How did you guys get extended warranties for under-filled transmissions?

So, I took my 2017 DCSB SR5 in last week for my 5K service. I asked the service manager to check some other issues, the most important was that my transmission would shudder right before an up-shift and that it would lunge when first put into gear when cold. I specifically asked for them to check my trans fluid "manually". They agreed to do it right away and gave me a loaner to use over the weekend. Well, I picked my truck up today.

The result was two things: 1) they did the TSB 077-16 flash and 2) IT WAS LOW ON TRANS FLUID (yep, you guessed it). I spoke directly with the guy that checked the fluid. The receipt said "about 1/4 quart low" but he told me it was more like a half quart.

So, I got back to my office and called Toyota corporate and asked to open a case. The lady was very polite and I told her that I wanted an extended warranty because the factory failed to properly fill my transmission. She then put me on hold to "do some research".

She came back and said "Toyota is not granting extended warranties for that particular issue", "we can't warranty something that may not be a problem" and "all I can do is document this and give you a case number". While I wasn't a complete jerk to her, I did not let her off lightly. In the end, she wouldn't budge.

SO, what did I say or do that was wrong? I KNOW you guys are telling the truth about getting extended warranties (you'd have no reason to lie). So, did she flat out just lie to me? I have the case number and I documented the phone call as best I could and stapled it to my receipts from today. I am not afraid to call them back and be more forceful.

While I know 1/4 to 1/2 quart is not nearly as bad as some of you have experienced, I still think it's ludicrous that it happened AND that they took away the dipstick so I can't check it myself. I told her that there was no way to know if I damaged the transmission by driving it that way for 5000 miles. She agreed but kept reiterating "toyota is not extending warranties for that reason".

Just shaking my head.

Oh, and the TSB didn't fix any of the problems. Yay.

 

I was that low, and I didn't get an extended warranty at this time. It is documented in my service history that the case was opened and the transmission filled. If I develop transmission problems outside of the warranty period, I can reopen that case and address it again as a recurring issue.

I did that with a 2001 Ford Windstar we had. Had some electrical issues at about a year, had a whole bunch of stuff fixed, no issues. For almost 4 years...until the sliding doors unlocked themselves and opened, while in gear, on the highway. While outside of the warranty, Ford got all over that and fixed it on their dime. Of course, I'm sure the local news would have loved to carry the story.

So, for my truck anyway, because of how few miles it had and it wasn't over one quart low the actual likelihood of damage is truthfully quite low. I'm not worried about it.

 

it was low, barely low

no damage done, all that happened was timing and smoothness and force of shifting was
not to spec.

I can tell you right now there is zero damage from 1 qt low...hell, 2 low would still
be no damage, it just might not shift correctly

 

@gearcruncher would say otherwise. Sorry to call you out gearcruncher. Must be tired of all these trans issue threads.
Just search for gearchruncher's amazingly detailed threads on it.

 

...^^^... Same as me ....

 

I got an 8 year 125k bumper to bumper...

I emailed the CEO and was persistent. The girl I was dealing with at corp was a B... I just emailed jim lentz @ Jim_Lentz@toyota.com and wrote a really detailed letter explaining how upset I was and dissatisfied with how Toyota was dealing with customers and there core base.

Then a lady emailed me and called me back and I was Polite but kept pushing her too..

you just have to fight for it and dont take no for an answer.

They shouldnt have had it low from the factory and while it may not have done damage your truck would not shudder if it were under normal operation. The prob you had should not have been that way.. It will help your cause if you have asked about it before the decided to check it finally

 

See the thing is they gave me the runaround. I finally got his email, though for me it was his formal name james.lentz@toyotausa.com

BTW, guys right. You gotta be forceful to get what you want. You call them being all polite and rolling over you're not gonna get shit. These are international businesses. You have to make sure they respect the power of the consumer, even if it is just one of us.

 

Toyota deals with everything case by case, mine was about 3/4litre low which is quite a bit. Argued for 2 weeks for ext warranty and they finally gave me a 300$ dealership credit which was a joke. But something is better than nothing. I also had 2x+ more miles when they checked mine.

 

1/4 quart to 1/2 a quart isn't a lot. I did check mine when I had my AT and I feel like its possible that there could be a margin of error that equate to around a 1/4 quart.

