Transmission 2016-2023- 6 SPEED AUTOMATICS COULD BE LOW ON FLUID DIRECTLY FROM FACTORY

Hi Everyone

Since I got my 2017 Tacoma it has been having rough downshifts into 1st gear. Went to the dealership at first and they checked for the TSB which was up to do date. Then saw this thread and made two trips to get it straightened out. So they checked my transmission fluid and I was low 1/2 a litre. They topped it up for me. Said they havent heard about this before so clearly people are very unaware.

Thanks alot to this thread for the information or else I would have never thought to get it checked out. I live in Ontario, Canada and will be calling Toyota Canada on Monday to make them aware of this issue that they need to start checking everyones. I will also try and get extended warranty.

Thanks again for all the help!

Cheers,
Theo

 

So after my 2nd attempt, I finally had my fluid checked yesterday by my local dealer. I post this in the other thread but no one responded but one person, and I want to get more opinion.

Original post:

Shop foreman who worked on my truck said the transmission was half a quart low.
Like some have done, they put some kind of markings on the transmission bolt just to be sure it was properly checked. So I went ahead and made a yellow marking on the bolt. Got back home and check underneath the transmission and it was evident that there was some transmission oil by the pan (shop foreman was lazy enough not to wipe it)
Now checking the bolt, it look like it hasn't been touched! What ya think? Did I marked the wrong bolt? I will be talking to the service manager about this but just want make sure I didn't mark the wrong bolt and look stupid...

 

It's hard to see but that looks like the wrong bolt. The overflow is a hex or Allen wrench style.

 

Just casted my vote, was roughly 3/4 qt low (20oz) pinned check method. 16 trd or Baja Mexico 12/15 build date. Pic of what was left in jug after finished and sticker on side of trans for reference.
Big thanks to gearcruncher and all others in this thread for the helpful information.

 

Here's my story. Take it for what it is.

Purchased 2016 TRD Sport JBL in March of 2016
Had first transmission TSB done at 3000 miles (Roughly Nov 2016), helped some but eventually shifting between 2nd and 3rd in the morning was terrible.
Had 2nd TSB done by taking truck in because I couldn't take it. That TSB helped quite a bit but still noticed the issue shifting between 2nd and 3rd in the a.m. AND when downshifting occasionally.
Took truck in last week for the 10k service. Tech found "less than a quart" low in the transmission.

So far the truck is not having issues in the a.m. and I haven't noticed the downshifting issue (but understand that the transmission was reset to learn my driving behaviou)

Good luck folks.

 

Just had my 10k mile service done last week and my transmission was 3 quarts low.

I'd had the transmission TSB performed at 5k miles.

Called toyota corporate and after multiple calls they said they'd discussed with the dealer and didn't think it would cause any harm later on. They refused to extend the warranty. The only suggestion they offered was for me to discuss further with my dealer.

What now? This is crazy.

 

I bought a 16 trd or 3 weeks ago. It was a demo with 8800 miles. I had the dealer do the tsb and raised hell until they manually checked fluid level. 1.25 quarts low.

 

That is nuts! I can't believe they would even think to say that there would not be an issue later. I'd keep calling... I got a 8 yr/100k mile warranty just from my dealership not checking it when it was 2 quarts low... your situation is worse than what I had.

 

OK, I get to add my vote now..
Had my 5000 mile service today and had them do the TSB and check fluid.. Trans was 1qt low

The guys in the service dept. were VERY familiar with the issue and had seen it a lot..

 

Just had mine checked today (Have a good dealership actually). 3/4 qt low. 2017 TRD Sport (Manufacture date of April 2017).... so appears that they still haven't addressed the problem. Bought mine about 2 weeks ago. Advice.... FORCE your dealer to check it before leaving.

 

Aftermarket shift solution!

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...troller-now-available-for-gen3-tacoma.490113/

@gearcruncher you want to add this to the 1st post?

 

Added !!

