Without knowing what the problem is, we can’t advise driving the vehicle any farther as you risk doing more damage. Clearly there’s something with the driveline and the car needs to be scanned to find out what it is.

On the plus side, often the blinking D indicator light means there’s a problem with the transmission pressure sensor, rather than a major problem inside the transmission itself. But until you can determine that for certain, driving the car at all is risking destroying something large and expensive.

There are dozens (hundreds, actually) of reasons why a modern automatic car won't accelerate through its gears properly when you take off from a standing start. These can include sensors, wiring, fuses, mechanical issues within the transmission and even an on-board computer that has lost the plot.

While the Jazz uses a CVT transmission rather than a conventional automatic with planetary gears, the Honda still makes use of hydraulic transmission fluid to operate its torque converter and effect the gear ratio changes as you drive. So, keeping the correct grade of fluid at the correct level is critical.

In most cases, the best bet is to take the car to a workshop that knows this make and model and have it scanned electronically for clues about what's gone wrong. This will ultimately be the quickest, cheapest way to find out what's wrong. From there, you can make a more informed decision on how to proceed.

However, if you want to be a little more pro-active, there are a couple of things to try. First, check the level of the transmission fluid. If this is low (due to a leak) then the gearbox may have difficulty shifting gears or taking off at all. The other thing you could try is to disconnect the battery from the car and leave it for at least an hour before reconnecting the battery. This forces an electronic reset and could fix the problem. It's a bit of a long shot, however, and you may have to recode your radio and reset the car's clock.

The 2015 model Jazz was recalled for a CVT transmission problem which could see high internal hydraulic pressure cause an internal shaft to break, at which point the car would lose all drive. However, your 2005 model Jazz was not fitted with a gearbox with the same potential problem.

Even though there was no recall for the 2005 Jazz's transmission, those with the CVT transmission could suffer shuddering problems which were linked to depleted additives in the transmission fluid. The solution was an improved fluid which was added to the gearbox once the old fluid had been drained and the car's ECU reset. While Honda dealers were performing this change, the problem was not deemed to be a safety issue, so no recall was issued.

The Australian Federal Government operates a website that lists all recalls for all makes and models officially sold here. It makes for some interesting reading. You can find it here.