2016 Transmission T-SB-0077-16 Shift Feeling Enhancments (PDF)

I believe Brads issue was amplified . The 3 to 4 shift flair most noticeable on cold mornings is a very common problem on the 2nd gen 5 speed automatic as well as the AC60 series transmissions in the 2016-17 trucks .
The largest issue .......dealerships no longer work on valve bodies . They may change out a faulty solenoid ,but when it comes to valve body reconditioning , they tend to just install a new transmission rather than diagnosing the problem correctly .
Eventually there may be a TSB and a fix for the problem but I doubt we will see anything from Toyota for a very very long time .
Until then Toyota will throw new transmissions at the problem .
As Brad has mentioned , the aftermarket has fixes for this type of issue ,but not as of yet for the new AC60 series transmission

 

Gear cruncher, thanks for the response. I suppose I have been fortunate to have owned four second generation Tacomas with faultless auto. Trans. The 2010 Tacoma with 130,000 miles remains flawless in every way. Toyota did not get to their position by installing new transmissions in place of diagnosing and correcting issues such as the Tacoma 6 speed automatic transmissions. Of all the 2016 Tacoma owners would be very revealing to know how many have been replaced due to previously covered trans. Issues. If any of 16 Taco owners have new transmissions installed by Toyota, would be great to hear from you. Thanks faithful Tacoma owners, wish Toyota held us in higher regards. Only time will tell.

 

Hi Mikey. This was the sequence of events that led to me getting a new transmission. I joined Tacomaworld before I ordered my 2016 TRDOR. Upon serving the forums, I learned there were transmission issues with the AC60F, that vehicles were being delivered with low transmission fluid, and that a TSB was released for the shifting feel. Not knowing much, and being cautious, I had the TSB performed, and supposedly had the transmission fluid level checked, before I took delivery of my new truck. About 315 miles later, I noticed a flaring shift from 3-4 gear when the vehicle was cold. I searched TW looking for similar complaints, and educated myself on the Aisin AC60(x) transmissions and the Tacoma's engine management strategies. I also reached out to some of my colleagues in Toyota. From what I learned, I determined there was a problem with this transmission, so I opened a case with Toyota. Toyota verbally acknowledged there were transmission issues with these trucks. Next, as ordered by Toyota, I took the vehicle to my local dealership, along with videos I took of the transmission flaring the 3-4 shift, however, they could not recreate the problem. The dealership did state that the transmission fluid was about 3/4 qt low, and they filled the gearbox as needed. The service manager (who was previously a transmission technician) advised that, though they could not recreate the flare, the transmission will likely worsen as time goes on; particularly with the colder weather approaching. He was right. I brought the vehicle back after about 2 weeks of the flare worsening. Again, they could not recreate the problem. I figured something out though. Here is the issue: the truck needed a cold soak, first run through the 4 gears, and immediately, to guaranty it would act up. The dealership was in the city, so this was very difficult for the tech to do; especially if they caught a red light pulling out of the lot. In the meantime, I requested an extended warranty from Toyota due to my less than stellar circumstances. I was receiving poor service from the Customer Experience group, and at some points, I received condescending remarks from a few of them. Getting tired of the Customer Experience group, I escalated the case until I received a correspondence from a contact that was able to get something done. Toyota ordered a field tech to analyze my transmission. I insisted I wanted to co-witness the flare. Toyota complied. I drove the truck, and, low and behold, the flare occurred. Next, 3 Japanese engineers flew in, from Toyota, and they analyzed, and verified, that the transmission was no good. At that point, a new transmission and torque converter was ordered. Toyota will be using my transmission for further research and development and also to test a new TSB that should be coming out later. My assumption: the new TSB will squelch shift flares.

 

Gearcruncher, they are working on another engine management/TCU TSB. While I need to respect the source, I am 100% certain this new TSB will be produced. The TCU programmer was one of the 3 engineers that analyzed my truck. The new TSB will likely add some additional dwell time, and RPM breaking, between shifts.

 

I suspect the cheapest fix would be to simply rewrite code rather than change out transmission internals .
This is what I would do if I was in Toyota,s shoes .
A little surprising to see a tsb for the 3 -4 shift flair as it is seldom talked about until very recently

 

Brad, thanks for your diligence , greatly appreciated, and thanks for relating above information concerning your Tacoma, happy motoring! Mikey.

 

The original target was to mitigate the 2-3 shift, but now..... So, needless to say, they were very eager to come and get my transmission into their possession.

