1st Gen Tacoma Transmission Shifting Rough

Hello I’m new to this forum but not very new to the 1st gens. My first truck was a 2000 Tacoma but I upgraded to a 2002 because I like the body style better.
Now I have a 2002 Prerunner Crewcab with the 3.4 v6. Transmission is starting to shift rough so I imagine it won’t be too long before it’s time for a new one. I’m debating if I should 4x4 swap it while I’m at it or just put an identical one in it. What’s your guys opinion? And how long do y’all think I have?

 

Only the transmission will have the answer to "how long it will last" and only you will have the answer to "should you 4x4 swap it"

Simple question to ask yourself, are you capable to doing the work yourself, do you have the proper tools and knowledge, and are you willing to take the time to source the parts? If not, is your pocket deep enough to pay someone the labor. From there, you can decide what you want to do.

 

manual or automatic? if manual have you checked the plastic cup at the bottom of the shifter and verified the clutch disengages fully? if automatic have you checked the TV cable adjustment?

 

By chance was the 2000 an auto 4x4?

I’ve found my 4x4 trucks shift smoother than the prerunner my dad has. But his has shifted rough since we got it at 68k, it’s almost to 200k now

 

Start doing fluid swaps, 4 qts at a time with synthetic maxlife mercon/dex, it may help and its relatively inexpensive

 

The 2000 was a prerunner as well

 

I did a fluid swap and it seemed to help some. It still jerks into gear when cold and shifts rough when cold but once warm you can barely notice when it shifts. The old fluid was very dirty so hopefully that was the issue

 

hows the shifter bushing?

edit: nevermind, ur auto right

 

Yep mines automatic

 

Have you looked through this thread?

 

I got a 97 taco shifts rough when cold, I have added lucas and still no good, wondering how long i can drive it like this

 

my 2000 just started doing this like a month ago. really serious, violent clunk when you shift it out of park, or back and forth into reverse, but like yours it only happens when it's cold. Mellows out almost entirely after it's been running 5-10 mins, though I can still feel the shifting is a little bit rough sometimes after that.

I got a transmission fluid flush but that didn't seem to do anything. This morning I had to let it warm up a bit cause the window was fogged, and that time it wasn't nearly as rough as it's been. Annoyingly my mechanic could not repro the issue, which was pretty hard to believe but maybe he just thought that was normal? When it does it, it feels like you got rear-ended or something. It's really hard to miss.

I've seen a lot of stuff that points to axle wrap or driveline, but the way it stops when it's warm makes that a hard sell. Feels like it's gotta be something in the transmission itself.

 

i fixed mine by adding an external transmission cooler, drain and filled with valvoline synthetic with Lucas additive and added a magnefine filter. Has not shift hard once ever after 7000miles later.