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thanks again!
The dealer told me this is the correct way the transmission is set up..
Also does anyone know what they mean by a Prerunner?? Even the salesman didn't know.
Thanks
sunnski@pacbell.net
The best the new reflash can do is alleviate a few of these downshift delay instances by detecting, MAYBE DETECTING, the driver's future intent as/when the gas pedal foot pressure is removed. No "upshift" for cruising, no downshift delay.
Slow release of pressure will imply to the transmission control computer that the driver's intent is to simply enter cruise, cruising mode. Quickly release the gas pedal and the transmission will assume a need to coastdown using the current gear ratio.
Ever since the widespread premature transaxle failures of the '99 & '00 RX300 due to this design flaw they have been struggling to find a full and complete FIX for the inherent design flaw.
On the other hand, Ford, having the VERY same problem with/in the new Edge, immediately stepped up to the plate and revised the flawed design, OBVIOUSLY flawed design. Ford adopted a variable volume ATF pressure pump so the line pressure could still be sustained at a sufficiently high level even with the engine at idle. And then still be able to change, incrementally, to a lower and lower pumping volume to conserve fuel as engine RPMs rise.
Just another instance of the Japanese societal culture of not admitting mistooks due to the possible SHAME. The flip side of the societal culture of "keep your head down" (least you get it chopped off). NEVER point out mistakes for fear of inadvertently embarressing someone "above".
But I still find it hard to believe, VERY hard to believe, that Toyota has adopted this flawed, terribly flawed, automatic transmission design to the heavier product line, pickups, etc. The FE gain must be much more serious then I have imagined.
By why not make use of teh Ford technique..?? NIH..? Reluctance to admit the mistake???
Weird, just weird.
TSB 0393-09 deals with this specific issue. IT WORKS! Just as many on this blog have discussed low speed "gear- hunting" problems, I too had them. There is a lot of chatter on this site about TSB 0703-10 to fix this, There is no such TSB and the blogs citing this TSB number are creating confusion.
Inform your dealer of this fix. It involves re-flashing the computer with a revised program specifically for the A 10 model transmission installed in the Toyota Tachoma 4X4 and 4X2 6 cylinder models. It does NOT deal with vibration or banging issues described in many of the blog messages.
IT Works!
Going to bring it in to the dealer next week and have them take a look. I drove another 09 tacoma this week and the transmission felt like butter compared to mine. Hopefully I haven't wrecked or significantly worn the tranny.
fredcooper05@comcast.net
Thanks!
kcram - Pickups/Wagons Host
Any ideas what is the problem?
That Other Guy
To get the text of any particular service bulletin, enter the number into the google search box on your browser and hit enter. Among the hits will be the official listing of the bulletin with all the text, charts, graphs, form numbers, etc. Just print it off and take it to the dealer. Thus, we won't need to e-mail copies all over the place and worry about forum policy regarding publishing e-mail addresses and so on. If you've got the bulletin number, you can print it off directly yourself. FYI.
Hope this helps,
That Other Guy
Problem:
Transmission when cold start with shift into reverse real hard (Choke on) when firts drive off for a few miles each gear shifts hard after warms up shifts fine??? Took truck to dealear to have tranny flushed any recomendations would be appreciated....
My truck will shift hard when it first starts up. It revs high when its cold but will quickly get to a normal RPM within a minute or two. If you try shifting when its cold, it will definitely shift hard.
As for slipping gears, my truck had a update to its computer system that is supposed to help the computer know when to shift. Since this is my first truck, it is difficult for me to tell if its shifting normally for a truck or not. Sometimes it can be rough, but i suppose I have gotten used to it.
I have contacted Toyota corp. regarding a few issues, since it seemed like my dealer wasn't doing much. They say the same stuff. "We rely on the dealer to tell us if something is wrong". Then the dealer will say "it is performing as designed".
You should contact Toyota Corp. As you will be directed to a regional rep that can hopefully help you out.
So I drove it with the air conditioner off and it still does the same thing. I took it back to the dealer again and they said the transmission is fine and of course it would not do it when they drove it. They said there was nothing the could do.
Any suggestions
I have friends that work for Toyota and I know Toyota is involved in the community in Torrance, CA....where the US headquarters is located. That is all great but the Tacoma is outdated, too expensive and the TRANNY is horrible.
I finally found a link from this Forum for a Service Bulletin to get the problem fixed since the dealer could not find it or figure it out. It was fixed, but still not perfect, so I gave up and bought a Kia. Yes I did.
I only hope Toyota gets better and stops making short cuts. Redo the Tacoma and completely re-engineer the Tranny.
-Max
Hope this helps,
That Other Guy
These days with fuel prices as high as they are, and along with the emissions issue, it would be UTTERLY STUPID for an automotive engine and transmission, drive train, manufacturer to continue to maintain ATF line pressure at a high level when the transmission is placed in neutral or park. Shift the tranny into a drive position with the engine idling and of course it might take 1-2 seconds to build, re-build, enough ATF line pressure to satisfy the valve body operational requirements and then enough additional pressure to actually engage, fully and firmly engage, the necessary drum clutches, 1st gear, HIGH torque, drum clutches.
And all the while, of course, the engine remains at idle regardless of gas pedal position.
Either buy a stick shift, stop complaining, or learn to live with the issue. Your vehicle was not designed to be shifted into neutral in those circumstances. The new torque converters equipped with lockup clutches have such weak torque coupling charactoristics with the engine at idle that the FE gain using your shifting procedure is probably negligible.
Ask that of an owner of a 99 or '00 RX300 that has had the transaxle replaced prior to 80,000 miles, maybe even 2 or 3 times and the latter ones often at least partially, if not altogether, on the owners nickel.
With the abolition of the old style ATF pump, pressure relief spring valve and pressure holding accumulator in these new transmissions to improve FE the engine MUST be held at bay, IGNORING the gas pedal position until such time as a newly selected gear ratio's drum clutches can be fully and firmly engaged.
The early RX300's did not have DBW so the engine RPM would rise in direct response to gas pedal position, all the while the drum clutches were in the process of being "meshed".
By '01 Toyota had somewhat alleviated the problem by reprogramming the engine/transaxle ECU firmware in order to sustain the ATF line pressure at a somewhat higher average level. The transaxle premature failure numbers declined accordingly.
What we got, owners of '01 to '03, was ATF that was so overheated that the recommended maintainance schedule for an ATF drain/flush/refill went from infinity (life of the vehicle) to ~15,000 miles or signs of ATF degradation, whichever cam first.
The RX330 came with DBW and its own set of problems as a result. 1-2 second re-acceleration delay/hesitation soon became the NORM throughout the Toyota/Lexus/Scion fleet.
No, there is only a PARTIAL fix. Only some instances of the 1-2 second re-acceleration downshift delay might be eliminated, mostly those wherein the driver "knows' the future, immediate future.
See post # 510 for a definitive explanation.
In my '01 RX300 the transmission makes a final UPSHIFT (lockup clutch release..??) as the road speed declines to about 10 MPH.
Find one other vehicle on the planet that exhibits this same condition. One of them was an 07 sienna. Yeah and that conditon was fixed (right out of the toyota techs mouth.
You don't sound (read) like a nice person???.