A340F transmission, woes of 4x4 swap

To the uninformed, as I was a couple hours ago. Not all A340F transmissions in Tacomas are the same! They changed up a bit sometime after 1999 (or during I don't know).

Long story short I have a 2004 Tacoma Prerunner. I was surfing craigslist one day and saw a 1996 Tacoma 4x4 being parted out and it was 20 min from my house. I jumped on it and purchased the entire drivetrain. Today I ripped the transmission out of my truck and grabbed the 4x4 tranny. Thats when I noticed something didn't add up. Throttle cable coming out of the 4x4 tranny and also the plugs for the most part did not match! What the hell is going on I thought this was a bolt in swap!

Well I did a bit of looking up and thats when I saw a little bit of information on the small changes made to the transmissions with my year Tacoma.

I think I'm just going to tear open the transmissions and swap output shafts and roll with that. We will see how it goes.

 

Well, yeah A340F's are 4x & the A340E is for 2x, hence more /different plugs...

 

No, I mean pre 2000 A340F and post 2000 A340F. The valve body's changed and also throttle cable was eliminated and is now handled electronically.

Aside from obviously 1 is 4x4, the plugs will be identical because the transmissions (A340F and A340E) are identical. So long as they are from the same year time. Except for the output shaft and the adapter for the transfercase on the F model

 

I won't say that's 100% either, I had to replace my A340F in my 2000 with another EXACT one for Ca. trucks..fucking stupid ...

 

Well yeah CA has slightly different than federal regulations on emissions and that causes a few minor differences. I would imagine it's a plug somewhere.

Anyhow getting all hyped up ready to swap to 4x4 only to pull the transmission and then go, "Hey wait a minute something ain't right....." man it's a crappy feeling lol.

 

Yes the drive by wire change was from 02-04 I believe.

 

Something like that, TashcomerTexas. Anyhow I think I should be ok if I just use the output shaft from the 340F and put it into my newer 340E and change the end housing to adapt to the xfer case. If I'm not mistaken the overall shape and design didn't change between the years, only the valve body and such.

 

i feel you brother... i fucking hate that feeling... just had one when swapping my shocks for longer ones for my lift.. the new shock didn't have the same mounts and I did my homework. turns out monroe screwed up somewhere and i have to talk to someone to figure this crap out....

 

You'll be fine if you change out output shafts, the adapters are the same to the transfer case.

 

That's reassuring to hear, Texas. Like I said as far as I know the only difference between early model and late model A340Fs is the valve body with the extra solenoid for fly by wire shifting and some plug connectors. I can't imagine the output shaft would change, otherwise it would he an entirely different tranny and couldn't be called a A340F! Lol. I'll see how it all goes.

 

Good luck!
Take a look at this if you need any help (if pics don't load if you're on mobile use desktop view)

 

Thanks for the link. I'm going to pick up a 4wd filter this week and give it a go. Seems he ran into the same problem I am facing and just swapped shafts. Only difference is he works at a transmission shop! Lol I have never done this before. But hey I managed to get it out I'm sure I can get it back in.

Thanks again for that link though.

 

When I did my conversion I swapped the output shaft and the adaptor plate. Worked great.

 

I just did this (swap the output shaft). I had to swap the speed sensor rotor also. The A340F was a much newer model from a 2nd gen 4-cylinder Tacoma. It may not be exactly the same as the older version but it's something to be aware of.

 

I don't mean to revive an old thread but I just wanted to give a 6 month-ish update incase there are others surfing looking for the hard to come by answers on the prerunner 4x4 swap.

My A340e transmission in my 2004 prerunner took the output shaft from the 1996 A340f transmission. That was the only thing I changed inside the transmission on my prerunner. The tail housing adapter that connects to the transfercase was a perfect match, except there is one additional bolt hold that is not tapped on my transmission. I left this bolt out and just put some extra sealant around the bolt hole. After a few off roading trips and normal driving everything is working exactly as it should be. The only issue I have run into is wheel bearings need to be replaced because the spindles and wheel hubs are from a truck that had 300k + miles on them >.>

I hope this helps anyone looking for a definitive answer on this question. I know I never could find the exact yes or no answer to this question prior to doing it myself.

Thanks for the comments and help in this thread.

 

So the only things needed to convert the a340e is the output shaft and tail housing adapter? Did you just take them out of a used trans or did you buy them new and swap it on?

 

I don’t know about on the 1st gen but on the 2nd gen A340 you need the speed sensor rotor swapped too.

 

Old ass thread.

2003/04 are drive by wire btw.