OBD-II Code
P0736
Severity
Not yet reviewed
Nobody on our side has assessed this code yet, so we are not going to guess at how serious it is.
Can you drive it
We cannot say
Treat it as unknown until a shop reads it with live data. If the check-engine light is FLASHING, stop driving as soon as it is safe to — that means an active misfire, whatever the code.
Indicative cost (USD)
$380–$4,500
From this code's diagnostic notes. Varies by vehicle, diagnosis, parts, and local labor. This is not a repair quote.
P0736 indicates the TCM saw an out-of-range input-to-output speed ratio while reverse was commanded, meaning the transmission either did not fully engage reverse, slipped while loaded in reverse, or engaged a wrong element.
How a shop works this
Work from evidence to part, not the other way round. A code names a circuit or a symptom; it does not name the part that failed.
Note every code that is set, not just this one.
Codes that appear together usually narrow the cause faster than any one of them read alone.
Read the freeze frame — the conditions the fault was recorded under.
Cold or warm, idle or load, road speed and engine speed. A fault that only appears cold is a different fault from one that only appears under load, even with the same code on the scanner.
Confirm the fault is current rather than history.
Clear the code and see whether it returns under those same conditions. A code that does not come back may have been logged during a repair, a flat battery, or a bad connection that has since been disturbed.
Then follow the diagnostic notes further down this page, in the order they are written.
They are written in the order a shop works this code, cheapest checks first. Where they name a component, inspect its wiring and connector before replacing it.
If the code comes back after a repair, the underlying fault is still there. That is the point to bring in a scanner with live data and freeze-frame, or a shop that has one.
Common symptoms
- Check engine light
Read the full diagnostic procedureP0736 indicates the TCM saw an out-of-range input-to-output speed ratio while reverse was commanded, meaning the transmission either did not fully en…
P0736 indicates the TCM saw an out-of-range input-to-output speed ratio while reverse was commanded, meaning the transmission either did not fully engage reverse, slipped while loaded in reverse, or engaged a wrong element.
Cheapest-first ladder
- verify fluid level and condition first (low fluid loses reverse before it loses forward gears on most planetary designs); road test in reverse with the scan tool graphing input and output speed and line pressure; inspect for a leaking reverse servo or accumulator on units that use one; pull the pan and inspect the filter and magnet for clutch fiber or steel debris before opening the valve body.
- Caveat: a no-reverse condition with a clean P0736 and no other codes on a high-mileage unit is almost always a worn reverse clutch pack or a cracked reverse drum.
Vehicle-specific patterns2004-2010 Honda Odyssey and Pilot with the 5-speed BYBA/BGRA set P0736 from 3rd-clutch pressure-switch failure combined with worn 3rd clutch packs.
- 2004-2010Honda Odyssey and Pilot with the 5-speed BYBA/BGRA set P0736 from 3rd-clutch pressure-switch failure combined with worn 3rd clutch packs.
- 2006-2012GMC Acadia/Saturn Outlook with the 6T70/6T75 throw P0736 when the 1-2-3-4 and 3-5-Reverse wave plates fracture.
- 2003-2009Saab 9-3 and Volvo S60 with the Aisin AW55-50SN lose reverse from valve body bore wear; a Sonnax AW55-50SN reseal and oversized valve kit is the standard repair when caught early.
- 2001-2007Ford Escape with the CD4E sets P0736 once the forward/reverse drum cracks.
Estimated repair$380 to $4,500.
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