3rd Gen 4runner Automatic Transmission Replacement

[mtbtim]

Hey Dudes, it took us a long time but [MENTION=102606]infamousRNR[/MENTION] and I finally, FINALLY! have this freaking video series done. Only took us 3 months because lots of shit got in the way of getting it done.

If you want a tutorial on how to replace your automatic transmission, here's some videos that could help you out.

Here's the videos and Enjoy the Show!

PART #1

PART #2

PART #3

 

[wslytoy]

Just got the YouTube notification on my phone... I'll be watching these, just for the hell of it. B/c if mine ever goes out, I won't be pulling mine ha!

 

[mtbtim]

Just got the YouTube notification on my phone... I'll be watching these, just for the hell of it. B/c if mine ever goes out, I won't be pulling mine ha!

Well, get an extra large bag of popcorn because it's a long one. Hopefully it will work well for people wanting to do this job themselves to save some huge coin on the labor shops would charge for this.

 

[024rnrSport]

Great videos. The million dollar question... how much for the sparkling new trans from toyota??

 

[infamousRNR]

Great videos. The million dollar question... how much for the sparkling new trans from toyota??

I shopped around a couple local dealers here in the Bay Area...

Some wanted almost 5k!

But out the door I paid $2,500... I brought my old trans in when I purchased it so I didn't have worry about the 1k core charge

 

[octanejunkie]

I shopped around a couple local dealers here in the Bay Area...

Some wanted almost 5k!

But out the door I paid $2,500... I brought my old trans in when I purchased it so I didn't have worry about the 1k core charge

I paid that much for a 700R4 complete with torque converter for my Chevy pickup, so yea, that's a good deal for a factory trans from a dealer.

 

[024rnrSport]

It is a good deal if your up to the job. Did you consider a rebuild with the opportunity to beef it up a little? I personally would not attempt it but the local shop who rebuilt the trans in my Conquest was able to throw in Red Eagle friction clutches and mildly work the valve body. It was the best experience I've ever had from a shop as far as being upfront, willing to get me what I wanted, and finish in a very reasonable time frame. Obviously your choice was made and certainly not a bad one. Just food for thought for me when that day comes for me.

 

[mtbtim]

It is a good deal if your up to the job. Did you consider a rebuild with the opportunity to beef it up a little? I personally would not attempt it but the local shop who rebuilt the trans in my Conquest was able to throw in Red Eagle friction clutches and mildly work the valve body. It was the best experience I've ever had from a shop as far as being upfront, willing to get me what I wanted, and finish in a very reasonable time frame. Obviously your choice was made and certainly not a bad one. Just food for thought for me when that day comes for me.

We considered shipping Sean's transmission off to IPT Performance in New Jersey based off some good reviews and recommendations from people on this forum but decided if we ran into any problems, shipping it back and having to wait a long time to get it back didn't sound ideal. As for a local rebuilder, I checked around a little but didn't put that much effort into it. There were transmission shops with good reviews but we figured it was a pretty safe bet going with a remanufactured one from a local Toyota dealer and they give a year warranty which is decent.

 

[absalom]

Great videos, look forward to watching them in their entirety later. I have to ask though, what's up with the disclaimers? Has anyone actually ever been sued over a YouTube video in which they give mechanical advice? Totally just curious

 

[Jungoes]

awesome videos tim, its a monstrous job, and probably the only oone i may not attempt at home ( unless i plan on taking a few months to work on it )
but very detailed and lots of steps to explain the whole process

 

[absalom]

awesome videos tim, its a monstrous job, and probably the only oone i may not attempt at home ( unless i plan on taking a few months to work on it )
but very detailed and lots of steps to explain the whole process

You can do it in a half-day, it's not that bad. Especially with an awesome guide!

 

[mtbtim]

Great videos, look forward to watching them in their entirety later. I have to ask though, what's up with the disclaimers? Has anyone actually ever been sued over a YouTube video in which they give mechanical advice? Totally just curious

Well, the disclaimer is due to how our society can be these days. There are sue-happy people out there and I'm hoping I never become a target for one of them. Don't know if anyone has ever been sued over a YouTube video but I'd bet somebody has tried to sue for following bad advice given on a video.

 

[theesotericone]

People still win lawsuits over spilling hot coffee on themselves. That's after EVERY cup in the US had "WARNING: HOT" printed on it. It's ridiculous. We award idiots for being idiots.

OK I feel better now. lol

 

[mtbtim]

You can do it in a half-day, it's not that bad. Especially with an awesome guide!

Two guys wrenching together and working fast, I think a half-day is definitely possible. If you're by yourself, the only person I see pulling this off in a half-day is someone who's done the job before several times and doesn't even have to thing about what they need to do.

