Just offering my thoughts after 3 days of all out, hard driving on the course at the school. No problems in all the cars except the one I mentioned. When in doubt, get it checked by someone who knows.

 

[Ken H.]

The instructors at the Ford school talked about not using auto mode because with all the rapid changes in acceleration & deceleration, the trans would constantly be searching for the right gear. They had us use manual mode. Also, you said it accelerated after the shift requiring you to slow down. That suggests you weren’t in WOT (wide open throttle) or aggressively accelerating. Try it next time in manual mode to see if it happens. I’m guessing it won’t. Just speculating, but I think it’s probably a function of your driving style & throttle position. It doesn’t sound “normal” but it should also do it on the street wth spirited driving if something is wrong. Play around with different modes and acceleration levels. If it continues, I’d get it checked.
PS. I’m no expert. Not a mechanic or professional driver. Just offering my thoughts after 3 days of all out, hard driving on the course at the school. No problems in all the cars except the one I mentioned. When in doubt, get it checked by someone who knows.

Oops. Meant to respond to thornclaw. Not junkyard dog

 

[MustangNoob]

I believe is due to the elevated temperatures. I have experienced the exact same thing at track mode + paddle sifters

 

[LouG]

I did not use my paddles, but let the transmission shift itself. I experienced no problems like this.

I've wondered about that. It does a good job in fast road driving, and it works well on track too?

 

[Junkyard Dog]

I've wondered about that. It does a good job in fast road driving, and it works well on track too?

Well, I am not going to pretend to answer for anybody else, but yes, for me.

Using the paddles kind of sucks, because there is this lengthy delay. You click it and wait and then it shifts.

Just leaving it in D in track mode keeps the rpms up.

With 10 gears, that is a lot to try to keep track of while also concentrating on not putting your car into a wall, not to bounce off the rev limiter and not to lug the engine. The car's computer will do all of that engine rpm control for you, and, if you are in the proper mode, do it very well.

This is not like driving a manual where on many tracks the guys only use two or three gears. That is not a lot of shifting. Compare that to the A10, and a lot of shifting is required to keep the rpm up. I let the car do it for me. It is almost always above 6000 rpm in track mode.

Watch the track videos of the manual guys, and you will see a lot of time spent at 4,000-4500 rpm on some parts of the track and just one or two gear changes on most of the track and all of some tracks. It really is different and less to keep track of than using the paddles on an automatic with so many additional gears and so little spread.

The MT-82 has very wide ratios and 4th gear is 1:1, making it kind of like road racing with an older, wide ratio 4 speed.

The Tremec in the Dark Horse is a little different in that 5th is 1:1 and the gear ratios are not quite as wide as the MT-82, but they are still pretty wide.

The 2026 Ford Mustang Dark Horse manual uses the TREMEC TR-3160 6-speed transmission. When paired with its standard 3.73 TORSEN® limited-slip rear axle, it features the following gear ratios: [1, 2, 3]

• 1st Gear: \(3.25:1\)
• 2nd Gear: \(2.23:1\)
• 3rd Gear: \(1.60:1\)
• 4th Gear: \(1.24:1\)
• 5th Gear: \(1.00:1\)
• 6th Gear: \(0.63:1\)
• Reverse: \(2.76:1\) [1, 2]

The A10, however, has 7th as the 1:1 gear, and very narrow splits. That is a lot to keep track of, especially on the slower parts of the track.

10-Speed Automatic (10R80) Ratios

• 1st: \(4.70\)
• 2nd: \(2.98\)
• 3rd: \(2.15\)
• 4th: \(1.77\)
• 5th: \(1.52\)
• 6th: \(1.27\)
• 7th: \(1.00\)
• 8th: \(0.85\)
• 9th: \(0.69\)
• 10th: \(0.64\)

Plus I am not constantly worried about my oil pump gears as I bounce off the rev limiter with mis-timed or ill timed paddle pushes.

Just my $0.02 - give it a shot. You may find you like it.


PS - and before any manual owners want to get pissy, consider that I am not saying the automatic is "better" than the manual. The post above is just about whether to use the manual mode and paddles in the automatic. I am saying don't do it. Don't try to be a manual transmission. Just put it in track mode and let the car do the shifting.

PSS - I have a Dark Horse with handling package. I have no idea if the Track Mode transmission controller programming is different in other Mustangs. It might be due to the higher rpm horsepower rating (100 rpm) of the Dark Horse. So I am speaking of my experience in my car only.

 

[AZ_Ryan]

I've wondered about that. It does a good job in fast road driving, and it works well on track too?

I find track mode holds the RPMs where it should and shifts when it should. I was primarily only using 3 gears on the twisties. They did a really good job on the programming IMO.

 

[Junkyard Dog]

I find track mode holds the RPMs where it should and shifts when it should. I was primarily only using 3 gears on the twisties. They did a really good job on the programming IMO.

On track, there are times when you are riding down the brakes hard from a very high speed to a very slow turn, and the transmission will start downshifting a bunch of times, each time sounding like a double clutch downshift as the engine bumps the throttle enough each time to keep the engine from dragging on the rear tires. It sounds really cool.

 

[krisk]

i was in sport mode
not using paddles
it upshifts hard
i put some amsoil tranny fluid in it. hopefully that will help

Interesting. I'll give you my non-expert advice, but it is based on personal experience on track as well as prior research.

1. I recommend trying again with the car in Track mode.
2. Make sure transmission is up to operating temperature (close to 200) before pushing it. Mine shifts much more harshly when the fluid is not up to temperature.
3. I would advise against using any fluid other than the Ford specified fluid. Based on my research, these transmissions cannot just use any fluid. I realize you added another fluid after the harsh shifting, so this is not a comment regarding fixing the issue, rather and suggestion for future operation.
4. Try paddle shifting. I started out using auto mode on track, but after a while realized a couple of things. First, the transmission shifts a lot more in auto mode than I do in manual mode, which seems to increase the fluid temp. Second, on certain sections of track the car shifted in a really bad location and upset the car balance. The worst for me was braking for turn 5 at Roebling Road Raceway where the car aways wanted to downshift right as I started my turn in.

With all of the above said, you could have an issue with low transmission fluid or something else wrong. I checked my fluid and it was properly filled. I have since changed the fluid a few times and always make sure the level is correct with the car running and at operating temperature.

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