Please advise-2012 Tacoma transmission issues

Hi all,

I have a 2012 V6 4L, with a manual transmission and about 33,000k miles. Within the last few weeks, the transmission has been making a whining (supercharger like noise) in 3rd, 4th, and 6th. It sounds normal in 1st, 2nd, and 5th and the whining sound is consistent (but is driving me crazy).

I have already been to my trusted mechanic, and took him on a ride to hear the whine- he wasn't concerned about it and from what I read it is something that happens with tacomas.

They suggested possibly changing the fluid, but didn't make it seem to be a major issue. Is this really something that I shouldn't be concerned with? Does it mean the transmission is going bad? Have people had good luck with changing the fluid in cases such as this?

Thanks in advance for any input, would love to have other opinions here.

Thanks again!
C

 

You should still be under the powertrain warranty.

I will say the Tacoma 6 speed is noisy. A change a to MT90 in my 6 speed really quieted it down. I'm at 30k now and it's still quiet with almost 12k on the oil. I will change it again at 40k.

 

Thanks! called the service center about this. Any other input?

 

Warranty. Allow Toyota to do their job.

Ride along with the technician, so you can make sure that he hears what you do.

It is not normal or common with Tacoma's to have this whine, unless your wife is in the passenger seat.

 

Thanks for the response, Jimmy.

I have responded to an existing thread, where the OP has a virtually identical situation to mine.

I am hoping to generate a fruitful discussion on either thread.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/manual-transmission-whine.418467/

 

I agree with Jimmy .
Take it to the dealer for a ride along and get their opinion .
You could have a faulty bearing or low on fluid ?
A transmission whine is usually caused by the force of helical gearing placed on each individual gear within the transmission .
With this said , it has to be heard and diagnosed correctly while driving the truck .
Some owners may say its a normal characteristic of the RA60 , however they cant hear the sound through a keyboard .
Do you have a reputable transmission shop in your area ? road tests are free and a good tech can usually tell you whats going on just by driving the truck .
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...on-your-6-speed-transmissiom-write-up.338840/

 

Listen to gearcruncher. He is the transmission man!

 

UPDATE: I decided that a good first step would be to have my local mechanic check the fluid level.

Upon inspection, we found that the fluid fill plug was COMPLETELY GONE and thus the fluid level was low.

The old fluid did have metal in it.

We took the old fluid out, put new in and hoped that would fix the issue.

It didn't, it still makes the noise.

At some point, someone clearly forgot to put the transmission fluid fill plug back in.

I know that my local mechanic had never checked the fluid level when he did an oil change, and the only other places I've taken it to have been the dealer for the first oil change (after I bought it used) and oil can henry's.

I am currently trying to get info from the dealer about if they ever checked the fluid level (trying to determine responsibility)

Any other suggestions for actions?

 

It would be my guess that an oil change shop ( not Toyota ) pulled the transmission drain when attempting to change the oil. Then tried to cover it up by filling the transmission back up and forgetting the plug.

Or it fell out on its own.

Who changed the oil last? They would be the most likely culprit If there is one.
Have you ever had the transmission serviced?
Was there transmission fluid all under the truck from leaking out?

 

Well thats just great !!!!
Now the op has to do some digging and find out where the last oil change was done .
Running low on fluid definitely explains why your transmission is noisy .
The only thing I can offer from here is possibly this , but good luck trying to prove anything .
Type in your VIN # here and see what,s been done to your truck at the dealership
http://www.toyota.com/owners/web/pages/home

 

Your bet now is to find out who did this.
Once the manual transmission or the differential start whining due to low lubrication, the damage is done and can't be reversed.
Happened to me once with a BMW

 

Thanks for all the input.

I have never had anything but oil changes, and one separate project (not having to do with fluids)

I took it to Toyota for the first oil change

Took it to oil can henry's for the second.

This was the last time the fluid had been checked before today, so I am fairly sure that this was oil can henry's fault.

Now, luckily the truck is still under powertrain warranty- since Toyota didn't discover that the fill plug was missing (and the fluid was topped off today), I am crossing my fingers that all goes well with the warranty when I take the truck in for the appointment I scheduled for next Tuesday.