Transmission slipping when cold and after reverse

Back at you brother from another mother.

 

same problem here.

 

Hey.. some bodys gotta tell it like it is..

Mr. Cruncher knows what he is talking about..

He is "the Tranny man"..

 

Learned a lot from Crunchers posts here, no doubt. Highly recommend people who read through this thread to go back and have a read through his posts and links to other posts, very valuable.

 

Well. Went to the dealer today and they finally checked the fluid and it was half a quart low just like I suspected. I haven't had the chance to start it from cold but after I left the dealer the transmission seems much smoother and the cruise control keeps thE highest gear. I will report once I start it from cold but if you have issues with erratic transmissions please get it checked. Many friends with previous tacomas models and 4 runners have also had issues with low ATF and erratic transmission changes and shudder. Please get your tranny checked asap.

 

Add mine to the list, I back out of the driveway put in drive, a little forward surge then ht is in gear. 2016 TRD/OR with tht toeing package. I am in the palm springs area I will have them chcek it out

 

Glad they finally did a check for you OP. Know you've gone through a lot, hope it fixes your problem like it did mine!

 

Thank you my friend. Hoping to get good results as everyone else

 

Your personal opinion doesn't reflect the vast amount of research put into that decision. It doesn't take a genius to guess why they made that call. Checking the transmission fluid requires more of a brain than checking the engine oil, and it's very easy to overfill it (which can be worse than slightly under filling it). The manufacturer can't "prove" you added the fluid, so they end up on the hook paying for transmissions their customers or shade tree mechanics effed up.

Obviously no scenario is perfect, and having it sealed can result in the fluid being left unchecked. I'm guessing they chose the lesser of two evils.

Stating that "dodge dealer offer better service than toyota does" is arbitrary at best.

 

Are there any dealers in the bay area that you guys have gone too that are acknowledging this issue? Would prefer to take my truck somewhere that I don't have to argue with the service managers.

 

So. Mine is having some issues. Reverse to forward to reverse especially with wheel turned.

The other day I thought it double bumped into drive. Then I went to take off and it reved, but didn't move.

My question is this still happening to people after the topping off?

Another double cab long bed tow package here.

 

Exactly the same thing mine is experiencing. Take your truck to the dealer and have it checked for proper ATF, mine was missing half a quart and it was filled yesterday. I have not started it from cold since yesterday so i cannot vouch that the problem is completely gone, what i can say is that the 10 miles i drove from the dealer to my house the truck behave differently in a good way, shifts are smoother and the cruise control is not hunting for gears as before. I am reading in another forum that apparently there is a software update for the tranny coming up soon, I asked my rep at toyota, master mechanic and he told me he hasn't heard anything but what he can tell me is that these new transmissions since they are smart take a little time to get used to and they have kind of a break in period, also told me the viscosity on this ATF WS used by toyota since 2004 is very light and it takes longer to warm up and he recommended to start the car every morning and let it warm for at least 1 min. Hope it helps but please get your ATF checked

 

I have an appointment for next Saturday. I have under 500 miles on the truck. Is it OK to be driving it? Kinda need to

 

not a problem at all, i have the same amounts of miles , been driving like that for a month almost every day. One more week will do no harm. Keep in mind that we do not know that the half quart missing is the cause of this erratic shifts and we don't know if it solves the issue of the delay to go into gear when is cold, for some people it resolved the issue others are still experiencing the problem, it might be that is the way the tranny behaves naturally so, at this point is a hit or miss

 

First cold (+4° C) start this AM and felt much better backing out of the driveway and shifting into drive. A much more solid engagement. If i notice any return of the problem I will advise.

 

even with the proper fluid level if you don't warm it up it will still be a little hesitant from reverse to drive, its much better when tranny is filled to correct level. Also if it is cold in reverse it plays catch up with motor . if its warmed up its much better.

 

It appears that some folks are experiencing low ATF and some aren't. I wonder if the Toyota factory heard of the problem and have increased the amount of ATF for the Tow Pkg ORs, and those produced after a certain date are correctly filled. I have an AC AT OR 4X4 that was made in Texas on-or-near Dec. 17 have not encountered any tranny shift/slip problems. Though I only have 450 mi. Just a thought...

 

I don't disagree at all with the last sentence.

For the past 75 years or so, automatic transmissions have been reasonably common in vehicles with it gradually skewing to almost all automatics. In that entire time one could check the level with a dipstick, warm up, put in park or neutral as mentioned in manual, have on level surface, read level. Pretty dang easy even for a 10 year old [if he could drive]. Fluid replacement can be a bit more touchy as everyone want's their own special ''sauce'' but, even that isn't that hard. Leaks happen,.... lines can break, coolers can develop leaks, seals can wear. One thing is for absolute certain, running an automatic transmission low can and will kill it faster then almost anything else you can do barring severely overheating it.

What IS humorous is that even Toyota can't fill the damn things correctly and they built them. That is pathetically sad, the only thing sadder is them being PITA's when people complain about transmission shifting or slipping issues, [the number one sign a transmission is low on fluid] they blow them off and don't want to do it under warranty even though Toyota made it pretty much impossible for the normal person to do.

I've owned Toyotas for almost 40 years [first one was a 72'' FJ 40 with factory PTO winch] and while they are far from the only car company to to do this, some things are better not following just because someone else did it.

I'd bet the Hilux doesn't have an automatic you can't check the ATF fluid on. If it can't be checked, I'd be surprised.

The entire fluid level check is a horrid PITA and honestly, it doesn't [nor should it be] have to be that way.

 

Same problem with R to D hesitation here. Sometimes it lasts as long as 5 seconds. Also experienced lurches a few times when I was idling forward with my foot off the brake in a drive-through line. My wheel was turned tightly - not sure if this is another symptom of low fluid, or another problem altogether.

#edit - My vehicle has the tow package as well.

 

Regarding the Hilux, you are probably right, to be honest Europeans in general are far more knowledgeable about their vehicles than Americans. The average american couldn't even read a dipstick, nevermind know that the truck needs to be warmed to a certain temperature, and a very specific fluid needs to be used. You are the exception to the rule, so what they've decided does not work for you.....but it works for them as a whole. Like I said, it's a double edge sword, and I'm pretty sure they wouldn't make it non serviceable for no reason. Of course it doesn't have to be that way, if everyone were like you they wouldn't have to make silly decisions like this. Unfortunately we have people who will add windshield washer fluid to the engine and then blame the dealership when it fails. Hence some manufacturers have even taken away the oil dipstick (bmw!)