Reasons for occasional CVT transmission slippage without fault codes
2 Answers
CVT transmission occasionally slips without fault codes due to poor working performance of the transmission itself. Transmission valve body failure: First, drain the transmission fluid from the Tiida CVT transmission. This fault code indicates a transmission valve body issue, which can be resolved by replacing the valve body without removing the entire transmission. Remove the oil pan of the Tiida CVT transmission. Two pressure switches: The improved Tiida CVT transmission valve body has two pressure switches, while the old version only has one. These pressure switches are among the vulnerable components. There is an 80% probability that the Tiida CVT transmission valve body fails because excessive iron-like debris in the transmission fluid enters the valve body, causing it to stick and become damaged. Even powder-like contaminants can damage the valve body, let alone iron debris.
I've been repairing cars for over a decade and have encountered many cases of occasional CVT slippage without fault codes. The most common issue is poor transmission fluid condition, such as not changing it for five or six years. When the fluid oxidizes, its lubricity decreases, making the steel belt and cones prone to slippage during friction. Additionally, excessively high fluid temperature can cause this—during summer traffic jams, the temperature can rise above 120°C, leading to oil film breakdown and momentary slippage. Another possibility is slight sticking of the hydraulic control valve, causing unstable oil pressure without reaching the error threshold. Mechanical wear is even more subtle—if the steel belt stretches over 0.5mm or the cone grooves deepen, it may lose grip during hard acceleration. None of these issues immediately trigger fault codes; you’d need a diagnostic tool to read real-time data streams to spot abnormalities. I recommend first replacing the OEM transmission fluid and cleaning the oil passages—this solves most cases.