There's just a lot going on with this job. Removing shifters, removing driveshafts, removing the cross members, removing all the electrical connections on the transfer case and transmission, removing the transfer case, removing the starter, and finally removing the transmission. Then, putting all that shit back on the rig. It's time consuming even if you don't run into any hangups, which you're bound to, because it's rare things go perfectly smooth with a repair or mod.

 

[infamousRNR]

Great videos, look forward to watching them in their entirety later. I have to ask though, what's up with the disclaimers? Has anyone actually ever been sued over a YouTube video in which they give mechanical advice? Totally just curious

The disclaimer has mostly been my doing in an effort to protect our efforts & suggestions in a highly litigious country where the Liklihood to be sued is more likely than not....

It's only a couple seconds & might help us if someone drops a wrench on their foot & wants to blame us...

In other news... have you smoked any jeeps on the trail lately?

 

[diverscale]

DIY videos can't really get better than this. This will probably help keep more 3rd gens on the road instead of getting them into the scrap yards.

 

[octanejunkie]

When my local mechanic quoted me $300-400 to swap LBJs I said "but mtbtim's video made it look so easy"

He went on a rant about fake videos, omitted steps, liability, etc. He then said par of the cost was procedure, and parts - but I was supplying all the parts (loctite costs money, he said) and documentation. Documentation, i asked. Yes, pics, so in case someone messed with it after he worked on it, he would have photo evidence of his work. Taking proper pics takes time, he said.

I was like "so I have to pay for your time to photo document your work incase I mess with it after you, wreck and want to sue you?"

He said yes, and I said thanks and bye. I knocked out my LBJs thanks to your vid in a few hours, no problem. I even used loctite. I spared no expense.

So yes, we live in an overly litigious society, and if someone can sue, they probably will. Sadly this translates into additional cost to consumers, insurance companies and their insured.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

 

[absalom]

The disclaimer has mostly been my doing in an effort to protect our efforts & suggestions in a highly litigious country where the Liklihood to be sued is more likely than not....

It's only a couple seconds & might help us if someone drops a wrench on their foot & wants to blame us...

In other news... have you smoked any jeeps on the trail lately?

Makes complete sense!

Heh, you'll get a kick out of this .. we just did Fins n' Things in a stock Sequoia. I needed to change my shorts after!

 

[thegipper]

Tim, as usual, your video rocks! Watched all three parts today. I'm sure it was time consuming with having to video it but it actually didn't look too bad all. I imagine if you had a lift it would make it much easier to remove.

Unfortunately, I may need to use this video in the near future. Thankfully, it exists.

 

[ZionXIX]

When my local mechanic quoted me $300-400 to swap LBJs I said "but mtbtim's video made it look so easy"

He went on a rant about fake videos, omitted steps, liability, etc. He then said par of the cost was procedure, and parts - but I was supplying all the parts (loctite costs money, he said) and documentation. Documentation, i asked. Yes, pics, so in case someone messed with it after he worked on it, he would have photo evidence of his work. Taking proper pics takes time, he said.

I was like "so I have to pay for your time to photo document your work incase I mess with it after you, wreck and want to sue you?"

He said yes, and I said thanks and bye. I knocked out my LBJs thanks to your vid in a few hours, no problem. I even used loctite. I spared no expense.

So yes, we live in an overly litigious society, and if someone can sue, they probably will. Sadly this translates into additional cost to consumers, insurance companies and their insured.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

I agree that sounds like a lot of money for LBJ's, but at the same time these small businesses today have it pretty rough.

**Warning** Rant is imminent

Their overhead is ridiculous. Everyone wants good work for a low price, at the same time they want to see a professional environment with all the necessary equipment and competent experienced technicians. That stuff costs a lot of money. We all know there are countless mechanics who price gouge customers, but is it out of greed? or are they just trying to keep the doors open? Overhead, labor, insurance, workmans comp, bonuses, countless small purchases, and bills. These are the things required for businesses to operate. I cant even fathom how most of them keep the doors open when people nitpick at every charge. At the end of the day there is a magic number these businesses need to bring in to keep the doors open and the employees paid.

I think Tims videos serve a different purpose. He's not intending to steal business away from mechanics, I mean I dont know Tim personally but I dont get that kind of immpression from him. These rigs are at the point where almost no one remembers how to work on their specific problems like the godawful axel seals. So to avoid wasting time and money we have learned from Tim and other contributors what the correct way is and we do it ourselves if possible. It would be nice if a business could accurately predict and guarantee and certain number of customers per day to better average out their pricing. Labor is usually the biggest cost in a small business and that what they charge for. I dont agree with price gouging but I understand why they try doing it. I dont know about you guys but I personally have never been to a mechanic that was complaining of too much business.

I could go on but ill end here for now. Nothing against you Octane, just saw an opportunity for a soap box.