2018 Ford Focus SE transmission overheating warning after slow reverse out of sloped driveway — should I be worried?
I have a 2018 Ford Focus SE 2.0 4-cylinder. Today I was backing out of a sloped driveway and ran into a situation I’m unsure about.
The driveway has a pretty noticeable incline and I couldn’t see oncoming traffic well, so I had to inch my way out slowly. The car was naturally rolling down the hill while I was in reverse, so I was doing a lot of stop-and-go creeping using light accelerator input in reverse instead of just fully braking and resetting.
When I finally got onto the road, a warning popped up saying the transmission was overheating and to wait about 5 minutes. There was nowhere safe to pull off immediately, so I just drove very slowly. After about 5 minutes, the warning cleared and hasn’t come back since.
I went to AutoZone and got a free OBD scan, but there were no codes. I know that doesn’t necessarily rule out an issue, though. Also the TCM was replaced before purchasing this car as shown to me by the dealer.
My question is: does this sound like I caused any damage, or was this just a temporary overheating event from low-speed maneuvering under load? Is my transmission likely okay, or should I get it checked out more seriously?
Any insight appreciated.