OBD-II trouble code
P0761: Shift Solenoid "C" Performance or Stuck Off
SAE J2012: shift solenoid C performance or stuck off. Solenoid C only feeds the clutches on its row of this chart. If gears that do not use C are also wrong, the fault is shared — line pressure, the pump, or a sensor — and a solenoid will not fix it. Line pressure is a shop gauge test. No psi figure belongs on this page.
Quick facts
- System
- Powertrain
- Category
- Transmission / Shift Control
- Severity
- High severity
- Drivable
- Usually safe to drive short-term
- Repair cost range
- $300 – $900 (simple shift solenoid replacement)
- DIY difficulty
- Advanced DIY
One of 42 shift solenoid codes
P0761 sits in a grid: one axis is which solenoid the letter refers to, the other is what went wrong with it. Each cell is a genuinely different fault with its own diagnosis — but codes from the same row or column often appear together, and what a pairing means is usually the fastest way in. The hub page lays out all 42 and explains how to read them against each other.
See all shift solenoid codes →Browse every code in P0700–P0799, or start from the full code library.
What does P0761 mean?
Stuck off on solenoid C means the result the controller wanted from that solenoid did not happen. The result is a ratio, a slip time, or a switch, depending on the calibration. The useful first question is which gears are wrong. Write them down and lay them on solenoid C's row. Gears that C does not apply, failing the same way, are not a C problem. They are a supply problem: pump output, a pressure-regulator valve, a filter that is plugged, or a speed signal used by every ratio test.
A line-pressure test is how a shop separates those. Mazda's FN4A-EL flow, written for a different solenoid code, branches to the pump, the valve body, or the unit when pressure is wrong. The same logic applies here only as far as this chart's pressure test. The gauge, the engine speed, and the acceptable pressure are in the procedure. Publishing one psi number would be wrong on the next transmission.
The electrical code is P0763. As with solenoid A on the Grand Prix chart, a performance test that is disabled while the electrical code is set should not be read as a clutch failure. Fix the circuit the electrical code names, then see whether the ratio test still fails.
Common causes
- A case-connector fault on solenoid C's pin
- Low line pressure that also spoils gears solenoid C does not control
- A plugged filter or low fluid, found with this unit's level procedure
- Solenoid C not applying the clutch on its own row, after line pressure tests in range
- Input or output speed wrong, so every ratio test is using a bad number
- Wiring from the module to the C control pin
Symptoms
- Only the gears on solenoid C's row slip or miss
- Every gear wrong or soft, which points away from one solenoid
- A whir or a delay in every range when the pump or the filter is the supply problem
- P0763 stored with P0761
- Failsafe from this calibration
- A pressure-gauge reading below the chart, taken at the shop, in more than one range
Diagnostic steps
- 1.From the freeze frame and a careful engagement check in the bay, list every gear that is late, soft, or missing. Wheels chocked, parking brake set. Do not road-test a transmission that is slipping in several gears.
- 2.Mark solenoid C's gears on the application chart. If a gear that does not use C is also wrong, stop the solenoid diagnosis and move to the line-pressure test this procedure publishes. The gauge and the spec stay in that procedure.
- 3.Check fluid level on this transmission's procedure before the gauge goes on. A low level makes every clutch late and will fail a pressure test for a reason that is not the pump.
- 4.Ignition off. Connector inspection, then coil resistance for solenoid C against this spec, solenoid disconnected from the module. Compare with P0763 if that code is stored. Do not use one ohm band for C and for the pressure-control solenoid beside it.
- 5.A shop runs the line-pressure test when several ranges are wrong. Low in every range moves the job to the pump, the regulator, or internal leakage. In range, with only C's gears wrong, the solenoid, the bore, and that clutch are the branch.
- 6.Pan off only for the branch that needs it, vehicle on a lift or stands, fluid cooled. A pump or a seal that requires the unit to come out is the rebuild and replacement conversation, not the solenoid price on this page.
- 7.After the repair, record the gears that were wrong. A passenger reads the ratio. Every gear that does not use C should already have been clean before the solenoid was replaced.
Repair cost
$300 – $900 (simple shift solenoid replacement)
This pair is only the simple solenoid job, $300–$900 parts and labor in AutoZone's 'Bad Torque Converter vs Bad Transmission.' If line pressure is low in ranges solenoid C does not control, the solenoid is the wrong part. A pump, a pressure regulator, or a unit that has to come out falls under that article's rebuild band of $1,800–$3,500 or its replacement band of $4,000–$8,000. Those dollars are not added into the $300–$900 pair. RepairPal's fluid-change average of $294–$356, updated 3 September 2026, is the service that accompanies an open pan.
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DIY vs shop
This is an advanced DIY job. It typically requires specialty tools, scan-tool access, lifting equipment, or careful sequencing to avoid causing new failures. Plan for extended downtime and have a backup vehicle. Most owners are better served by a shop that has done this repair before.