2LO Plug & Play Harness Discussion

That sounds about right.... They claim denied warranty, pocket the Toyota TSB money, and your money. Easy double dipping. Don't fall for that shit.

 

Which dealership?

 

Toyota of Kirkland

 

The 4wd ecu 'failures' are stored, but I never envisioned a dealer trying to use them.

You can clear them with techstream.

 

Got my truck back.

The service advisor actually apologized to me and said none of those things would have caused the truck to cut out and they will let me know when it's my turn for a pump. If it cuts out again, have it towed in.

 

Good deal. Glad they pulled their heads out... Hopefully it holds on until it's your turn.

 

Those who use 2-Lo on streets and in traffic, what's the highest speeds you get up to? What do you do if you're creeping along and the pace gradually picks up and traffic starts moving at full speed? I know the theoretical max speeds for each gear based on gearing, RPM, and tire size, but does anyone actually scream along at 6k RPM in 6th gear to keep up with traffic, hoping it will slow down or stop again soon?

I don't encounter heavy stop and go traffic very often, but I'm curious because I remember reading posts by some who have said they use 2-Lo to creep along in those conditions.

Today I tested 2-Lo on the airport ramp to see what it was like driving a longer duration than in or out of a driveway. The ramp speed limit is 15mph so I usually stay in 2nd at around 1500rpm. In 2-Lo I shifted up to 5th to do 15mph at again around 1500rpm. Definitely feels odd to me going more than a few mph in low range, which is why I'm curious if anyone else goes any faster.

 

I've done 45-50. The TC whines and I wouldn't personally do it for a long period of time, but it should be fine.

 

Oh yeah, I could hear the whine even at 15mph

 

Similar to @lapoltba , I have used it a few times at higher speeds. Zero issues. For fun, I once drove a couple miles at 35 in 6th to see. That is probably the fastest that I have driven in 4Lo when wheeling a short distance between obstacles.

The whine that you hear is the straight cut (stronger) low range gear set. Just like old school reverse gears used to sound.


If traffic suddenly opened up and I had to travel over 50mph, I would pull off and swap things back. A couple quick notes there:

-- You do not need to touch the button to just go from 2Lo / 4Lo position to 4Hi.
-- Also if you want to go from 2Lo to actual 2Hi, you don't have to stop or pause at the 4Hi position like you do when going into 2Lo. Of course, you do have to turn off the 2Lo button before the 4wd ECU tries to sense the ADD actuator or you will get the 4wd failure warning.​

 

But you do need to be stopped, or nearly stopped right? I hadn't considered that 4Hi with the switch activated should be the same as 2Hi, huh?

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I did not realize that. I've been switching to 4Hi and waiting for the 4Lo light to turn off, then switching to 2Hi and waiting for the 4wd light to turn off before proceeding.



My test today was only about 1/4 mile. As I mentioned, I rarely see heavy traffic, so I don't know if or when I will ever utilize 2Lo in traffic. But I wanted to test out what it was like to go a little faster and shift to different gears somewhere with zero traffic before finding myself in a situation where I want to use it on an actual street.

 

Yes. For my Taco, it has to be a full stop to go in or out of Low Range. If I move at all, esp backward, it is one of those noises that you just don't want to hear. Once the actuator decides to go, it's sending it.

Definitely try it out before you need it.


I have used it in highway traffic a few times, controlled on ramps many times, and twice in the COVID vax wait lines. The killer app is always my short, sloped, and odd-shaped driveway and tight garage though. Just a clutch saver. This weekend, I reversed up over the curb and up the driveway without touching the throttle.

 

Is there something odd when?

MT
Car in R, nothing else engaged, clutch pedal in (clutch not engaged)
Push 2 Lo button
Switch to 4Hi then 4Lo
Display: 4WD flashing, Audio warning: beeping - beeping -beeping

What is going on?

When this occurs seems I can shut it all down and repeat, no warnings.

Is it that 4WDLo is not engaging??

 

That is the 4wdLo not engaging (being prevented by the 4wd ECU) and you should notice this behavior with 2Lo and 4Lo (should be noticing no difference).

Per my memory (I have a 2nd gen manual and 3rd gen automatic, so memory is suspect), you should only NEED to have clutch pedal in and be stopped or barely moving when making the 4hi->4lo dial selection, and no need to be in neutral for the manual. My best guess is that the truck thinks you are moving too fast, or you are not pressing the clutch pedal hard enough (bad clutch in switch). I find I have to be 100% stopped on my 2nd gen, even though you are supposed to be able to do a couple of mph.

First step; try shifting into 4lo (without using 2lo), and see if you are getting similar behavior.

(Note, when this happens to me, because i am moving too fast for the 4wd ecu or not pressed the clutch firmly enough, I switch dial back to 4hi, wait a second, make sure i am stopped and clutch firmly in, then switch dial back to 4lo again)

 

Have you tried doing all that then slowly moving the truck forward a couple feet? Sometimes that’s what it takes to engage

 

Same here. I have to be completely stopped.

I have had times where 2Lo / 4Lo flashed / beeped, but still went in. Just not quick enough to avoid the flashing / beeping.

 

Yeah that is what I was thinking.................as usual I was in a rush...........I will try to roll forward. Thanks

 

Yes, the 4hi/2hi to 4lo/2lo shift requires the gears in the TC to mesh correctly. IMHO it's a 50/50 on whether that happes to be where you stopped the truck. Rolling forward a bit while turning the steering wheel slightly (to create some differential speeds in the TC and allow gears to "catch up") seems to help.

 

Odd that it didn't happen more often. Thanks

 

@Chadr7858