2016 6-cylinder 6-speed automatic erratic shifting and drivability problems?

Thats what was on my paperwork. Not much details as far as firmware version etc..

 

Hello fellows, 2017 Sr5 4X4 2500 miles on it.

I think I have a similar issue. I drive like a grandpa... very easy on the throttle. I find that right as I am arriving at 55 the transmission / engine has a tiny bit of hesitation (or hunting) for about 20 seconds. Also it shifts out waaaaay too fast- to conserve fuel I am sure.
It feels like it has no power at all... .

I will test drive another 2017 just to see if it my truck?? I am thinking they tune the throttle where you have to really stomp it to get it to go...I wonder about the "throw" distance of the 2017 throttle to revs. vs the same on my 2014 FJ.
I may measure the throttle control distance between the 2 (my brother bought my 2014 FJ)

for reference...I only use it as a weekend driver. (I have a company truck)
History I had a 2014 FJ loved it , before 2015 frontier, before 2008 FJ. My son had a 2005 Tacoma and now has a 2007 4 runner. All which seem to run much better than this one. I also have the inside window door seals deforming (drivers and passengers front ). I will take pics for you here.


BTW - I never use the cruise no hills here to test. They ole FJ!


UPDATE_____ i find the issue is 6 gear at 55 MPH. If I stop it from shifting to 6 no problem - no shutter. S mode is my friend.

 

I have a 2012 2WD Prerunner that I love. I found a good deal on a 2016 4WD but I am leery of this trans issue. Is it so bad that you would advise that I not buy the 2016? It has less than 10k miles on it so I have to believe that it has this problem. Any adivce? Should I buy it or keep what I have until Toyota figures this out? Nothing wrong with my current truck other than it doesn't have 4WD, if it did I wouldn't even be looking.

 

Transmission is fine for me.

 

After doing research on my 2017, the issue is just factory shift tuning for higher fuel millage, which I think is great. I will just do the ECT mod that will default to power mode for running around town. Waiting to see what mileage I can get out of it on a highway run (ECT off mode). I also use the s mode and shift it out. Works great.

 

I'm one of the snow flakes that Smitty is always referring to in his may negative posts, in that my 2017 Limited is fantastic. However, I do realize there are issues and I feel for those experiencing them. So my two cents.

The only time I see the gear hunting issue is when using Cruse control. Almost 20 years in an industry utilizing proportional integral derivative control, I think it's this Cruse control algorithm that's jacked. Plus having two overdrive gears and a higher power band at higher RPM compounds the issue.

Brief description of what I'm saying. As the algorithm senses an increased or decreased change in deveation, the end result most times is either an overshoot and/or undershoot. AKA hunting. This is very apparent when in Cruse and driving through rolling highway of hills. As the truck rolls down the hill then back up, the overshoot or overreaction occurs with down shifting, high RPM....Bla,bla,Bla. I can manually drive the same route, same speed and react to terrain changes with steady throttling and have a completely different result. As any good driver will see.

Again, yes I agree Toyota could have made a better engine/tranny design but my gut tells me what allot of people are experiencing happens when using Cruse control. The ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistant System) needs to be looked into. Well all know what opinions are like.

 

Your statement about the cruise is spot on and my biggest beef with this truck. If only we could adjust the gain...

 

Yes the gain maybe the Vmin/Vmax and definitly my spelling of cruise. I hate auto correct. It's like having AI in your truck

 

Yep my transmission shifts fine when not using cruise, cruise is where the trouble begins......

 

My biggest beef with the trans is that it shifts into 4/5/6 while I'm still trying to accelerate from a stop forcing me to push harder on the throttle downshifting for half a second and then more throttle /repeat. How this helps fuel economy is beyond me and.

ALSO, it feels as if theres no connection between the throttle and the engine. Not feeling much of anything until it shifts. again, for half a second.

Enough complaints to the dealer and toyota corp.ca has forced them to try and sort out the issue. According to the lady at corp who called me on friday to tell me that between her, my service manager and engineers they will do whats needed to fix the issues.

Swapping trucks with the service manager who claims his truck is problem free for us to spot differences on monday. Well see how that goes..

 

Use ect power AND s mode, s6 specifically so you use all 6 gears and just let it do its thing. It drives very very good that way. I'd been using s mode without ect and or manually selecting gears and not letting it pick the gears and man was I missing out. Try it for like a week. Soooooo much better.

 

Have a buddy at the dealer that says a lot of 16 guys are not bringing them in to get fixed... bring it in.. he has a 16 with a lift and his is fine

 

I have a 2016 Tacoma auto trans, "Trans Hot " came on the dash one day last month after being in stop and go traffic, Toyota dealer in my area never heard of this and have been on the phone with the factory, still ni idea, they have done the computer upgrade and still shifting too much and power is terrible. I had a 2009 previously and it was fantastic.. I am very disappointed in this truck. SO slow and under powered, I dont think it can pull as much weight as the 2009. BTW, I have 19,000 miles right now.

 

Try driving in "S" mode if it has it. Keep it in 4th for city driving "stop and go" and then notch it up to 5th for freeway 65 to 70 mph. Then up to 6th if needed. But once you slow down go back to 5th thenot 4th off needed. I think you need to shift for it because it's retarded.

 

Its not an analog PID loop. The tranny shift is a Digital output function - which adversely effects the engine speed controls.

the way I see it....
lugging? - throttle position / vs known RPM ?/ vs road speed? / time (one second?) delay- down shift (digital output)
still lugging? time delay (2 seconds?) - down shift again.
no lug?- throttle position / vs known RPM? /vs road speed / time delay- shift up (digital output)

The "Power mode" of course bumps up the RPM map table points for shifting and time delay - doesn't lug the engine.

The problem I have- If you don't put your foot into in (throttle position change) I will shift very early to conserve fuel (keeping RPMs as low as possible).

Cruise - I have not used it yet- but I also live in a very flat area.


If this was a PLC, I could program this easily.

 

Exactly.

Brought mine in twice, with the same complaint. Specifically told the CSR "shifts fine when cruise OFF, but has problems on the same road, with cruise ON". The guy said the firmware needed updating. After the last (10,000 mi) check, I noticed the sticker with the firmware number was not changed, and they "forgot" to rotate the tires or fill the fluids. Starting to think I need to take it to a different dealer next time.

In any case, if any of you learn of new firmware versions / reflashes / updates beyond the first two, please post the TSB info here (sometimes this thread gets a bit noisy, and important stuff is hidden in the noise).

Thanks!

 

All that was above my head lol carry own neighbor

 

Read every single post on the thread and am now rethinking my wanting an auto in the Taco. I really want the LB if going to a smaller truck and MT in SB only.

Has there been a fix or is it luck of the draw??

Are there any issues with driving in town, 25-45 MPH as long as it is run the S mode and run the ETC or whatever you call it?

Keep everything like a regular old 4 speed OD transmission, 3 speeds with an OD or are there still lagging issues in the lower end between shifts?

 

I guess maybe some have had different experience than me but I had the TSB performed on my auto and I am satisfied with my trucks performance.

 

I thought the same, I should have bought the manual. But if you think about it, just use the s mode - the benefits of a manual without having to clutch at stop lights. Problem solved. ...I have just gotten into the habit on pressing the the E button when I get in it, that works also with no real impact on mpg.

Cruise issues? Use the SMode.