A control apparatus for a vehicle that includes an engine; a transmission; a damper and a clutch. The transmission has a gear ratio that is variable in a range including a torque-fluctuation insufficient absorption region in which a damper spring of the damper is elastically deformed to a certain maximum limit when a misfire occurs in the engine. The control apparatus includes: a misfire determination portion configured to determine occurrence of the misfire in the engine; and a misfire-case shift control portion configured, upon determination of the occurrence of the misfire in the engine by the misfire determination portion when the gear ratio of the transmission is in the torque-fluctuation insufficient absorption region, to cause the transmission to execute a shift-down action such that the gear ratio becomes higher than a higher threshold value of the torque-fluctuation insufficient absorption region.