I was heading home tonight from work and noticed my tranny doing something very odd that it normally doesnt do on the same road.

Background:
The road i take home is a private toll road that cuts through some hilly terrain. well, once you crest you are going downhill.

Tonight:
It was raining not heavy but a steady drizzle. As i was going downhill, i would take my foot off the gas pedal. I noticed that the tranny would downshift to 3k and then upshift to 2700 rpm and it did this about 4 times.

My question is, i wonder if it has to do w/ the rain and the car hitting wetter sections of the road that would cause it to downshift and vice versa.

Also, i noticed sometimes when i'm going from a flat road and go up a hill...the tranny seems to get confused and not want to downshift to go up the hill if i keep my gas pedal at a constant...even when i increase the throttle a bit more it doesnt seem to want to downshift.

Anyone else notice these little quarks w/ the transmission? www.vip-culture.com | 06 RRS HSE | 06 Odyssey Touring

I've noticed this behaviour too. I live down in the bottom of a valley and have an uphill journey out in the morning. Seems to happen there too, but as the engine/gbox are always cold at that point I'd put it down to that... I guess that's not the case for you, VIP? 

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no definitely not...by the time i get to that portion of the road ive been driving for a good 15 mins already. I didnt notice it as much today as the roads were dry...it only happened once on the downhill run. www.vip-culture.com | 06 RRS HSE | 06 Odyssey Touring

Odd behaviour then... for what it's worth, have you run it past your service dept? 

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not yet, i'll keep an eye on it and see if it acts up some more www.vip-culture.com | 06 RRS HSE | 06 Odyssey Touring

ok here's my theory.

the hill that i go down is not extremly steep...but good enough that you can maintain 80mph without the foot on the gas. So here's my theory...could it be the terrain response playing around w/ the throttle? www.vip-culture.com | 06 RRS HSE | 06 Odyssey Touring

I have experienced the same or similiar behavior, when I'm going down a steep grade the trans downshifts automatically. I have considered, up to this point, that the on board computer was doing its job. As a matter of fact, I thought the engineers at LR were on their game. Now you've got me wondering

well you could still be right... www.vip-culture.com | 06 RRS HSE | 06 Odyssey Touring

It's probably normal in my opinion... and if it really bugs you, use manual shift mode... or waste more fuel and see how Sport mode impacts your scenario. I've never had an automatic transmission act exactly like how I'd shift using a manual. Remember, the RRS is the heaviest vehicles in it's class. Pity the engine & transmission that has to deal with this mass. As you get more time with your vehicle, you'll start getting a better feel for it's behavior. It trains you. (And you train it.) The transmission is adaptive, so behavior can change as time goes on.

i do forget that i'm driving a huge tank www.vip-culture.com | 06 RRS HSE | 06 Odyssey Touring

I'm not sure if the LR gearboxes have the same function but BMW auto gearboxes have a set of tilt switches in them that shows the gearbox you're on a downward slope and should therefore change down to provide some amount of engine braking.... this is speed-sensitive obviously and is normally only something you'd do at lower speeds and greater inclines, not at 80mph on a motorway..... just a thought though. 

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If BMW have it, then it is odds on that LR have it. Seeing as the sneeky Germans nicked our technology.