 

Glad to help.

 

I'm going to need to have this done, any recommended dealers in the Bay Area?

 

Gearcruncher, do you know how to decipher a date code off the AC60f case?

 

A massive amount to read here,working on it. One question though,is the
Aisin AC60F transmission in every automatic truck,or is there another name as well. Back in 2010 my std. trany was repaired because they mixed Aisin parts with parts made I think in Mexico.Something like that,it had to do with the clutch area?? What do I know,just wondering. Thanks

 

I know where you are going with this , however , you are better off going with Vin numbers if you are looking for production updates for the transmission internals .I believe any Tacoma built after the 8th month of 2016 is considered a 2017
The dates on the transmission casing tag tell when the transmission casing was baked and identify the transmission model
. Unfortunately the tag on the case doesn't list production updates to the valve body or mid year enhancements to the gear train or hydraulics like a vin number will do for you . I wish the tag on the case would identify enhancements as sometimes it means ordering different parts . As a transmission tech , we usually rely on aftermarket seminars to let us know all about those sneeky production updates between model years
To elaborate I will use the 2nd gen as an example
Transmission fitment by year:
2005-2007,
2008-2011,
2012+
Any of the above transmissions will fit behind a 4 litre engine ,but they must correspond with the fitment year in order for proper operation
The casing number is only good for identifying the production year and transmission model

 

Today I talked with a service advisor that I've worked with a lot in the past, about the transmission. I've got the '16 DCLB OR auto, 4X4. I asked if anyone has had any issues with the shifting/being finicky in general. I already had the fluid topped off (3/4 qt. low) at 5K miles, last October and I'm at 15K now. He said they've had no issues with parts or reliability, to this point (in Bend, OR), but just about every person that's bought one has complained about the tranny in some way. He recommended the updated software update, which my truck was exempt from due to VIN# at my 10K service. I'm going to drop the truck off on Saturday and see what happens. It definitely sounds like Toyota is scrambling on this one, a lot of people are coming in and bringing up the issues, so I think that's helping push for results! My service advisor said he's even driven the '16-17 Tacoma and noticed it first-hand.

I also asked about the rear-diff whine and he said they've had a field tech out to check the gears/gearing. At this point it's "normal" due to the way the new gears are cut and operate, but there's been no mechanical compromise so far.

I'll update after my truck is updated and after a more thorough discussion this weekend.

 

There was no hidden agenda here,my friend,just a straight forward question
Is the
Aisin AC60F transmission in every [ 2016- 17 ] automatic truck,or is there another Supplier as well. In 2110 there was two different makers as I stated. I get what you are saying about vin#,and I am asking my dealer for this. My interest is because I ordered my truck 7 weeks ago,and it is slated for arrival this week. Hoping to gather as much info as I can. Thank you for your reply,it is appreciated.

 

Understood, and thank you for the explanation. Here is a fun fact: my transfer case has a production date of 10/05/16. I bought the car in July 2016. One would think there was a typo there, but that is assuming a mm/dd/yy format. If we look at the date as a dd/mm/yy, which makes more sense, then Mexico (not China, Japan, or the U.S.) may be the most likely country of the transfer case's manufacture. Interesting...

 

Hmm ? hidden agenda ?
As far as I know there is only 1 manufacturer of the Aisn Seiki AC60 series transmission built in USA .
With this said , they could build the 2 wheel drive version in a different factory than the 4 wheel drive version ?
May explain the apedemic low fluid issue with the tow package models
If you are talking about the Aisn Warner A750 series from the 2nd gen , there was a time when there were a couple different locations where the transmission was assembled , but as far as i know only 1 manufacturer.
Aisn Warner changed to Aisn Seiki a few years ago

 

The AC60F is the 4wd version of the 3rd gen 6cyl 6speed automatic transmission, while the AC60E is the 2wd variant.

 

Hah ! Thanks for answering him Brad LOL .

 

I am referring to the transfer case alone (I think). As far as I know, the transmission and transfer case are mutually exclusive. Digging back to my Ford days, Tremec (a Mexican manufacturer corporately assembled by the big 3) bought Borg Warner, a U.S. based company. Aisin and Borg Warner had joint operations. A lot of Borgs were build in Mexico. It kind of makes you wonder. Now Aisin Seiki... The Mexicans have been building great geartrain for some time now, and they work cheap. Why not, right? Who knows.

 

all the Aisn seiki addresses I have encountered are based out of the USA and Japan but like you say " who knows " ,
things change every day