Basically I did the work myself, followed the guide, opened the check plug at the right temp range and nothing came out. I opened the fill cap and ended up putting in about a 1/4 quart before I started seeing some come out the check hole. Within a few more seconds though the drip accelerated to more than a "steady drip". Basically in the end I added a 1/4 quart and had 1/4 come back out before it was a steady drip. Since the trans is heating it is possible to get it open right away and see nothing come out since its in the bottom range of the temp needed to check. Honestly if I left it about a minute more it would have started dripping as it should, indicating it was actually in the acceptable range. People are going to see this variance based on how fast they do the work, if its hot outside or if the truck wasn't fully cooled off. So for those seeing small amounts like a 1/4 quart I wouldn't worry about the longevity of the trans based off that alone.

Also, despite being full my auto was never quite right. That's why I bought a manual.

 

Thanks everyone for the replies.

After speaking with the customer rep lady yesterday, I pretty much gathered that I would have to be very persistent in order to get anywhere with this.

I also realize that the documented amount of "about 1/4 quart" wasn't likely to be enough to cause harm - especially in Toyota's eyes.

Now, that said and as I told the customer service lady, neither of us really know if there was damage done or not. Toyota dropped the ball by not filling it properly at the factory when it was built AND the dealer obviously did not check the level when they prepped the truck for me.

This is my mindset: If there is no damage done and the transmission has a long life then giving me a warranty costs them basically nothing. Why, then, would they not do it if they are adamant that the transmission was not damaged by being under-filled?

She had no real answer for that question.

Thanks again, everyone. Looks like I need to fire off an email to Mr. Lentz.

Oh and for the record, the truck still basically acted the same on the drive in to work this morning as it did before the fluid top off and computer flash.

 

Look at your paperwork... the guys that did it themselves that had 1/4 qt low know, because they did it themselves. My dealership tried to tell me the same thing in person but my paperwork had 3 units on it meaning 3qts low... even if it was 2.5 they still need to charge for 3 units but, they are dishonest in my opinion... I have had multiple Toyota's, all new cars that I serviced at dealerships. I have had stuff go bad on every vehicle, some more than others... I have had a Prius and 4runner and only with this Tacoma have i been so discarded at a customer and literally lied to.. just trust your gut and make sure you are protecting yourself. For some reason they are treat their most loyal customers like garbage...

Also if you dont like your dealer... tried to find a new one..

 

Trans fluid in these trucks is to be checked between 95 degrees F and 113 degrees F. If over or under it can cause false readings. Connect terminals CG (pin 4) and TC (13)on the obd2. Start the truck and let it idle, You are also supposed to put the truck in fluid temperature detection mode, which is obtained by running the shift lever between N and D for six seconds with less than a 1.5 second pause in between shifts. You will know you did it right when the D shift indicator flashes for two seconds. Put the truck in park and release the brake, remove your pins from the obd2 connector. With the truck running you will still be in fluid temp detection mode. The D shift indicator will pop up on the combination meter in your dash at 95 degrees and will blink when trans temp exceeds 113 degrees F (which is your optimum temp range). That is how to properly check your fluid at home without a techstream.

 

Jesus....1/2 quart low on a 12 quart system is nothing. Hell, in a 6 quart system on en engine, usually the low level mark is 1 quart.

In 12 quarts overall, a small change in temperature or some small bubbles in the system settling out would make that much difference.

I'd argue that your transmission was properly filled.

 

This is exactly how I did mine through the FSM guide. Thanks for putting this up in plain english for those who say they "need" a techstream. You really don't.

 

With all due respect, I must disagree. I agree that a half quart is a small amount and that it is unlikely to cause a problem.

That said, however, the service tech found the transmission to be under-filled and topped it off. That tells me that the transmission absolutely requires the fluid to be at a certain level. Not within a certain range necessarily but specifically to the point of being FULL. Without a dipstick (I'd like to talk to the genius who made the decision to eliminate it), there's no way to check and maintain fluid levels within a range.

It should have been full at the factory. It wasn't. Regardless of how much or how little that difference was, that's not good quality control.

 

I take it back

if you continue to drive on low fluid, --and you have driveability problems you can feel--, and do
not seek to correct or diagnose the issue....

there can be excessive wear on parts
the one to be concerned with 'flaring' symptoms
is accumulator control plunger valve sleeve.

so, yeah, how long did you drive it low and also feel symptoms ? you could have an argument
if the symptoms popped up within warranty period and it was low on fluid.

 

I had 4822 miles on my truck when I took it in for service last week.

 

Glad @avitaco and me were able to provide emails!

I had to wait a while for a reply, understandable as CEO he's going to be busy.
Time to play the waiting game after you email!

 

probably no damage whatsoever at those miles, I am thinking 20,000+

low fluid (and not all that low) is drivability issues caused by slow valves and accumulators
and whatnot, but at 5000 miles nothing got burnt up.