ANY HOW TO'S ON AUTOMATIC TRANS REMOVAL?

Hi Guys

I have a 2000 Tacoma with 3.4 with automatic trans. 4x4

Just looking for any info on pulling the trans out. I wasn't able to locate any. I'm newbie here so still figuring it out.

Thanks for any help.

 

Welcome to TW.

I take it from your post that you have never pulled a automatic trans w 4x4?.

Look upon the internet for videos about that subject. It's out there, and it is all very similar for most setups like that. If it has never been pulled apart,,it might fight back pretty good. They vibrate the bolts tighter as more miles are put down it seems. If you have them, sensor plugs need to be dealt with carefully,,no yank, no hard tug. Clean first,,then separate carefully.

Floor jacks, jack stands, good tools, air tools(helpful), and a buddy to help who has done this before are first on your list. Have those?. No worries if not,,there should be someone on here who is very close to you.

Where are you located?.

 

^ I agree. Pulling a transmission isn't for the novice. Especially having 4x4. Doing one on the ground with a floor jack is a bitch. I suggest taking it to someone that has vast experience removing transmissions.

 

Thanks,

Never pulled a 4x4 trans before but many on cars/trucks. I have all the tools and buddies covered.

Just looking to see if anyone has some first hand experience on the do's and don'ts. Also if I need to replace the Rad or can I just flush it?

I'm in San Francisco bay area, Walnut Creek to be exact.

Thanks~Dewey

 

Ok, your there for the most part then. You know the routine, just more obnoxious weight to deal with.

How many miles on your radiator?. Did your trans explode and send trash thru the system you have?

 

Rads only got 10k on it, a year and half old. Trans didn't explode. It started whining about 1500 miles ago and today it got alot louder. Sounds like a p/s pump with no fluid in it. Fluid actually shows slightly over full witch is weird because last time i checked it (when I put the rad in) it was closer to the low mark.

It's about to explode I think at 238k miles

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...sions-write-up-your-4-speed-automatic.325531/

http://web.archive.org/web/20101127014333/http://ncttora.com/fsm/1996/96_repair_searchable.pdf

 

Thank you for the wealth of info provided here.

If my trans is whining and getting louder, is it fixable? if so any guess as to the cause? I did very limited towing years ago. Noise began a few months ago, seems worse when cold.

If replacing I've read to only use a factory Toyota reman. Any truth in that statement?

 

Anything is fixable . All depends how much time and effort you want to donate to the problem .
You have a lot of miles on the transmission .
Rebuilt transmissions with a warranty will run you about 1500 bucks .
Or you could rebuild yourself but its going to be a time consuming adventure and still cost you about 700 bucks .
The Aisn Warner 340 series is pretty much available anywhere . They are a popular transmission and parts are easy to come by .
What are your plans ?

 

I don't want to tear it apart myself, lack of space and proper tools needed to do it correctly.

I was planning on getting a rebuilt/reman from Toyota at $1880 with a 12 month unlimited miles warranty. But then they said in order to get that warranty they had to install it.

I have no problem doing the R&R myself and think I would do a better job then the guys at the shop. Nothing against the techs at the local shop, just that it's mine and I care about it. No pressure to get it done in a set amount of time. I wouldn't take any short cuts, etc...

At this point I'm undecided what route to take. I'd like the warranty but they want $1200 to install it.

Local trans shop can rebuild it( not sure how much ) but I've read alot of bad things about getting them rebuilt. I wish I could find a local guy that new what he was doing and trust worthy. I'm sure their around here in my area just can't seem to find that guy.

Thanks for your help, much appreciated.

 

The more noise it creates,,the less time you have, and your low cost fixable idea goes out the window.

If it seems worse when cold,,no driving till the motor temp needle runs at it's usual spot then. Give the trans the benefit of the doubt.

$1200 to install and buy into there warranted deal?. My usual answer is negative,,but if you have limited resources to get the job done yourself,,then that's what you do.

If there is no pressure to get your original fixed and back in the truck done,,then the choice is a bit simpler. You will have 2 transmissions then. the one you run on and then the one you fix later and reinstall.

 

Yep, that's my take. Let her warm up even though the trans doesn't really heat up until driving a few miles. Don't drive it that much but I'm worried about it grenading out on the hiway. Leaving me stranded or possibly catching fire. Fingers crossed.

 

If you are doing this in a home/garage, I would recommend/suggest getting your hands on a transmission jack.

I picked this one up from saved my bacon many times during my prerunner -> 4x4 conversion. I was able to remove/install these tranny's by myself while the truck was on jackstands in my garage...

 

Thanks, I planned on getting one.

 

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/tci-896500/overview/
Bought one of those at another swap meet for about $20. It's pretty beat up , modifying it to fit different stuff, pinned the bottom,,wire fed little steel stands on there and here to hold better, a chain wrap setup I added for better grip.

Grab yourself some 12 ton jackstands at HF. Your gonna need to get it in the air a bit and be able to maneuver. The 12 tonners are alot more stable and safe. You can feel good about extending those to the almost last click if needed.