It finally happened...possible CVT faiure

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Marcov71
Posts: 126
Joined: Sun Aug 16, 2015 9:32 pm
Location: Orange County NY

Thanks Old tech! I really don't have faith that this thing can be saved. Let's see.
2012 Kizashi CVT AWD/ w paint chips :shock:
Orange County/Brooklyn NY
bdleonard
Posts: 268
Joined: Mon Apr 22, 2013 4:39 am

Marcov71 wrote:So I got codes P0777 and P1818. We were able to clear them and car drove fine but the whining was still there. Code P1818 was trying to creep back in. Hoping my mechanic cab save this CVT. ANYONE familiar with the P1818 code?
P0777: Pressure Control Solenoid “B” Stuck On
Measured secondary pressure value is lower than specified value against desired value.

P1818: Stepper Motor Performance
Difference between measured primary pulley speed and estimated primary pulley speed is higher than 1000 rpm for 5 sec.
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Ronzuki
Posts: 2382
Joined: Wed Nov 17, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: Lancaster County, PA

Kicking myself for not listening to my gut 60k miles ago to change the damn fluid.

OT...so, when I did the fluid change I tried to set the level at the point on the stick where the TSB said it needed to be when 'hot'. I did this with car not running (level of course)...come to think of it, should it have been running to properly set the level? and/or in gear?

It's been so long since I personally serviced an AT, I forget :oops:. Up until the Kizashi, my DDers had all been MTs since forever. The only conventional ATs we did have, I had serviced by a then trusted GM dealer.
Ron

2010 Kizashi GTS, CVT, iAWD (3/10 build date)
2011 SX4 Premium Hatch, CVT, iAWD (12/10 build date)
2018 Mazda CX-5 iAWD Touring
2014 Wrangler JKUW (GONE, traded :D :D )
1991 Samurai, 5-Speed, EFI, Soft-Top ( :| sold)
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KuroNekko
Posts: 5170
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 5:08 pm
Location: California, USA

Marcov71 wrote:Let me rephrase that, Only Kizashi CVT is a lemon. Pretty sure that the manual is bullet proof. This is my fourth Suzuki and the only one that has failed me. At 130k. It should just be breaking in! Lol
I would say that the CVT was a mistake for the Kizashi. The Kizashi is a small midsize sedan but Suzuki had higher ambitions for it and wanted to market it like a budget alternative to a FWD Sports Sedan like the Acura TSX. The CVT was a huge letdown in that regard given CVTs are really only for efficiency... on paper. They sap performance and they break easier. Given Suzuki didn't have the latest engine technology for efficiency, they had to make it up with the transmission and opted for the CVT as the Automatic. I wish they just put a conventional geared Automatic in it. It may have been less fuel efficient but a lot more reliable and robust and probably drove better too for performance. I had an automatic '98 Sidekick and never had issues with the transmission. My friend later bought it and didn't have issues with the automatic transmission either.

So unfortunately, I think many CVT Kizashis will see a shorter life than expected, like yours. Given the lack of support for the car and the dismal resale value, most will (should really) opt to just junk the car than to fix it. It's sad but the consequence of putting a CVT in a car like this. In fact, from what I read across many brands, I don't think a CVT belongs in any vehicle weighing over 2500 lbs. I think they should only be in lightweight mini cars.
However, if you live near an experienced transmission tech like Old Tech, there are options for replacement/repair but most likely won't have that as a feasible choice.

I hate to say it for you in your situation but my 2011 Kizashi with the 6 speed manual now just passed 90,000 miles yet still drives like the day I picked it up with only 7,500 miles on the odometer. Gotta row your own for the long haul.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
moojin
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Mar 20, 2014 5:32 pm

Ronzuki wrote:OT, so what causes whining when there is absolutely no debris in the screen? That was my situation prior to its first ever fluid change at 80k miles (3 drain/fills). Perfectly clean screen and magnets had smooth, metallic grey, goo (no bits or pieces at all). Now, at almost 10k on the 'new' fluid, a faint whine is becoming perceivable.
@Ronzuki

I took your advice (from my other thread viewtopic.php?f=12&t=5171 ) and had my CVT fluid replaced at about 97K about 3 weeks ago. I've been hearing a similar "faint whine... becoming perceivable" as well (when the audio system is off). I drove it with the mechanic and he said that he couldn't hear it. I probably detected the sound because I'm actively trying to hear anything that might be wrong with the car especially a CVT whine. I think any other person hearing the sound would think that is how the car should sound. I don't even know how to describe it other than it is an ambient sound that becomes noticeable at certain times.

Since you posted at the end of September, has your CVT whine become louder? I had the mechanic show me the pan and it was exactly as you described: "Magnets had smooth, metallic grey, goo (no bits or pieces at all)." He said that the one easily-accessible-filter was not dirty, but replaced it anyway. I didn't get the other harder-to-access filter replaced.
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Ronzuki
Posts: 2382
Joined: Wed Nov 17, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: Lancaster County, PA

moojin wrote: I probably detected the sound because I'm actively trying to hear anything that might be wrong with the car especially a CVT whine. I think any other person hearing the sound would think that is how the car should sound. I don't even know how to describe it other than it is an ambient sound that becomes noticeable at certain times.

Since you posted at the end of September, has your CVT whine become louder?
I'm the original owner and very perceptive of changes to my vehicles be it feeling or sounds. The whine was most definitely not present when new...lest I wouldn't have bought the thing seeing how I was capitulating over the purchase because of the unknown to me slush-box (CVT). Whine of the magnitude we're discussing here is NOT normal.

