Driver Adaptive Shift Control

WARNING: This page is about a different car, the 2006 Mercury Montego and 2006 Ford Five Hundred. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.

This automatic transaxle does not have a driving mode selection switch that allows drivers to select a mode themselves. The vehicle is ordinarily in adaptive mode. However, when specific conditions are met, the transmission control unit (TCU) selects a shifting pattern appropriate to driving conditions from all of the shifting patterns and switches automatically.

GREEN - Mode 1 - Switched from mode 2 to warm up the transmission fluid. This mode acts to protect the transaxle before the adaptive mode.
GREEN - Mode 2 - After engine start-up, warm-up speed is increased for a certain period when transmission fluid temperature is low and the vehicle speed is 0.
HIGH TEMP - When fluid temperature becomes too high, this mode activates lock-up at an earlier timing to stop the temperature rise and lower the temperature.
DOWN SLOPE - When driving down a slope, the transmission control module (TCM) detects a down slope based on the engine control unit signal and output rpm. TCM switches to down slope mode to alleviate the load to the brake by down shifting.