 

Took my truck in for the first service:

• Completed the 5,000 mile service including rotating tires and checking fluids
• Had them grease the driveshaft, grease the u-joints, and retorque the u-bolts as a precautionary measure since these have been deficient from the factory for a lot of people
• Had them complete the H0G safety recall check for the potential rear differential leak, mine wasn't leaking so they just retorqued the bolts
  
• After they continually refused, eventually had them complete the available Entune radio update, see T-SB-0103-16 Rev1 - page 5 - the firmware update available for my truck is "13TDANNA-DA11_0137.kwi". If you have any glitchy radio issues or Bluetooth syncing issues, this is your fix.
• After they continually refused, eventually they verified that my truck already had the most current transmission TSB done from the factory and an update isn't available so the poor transmission performance is what it is, see T-SB-0077-16 Rev 1 - page 3 - the Rev1 calibration ID that was already on the truck is "896650401300". If your truck is a newer 2017 like mine, it's likely that you already have the TSB done as well. Unfortunately there isn't another update available at this time.
• They completely refused to do a physical check of the automatic transmission fluid to verify if it is low which has been a reoccurring issue for a lot of people. They did make an interesting comment that there actually is a recall out for the low transmission fluid. They didn't provide me any information about it but said my VIN wasn't a part of it so they would not do the work unless I paid for it. I don't have any clunking or delays going into reverse which is where you'd see the issue first but I wanted to have it checked for peace of mind. If you have any delays going into reverse, definitely take it to the dealership since there's a high probability that it it is low

For reference, I have a 2017 TRD Sport Double Cab Short Bed 4x4 V6 Auto (7542) in blazing blue pearl purchased in Brevard county, Florida on December 22, 2016. My truck was manufactured in the Texas, USA plant in December 2016.

 

I bought my 2017 with 20 miles on it February 2017 and by 43 miles I knew something was off about the shifting. I am so disappointed with this truck. I called the dealer and was told it is the adaptive transmission and to give it time *up to 650 miles* before bringing it in because "this is a new vehicle + it needs time to adjust to your driving style" WHAT? I have had 4 other brand new vehicles in my life that were not Toyota's and never had problems like this.
I took it in at 964 miles and told them it was shifting hard with cold start, shifting hard from P to R and D and ambiguously shifting on hills.
They said they would first do physical check of the automatic transmission fluid level as an easy start point. They said it was "good" They did the H0G recall check for the potential rear differential leak, mine wasn't leaking so they just re-torqued the bolts. I had to leave it overnight so they could check it at cold start. Of courseThey said everything was fine and they were not able to replicate the problem.

 

This was awesome... Thank you for posting all of the pictures.

 

cross posted from the maintenance thread.

I found that having a library card got me free membership to the Chilton Library. Freaking awesome! I printed the fluid adjustment (2016 Tacoma From 08/2015) procedure for the AC60E automatic transmission.

http://www.chiltonlibrary.com


Get the detailed information you need to tackle vehicle maintenance and repairs. Some of Chilton Library's more popular features include:

• Maintenance and specification tables that provide the unique data you need for each specific vehicle.
• Step-by-step service and repair procedures, and labor estimating tool to help you confidently determine your next move.
• Vacuum diagrams to simplify troubleshooting.
• Wiring diagrams to help explain system operation.
• Close-up photographs and illustrations for visual support.
• ASE test prep quizzes for the most popular certification exams
• A print button which allows you to easily print out what is needed

 

so original dealer I got it from always said they checked it.
I recently found out they only did the computer test not the visual.

So dropped it off to get it checked at the closer dealer to me tomorrow.
Originally they tried telling me there is no way to visually check, but I provided the above PDF so hopefully they figure it the fuck out.

I'm almost ready to just bring it to my mechanic I always deal with and just have him do it since I know he's at least a competent mechanic and can actually fucking do something right.

I haven't really had much of any issues with my truck since I got it in January aside from recently finding the trans temps hitting 91C, but if this is going to be the process of warranty work I just might be contacting corporate to get a refund on my warranty as I no longer want it if I'll need to fight tooth and nail for any fucking warranty work.

Kind of a piss off when they can't just accept its a fuck up from Toyota that they're all coming low.

 

could you also pin it to help it cool better for say highway driving?

 

Yes , you can pin it .
Read here https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/towing-and-trans-temps.497441/#post-15446826
And here https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/3rd-gen-transmission-cooler-upgrade.482280/

 

so just picked up the truck.
of course as usual can't replicate symptoms. and can't accept scangauge as evidence bla bla bla same bullshit.
Didin't check level instead just drove it a little to see the temperature. So no surprise didn't actually inspect it.

So on the phone with Toyota corporate now, see if I can get them to issue a check on it.