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MG MGF Technical - Steptronic cuts out when put into drive

When I put my MGF into drive first thing in the morning it cuts out and can do this up to 3 times, when it finally goes into drive it tries to pull away even though my foot is on the brake. Ive been told by the garage where I purchased it from that its a quirk of the car and that they all do it. Don't ask me why but I think they are pulling a fast one on me. Has this problem happened to anyone else ? All advise appreciated.
Tracy K

Mine never did that...

Ask them if there is an MGRover bulletin that confirms that this is 'acceptable' behaviour of the gearbox, I suspect they wouldn't be able to provide one... Stamp your feet a bit and insist they furnish you with a car that does what it's supposed to, not one with an obvious fault, one which could worsen and quite possibly leave you stranded.
Mike Hankin

Mine does the same thing but it doesn't idle very well, the revs go up and down. I've checked for vacuum leaks and I can't find any so next stop is the idle speed control valve.

Most Auto's creep when in drive but they shouldn't move with your foot on the brakes, mine judders terribly in this situation due to the poor idle.

It definatly sounds wrong but in my experience car dealers are all a bunch of conning b&$£rds who can't lie straight in bed, they may refuse to do anything about it. If so you need to read the sale of goods act which has a particular section on used car sales and I think that they are liable for anything that goes wrong for a least 6 months whether the invoice says sold as seen, no warranty or any other phrases like that. I had a problem with a Jag I bought from a dealer which has dangerously faulty rear suspension (1/2" play at the top of each rear wheel and 11 months MOT) They told me to get lost until I wrote to them with the facts from the sale of good act threatening legal action and they then paid to have the car put right.

Regards

Andrew Smith
A D Smith

Mine does not and has never done this either. Holding the car with the foot brake produces a gentle straining feeling but nothing you would not expect from an auto box. How long have you owned the car? This I suspect is a definite fault that should be corrected. Keep us posted.
Robert Matthews 1

hi, tracy,
mine was doing the same thing, it became almost undriveable in traffic ,took it to local mg
agents for a full diagnostic test on friday ,they
say its the oxygen sensor ,but can't get one untill
weds , will let you know if new sensor cures the
problem it might save you the cost of a diagnostic test allan
allan

Thanks to everyone who replied to this especially Andrew. I looked at my rights on the sale of goods act and thanks to your advice my car is now sat in a local MG garage being sorted. So far they have replaced the throttle body and the stepper motor but the car still isnt right so now it is having the head gasket removed and looked at. The say that it is over fuelling and that the car is dangerous at the moment, but they have assured me that it wont leave there till its right, and the poor old garage that sold me the car 5 weeks ago is footing the bill. Thanks again everyone. Tracy K
T Kennedy

I have the same thing happen {cuts out in drive}. Reverse out of garage fine. First time in drive cuts out 2nd time ok. Engine only cuts from cold when the car is put in drive on an incline. If the car is started on the flat no problem. Definitly not an MG quirk as the same thing occurred on an astra I had. Never found the problems cause though.
Kevin Sales

glad things worked out for you with the garage, tracy
got mine back today they have fixed the problem it was the oxygen sensor as they said
allan

This thread was discussed between 24/02/2007 and 28/02/2007

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