2011 2.7L 4x4 Clutch Slipping.. Help?

Just an update, well the 2010 Tacoma was loaded onto a tow truck yesterday and was headed to the dealership across Houston. Guessing sometime this week I will receive a call that they are going to remove the clutch again. I told them I wanted to be present when the disassembly took place, I want to witness the tear down. I took pictures of the last clutch assy. that came out of the truck. This clutch failed to a point that it wouldn't pull the truck an inch.The damnest thing, they won't order parts until they get everything out, so I am guessing I will have to make two 100 mile trips, one to see the break down and one to witness the parts going into the repair. And then another 100 mile trip to have someone take me there to pick up the truck. I have nothing good to say about Toyota, as you can see why!
For anyone that has this model Tacoma, 4 cylinder, 5 speed, 4x4 and mine is the x-cab, keep an eye and ear on noises coming from the clutch/ throw out bearing area, the noise is louder when the AC is ON. Watch out for the clutch slipping, any gear in my opinion. For anyone that is in the 3 year, 36,000 mile warranty and they ask you to sign a waiver or pay start printing off these messages off this board and file a complaint with the NCDS. Filing complaints with Toyota is a waste of time.
F. Garner
2010 Tacoma, 4 cylinder, 5 speed X-cab, 4x4
23K miles, 1.6 years old
vin 9AZ722870
Have been to the shop several times for clutch noise and clutch slipping.
Complete clutch assy replaced under the TSB 0066-11 at 20K miles
Now at 23K miles the clutch is completely out. This clutch failed with 1K on it. In snow, stock tires, pulling small trailer with total load of 1,000 pounds. Truck was in 4x4lo, instead of the tires slipping on the snow, the clutch smoked twice before I had to disconnect the trailer.
I want to correct something I said in another message, "the smoke probably was closer to a white or very light blue in color." Not blue as I said.
I do not suspect any oil leakage from the rear main seal and getting onto the the clutch disc causing a more blue smoke color.
Still in my opinion the tires should have been spinning in the snow, or the truck should have stalled, not the clutch slipping causing the burning.
When any of us take our trucks into the dealership for repairs, at least in my case they never put the truck into 4x4lo, and surely don't put any load behind the truck.
The truck is never tested as I use it and as it is supposed to perform.
It's a damn 4x4, put this silly amount of torque to all four tires!
04Screamingeagle

 

Guys with clutch problems....Don't stop nagging the dealer. Mine said they were not aware of the SB, but I find that hard to believe. The number is T-SB-035-09. Take along copies of similar complaints with fixes from this website.
Good luck!
Silvert

 

No doubt you are having issues but perhaps something wasn't done correctly during your tsb repair. There was a clear difference in the catching force when mine was done; my trailer towing proved that to me. I'll wait for the snow to try exactly what you did.

 

scheduled my 2010 4x2 AC SR5 in for Monday. been slipping since about 11k, has 34,600 on it today and im noticing it slipping and a burnt clutch smell IN REVERSE. ive never been able to spin the tires on this truck, not that i beat on it but i do A LOT of highway runs from NJ to NC. love the truck, but went to order a clutch tonight for it, figuring the 12/12k limit on wear items, i would be responsible for the clutch....then i google replacement clutch for the Taco and see the PAGES of issues. ill do it myself if they dont cover it, but ill put up a fight first. I have the 7/75 extended so i dont want them to say if i have trans issues later, it was the new NON OEM clutch....Monday it goes in, ill post as needed...going in for blower motor chirp, clutch pedal creaking, and clunk in rear axle (think its the traction control unlocking) but its LOUD!!!
Ron

 

"Can't duplicate" and "you're out of the 3/36 anyway, so the TSB does not apply".

 

09... you're close enough that you should fight it hard and furious. Write letters to the dealership AND toyota. Bring up the TSB. Bring up all thousand different clutch parts that can be ordered from toyota and the "updated" parts that have been made available in the years since yours was built.

Do not give up.

 

they changed the slave cylinder on mine. its BETTER, but can still feel it slip on higher RPM shifts. the rear axle gearing suck, so you have to spool the motor up to 3500 or more to shift it and not be a slug. oh, they scratched my door good too, has to go back for that to be fixed. 9 alternatives for the Magnetic grey....yeah its not going to match

 

my clutch is slipping on occasion as well 2.7 2009

 

I've been through almost a year post-TSB with all kinds of weather conditions and terrain and I can say that the 1st gen V6 pressure plate used in the TSB is performing like it should. It grabs firm and has no slipping even in deep snow. It is obvious the weaker plate just isn't up to the task for this drive-train given the TSB plate part is for the older v6 with more hp.

Toyota seems to be using the older part to repair those who are under warranty and probably fixed the issue in production. They are betting on that most will just fail after the 3/36k warranty is out and then be done with the issue. They clean out older parts and the problem takes care of itself.

Any aftermarket plate will be better in this case, so for those out of warranty just go with something else and be done with it.