I noticed the whine beginning many, many years (and miles) ago and reported it to the dealer while still under powertrain warranty. Dealer could have cared less, since, Suzuki had zero recommendations for doing anything with/to the trans at that low mileage back then. No codes, no problems, right? :roll: All any dealer cares about is how they're going to get paid. Suzuki wouldn't have warrantied anything on a functioning trans back then (or now for that matter), whine or not. Hence they don't pay the dealer to do the right thing. So that leaves me paying with no guarantees...not.

Fast forward to 75-80k miles a little over a year ago and the whine was so loud during the summer heat after a hard romp I could hear it over the stereo w/ the car buttoned up an the A/C on when taking off from a dead stop. If something wasn't done, it's goose was cooked and my beloved Kizashi would become another failed CVT statistic. So began the fluid swap adventure. I give credit to those preceding me who had done the research, detective work, and performed the service on their own.

Today, 11k+ miles after its first DIY servicing, the whine is now more perceivable again, however nothing like it had been before changing the fluid. And, it quiets down quite a bit in the cooler weather. The romps I put it through don't change much with weather btw. At this point, after not servicing it for far too long initially, it'll always whine to some degree and it's merely a matter of prolonging the inevitable for as long as possible. I'd planned on doing the 3 drain procedure again at 100k miles (20k after initial factory fill replacement). I've tucked the Kiz in to the garage this week for winter (for the most part) and it's sitting at a little over 91,500 miles. I may perform the service again earlier than my planned 100k, next spring/early summer, since a) the 3rd drain of the Kiz's fluid was still far nastier looking than the single drain out of the wife's 55k mile 2011 SX4, and b) it's whining louder than it was a year or so ago after the initial service. Old Tech has made references to internal parts that are likely failing that cause the whine, so as I say, hopefully clean(er) fluid prolongs the inevitable. I'll likely just do fluid and no filters this go-round.

I will say, as much as I love the Kizashi, if the trans dies (or any other unlikely major problem occurs), it will become history.
Ron

2010 Kizashi GTS, CVT, iAWD (3/10 build date)
2011 SX4 Premium Hatch, CVT, iAWD (12/10 build date)
2018 Mazda CX-5 iAWD Touring
2014 Wrangler JKUW (GONE, traded :D :D )
1991 Samurai, 5-Speed, EFI, Soft-Top ( :| sold)
nuetro
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Nov 15, 2019 3:07 am

ANYONE familiar with the P1818 code?
My 2012 kizashi also failed last Thursday and went into limp mode. The code that I got from it is P1818 but not the other one associated with this post, at least not yet anyway. I found the service manual for the 2011(assuming this manual is valid for the 2012) which points to the stepper motor but I couldn't find anything about replacing just this part and also couldn't find this part specific to the kizashi. I haven't tried transmission fluid change suggested by old tech. Any other suggestions / ideas on where to get parts?
moojin
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Mar 20, 2014 5:32 pm

Ronzuki wrote: I give credit to those preceding me who had done the research, detective work, and performed the service on their own.

I've tucked the Kiz in to the garage this week for winter (for the most part) and it's sitting at a little over 91,500 miles.

I will say, as much as I love the Kizashi, if the trans dies (or any other unlikely major problem occurs), it will become history.
I had a decision point about a year ago to trade my Kizashi in because of some repair work that it needed, but I didn't want another new car payment as I had just purchased another car. I kept the Kizashi, paid too much and got it fixed. One place of reassurance was the community here and in the facebook group.

I hope to get at least 2 more years out of my car. With my commute and driving my son all around town and the state for soccer, in that time, I will have placed 40,000 more miles on the car. I just passed 100,000 miles, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I do hope that your car survives a long time as your input is invaluable to this community. "Old Tech" is also in the same invaluable category.
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Ronzuki
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Joined: Wed Nov 17, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: Lancaster County, PA

Thank you for the kind words. I call things as I I see them, or, have first-hand experience/knowledge of, don't recommend anything to anyone I wouldn't recommend for myself.
Ron

2010 Kizashi GTS, CVT, iAWD (3/10 build date)
2011 SX4 Premium Hatch, CVT, iAWD (12/10 build date)
2018 Mazda CX-5 iAWD Touring
2014 Wrangler JKUW (GONE, traded :D :D )
1991 Samurai, 5-Speed, EFI, Soft-Top ( :| sold)
old tech
Posts: 705
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2018 1:51 pm
Location: n/w pennsysvania

[quote="nuetro"][quote] ANYONE familiar with the P1818 code?[/quote]
My 2012 kizashi also failed last Thursday and went into limp mode. The code that I got from it is P1818 but not the other one associated with this post, at least not yet anyway. I found the service manual for the 2011(assuming this manual is valid for the 2012) which points to the stepper motor but I couldn't find anything about replacing just this part and also couldn't find this part specific to the kizashi. I haven't tried transmission fluid change suggested by old tech. Any other suggestions / ideas on where to get parts?[/quote]
I am just today working with a 2013 with 100k miles with the same code p1818. the customer erased code before I got to it . I test drove it and at first felt fine then I noticed rpm fluctuating at a steady cruise. I then tested it in reverse on an incline and it became obvious that the primary pulley was failing, no longer running true causing a repeated grab and release feeling. It most likely is showing computer an incorrect and pulsing pulley position and stepper is being wrongly accused. I probably sound like broken record on this but the six locating ball design on this primary is way to light for this application. Ive been converting even low mile used transmissions to long pin and Im expecting average life expectancy to exceed 200k miles.
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