Originally Posted by gamefreakgc

Ding ding ding! Winners!

So, I got under there and dropped the pan. Fluid looks good, no objects in the pan, so good so far. Next I look at the throttle body, cable is in the exact same position, perhaps even a tad bit more loose then I had on the old engine. Alright, looking good. I re-adjusted the cable coming down around the headers and re-position the cable brackets to give it a little more slack. Then I looked at where the cable enters the transmission and the bracket that holds it in place was snapped in two! The cable had extended about 1/2 an inch, causing the transmission to think the throttle was always open. I gave the cable a bit more slack (anyone who had a supercharger knows the trans cable is a tad bit short) and was able to re-position it where it was before so it doesn't pull apart. Sure thing, I go to drive it and the noise is gone, and the hard shifts are gone. Idling in the garage, just for kicks I pulled on the cable in the engine bay end and sure enough, it starts buzzing again. Bingo!

At the same time, my fluid levels dropped. I still have 1/2 quart of fluid yet to be added, as I'm adding it back in slowly to see if it really was overfilled, or if the over-tightened cable was somehow dumping more fluid into the pan, making it seem overfilled when it really wasn't.

Thanks for the suggestions all and where to look at. I'm going to keep watching the cable and if it starts to pull apart at the transmission case again and become an issue I'll replace the whole cable. Like someone else said though, the throttle cable is easy (which I have replaced, mine was too stretched out) but the trans kick down cable is not.

Originally Posted by T4R2014

Where's that bracket? I need to check this. I've had this hard, delayed shift issue since I got this truck. My high school aged judgement back then thought it was smart to tighten the cable when the truck was already shifting fine. It never shifted quite like it did even after I loosened the cable back. From then on, I NEVER touched the cable adjustment in my other 4Runners unless I felt something was genuinely wrong.

That thread seriously needs a disclaimer because noobs don't necessarily know what a properly adjusted cable should be like.