 

Keep after them. Try accelerating in 3rd gear and it is usually more obvious that it is slipping. It took me several trips to the dealer but they did a complete clutch job at 6,000 mile or so, The pressure plates made in Mexico are inferior to those made in Japan. Even though I requested a Japanese set of parts I think I got the other. Sometimes I smell it burning when I pull my little aluminum boat of out the water!!! I told the dealer and they said "don't worry. You have a new car full warranty on it". It is frustrating, but it is better and I had them write the slipping order thing put in the computer with my trucks dealer .
I still say this group should somehow make a master list of all those with problems, send it to Toyota and demand a good repair. Strength in numbers?
Maybe they would have an open recall instead of the little know service bulletin. I posted the bulletin number some time backm for others to reference. Good luck! Let me know what happens.
Silvert

 

So last weekend I experienced the slipping clutch on my 2011 4 cyl. I thought it was a slippery road but then realized it was the clutch. I took it home and called my dealer. I told the service manager what was happening and gave him the TSB number I found on this site. He told me he would replace it under warranty because it only had 32,500 miles on it.
I took it in, they took my keys, and replaced everything on the TSB. There was no questioning me, nothing but a great experience.
I would like to give a shout out to Colonial Toyota in Indiana PA. Also to service manager Tom for doing what was right with no BS. Thanks
PS. They also took care of the seatbelt recall also. All in 6 hours. That's why I drove three hours to this dealer!

 

That is great that you have a dealership willing to stand behind their product. I intend to write their name down as a reference of who did it right if I have more problems. My new clutch now has about 25,000 miles (32,000 on truck)on it and it emits an awful burning smell when under light stress. This occurs when I pull my small aluminum boat out of the waster at a boat landing or if leaving a stop sign in deep snow. I asked the service writer to enter the problem into the computer record of my car at the dealership. Reluctantly they did. I am hoping that a record of complaints almost since it was first fixed will help me get it repaired someday at no cost. Do you know which pressure plate they used" The one made in Japan (better) or the one made in Mexico(problems)?
Again-good for you!
Silvert

 

Seems you've got yourself a quality dealer. The one that tried to BS me I never went back to for anything except parts. I actually worked at a Toyota dealer for some time and told my service manager about the problem, he said it'd be no problem, but I never did get it done.

I've unfortunately traded my Taco and now have an RSX Type S, but it's good to know I would have been able to get the problem fixed, it seems you just have to go around and find a good dealer. If they all try to bend you over I'd give Toyota's customer service headquarters a call and tell them about your lovely experiences, I'd imagine they'd more than likely help you out if you truck is under warranty like mine was.

 

Hey that's great that the dealership worked with you and took care of your problem. That is the way is supposed to be! My headache started when the second clutch failed shortly after it was installed. That was when pulling a small trailer in 4x4 Lo on slight incline. The pressure plate, or some refer as the clutch cover didn't have enough force and had slippage trying to pull up the dirt driveway. After the clutch slipped a few times it weaken the clutch cover and continued to slip everytime trying to pull a load up an incline. Then it started slipping all the time under normal conditions. THEN the dealership and Toyota gave me a bunch of Crap and didn't want to do anything. Others ran into this on the second clutch issue as well. I couldn't get anything done until I sued, and still the truck was dead for more than a month until they agreed to replace it again under warranty. What a pain! I never had to go through so much crap for a warranty issue. Once it was repaired I sold the Truck and cut my loses. Never again would I own anything made by Toyota. Maybe their cars are okay, maybe the trucks are okay for running around in, but the 4 cylinder, 5 speed, 4x4 is Not worth a dime for pulling!
I have a Real Truck now for pulling anything.
2012 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD Diesel

 

I feel your pain but it's kinda hard to compare a little 2.7 gas truck to Silverado Diesel - apples and oranges so to speak.

 

Have any of you noticed an awful burning smell when your clutch slipped?
Silvert

 

My clutch just went out at 23,000. I found that it was glazed and not burned out. I've been driving stick shifts for over 30 years. I've NEVER needed a clutch....This is not normal. It began to slip if i put it in high gear and gassed it. It slipped and then would grab. My truck is a 2.7 Xtra cab. I got rid of the factory 15" wheels that looked rediculously small and put on 265/65/17 "Bullet" wheels and tires. It seems that that tiny thing overwhelmed the clutch? Hard to believe. The pressure plate and disc had "LUK" stamped on them...The Mexican/American one. I went with a "Perfection" kit. It has some great reviews. It's a Chinese/American company. I'll bet it holds up better than the stocker. We'll see.

 

Mine stinks like fakking horrible hell under any load now, this the aisin after already having the luk pos replaced 50k ago. 20yrs of standard driving and never having an issue yet this pile of crap is anout to go again as its getting progressively worse.

 

This is the message I just sent to Toyota.


I am the owner of a 2011 4x4 4 cyl. Tacoma. We have had five of these trucks in the family. The current mileage is 68,000. The clutch is slipping in second and third gear under heavy acceleration. This started to happen two weeks ago.

Our Toyota truck purchases and mileage:
1989 190,000
2000 235,000
2002 269,000
2011 68,000 currently own
2014 9,000 currently own

The 1989, 2000, and 2002 trucks were sold with the original clutch, in good working order. You can have a look at the 2002 if you like as one of your salesmen bought it and is driving it today, with the original clutch. My driving habits have not changed.

Please explain how a 68,000 mile clutch failure can be “normal maintenance” which is what I was told by your service department.
Please explain why I have to pre-buy parts for a “normal maintenance” job, if this is indeed normal maintenance you would be doing this on a regular basis and this would not be necessary.

The reason we have purchased Toyota trucks since 1989 is reliability. This clutch issue is clearly a factory defect and the expectation is that Toyota stand behind its product and resolve it.

Please advise at your earliest convenience.

 

Sounds about right. Quality is hurting these days. I was able to find a solution to my defective clutch issues. I sold the truck! Was sick of the problems. I like the letter you sent them, i doubt you will like their response if you get one