Auto Shifter Rattles? Moves around a lot?

[dirtysouthjacket]

Just did this today on a 99 Limited 4x4. It helped when I removed the rubber boot on the shift linkage on the underside of the main bracket held down by 8 bolts. I would have had a very hard time getting to the lower bolt and nut otherwise. I was also super careful with the white plastic piece on the right side that prevents the shifter from working on start up without your foot on the brake. Shifter is rock solid now! Very happy I did this. Even found 3 lost quarters in the process.

 

[Ruiner]

Just did this today on a 99 Limited 4x4. It helped when I removed the rubber boot on the shift linkage on the underside of the main bracket held down by 8 bolts. I would have had a very hard time getting to the lower bolt and nut otherwise. I was also super careful with the white plastic piece on the right side that prevents the shifter from working on start up without your foot on the brake. Shifter is rock solid now! Very happy I did this. Even found 3 lost quarters in the process.

lucky, all i found was old french fries from the previous owner

 

[JWaldz]

Just did this myself.. Somewhat PITA but totally worth it. I replaced all 4. All but 1 were completely disintegrated and the other was on it's way out.

As a note for those with the multi-mode 4wd. You will not want to remove the 4wd shifter. This in itself is a tedious task. Therefore you have to separate the rubber lining under the shifter plate that connects to the 4wd shifter boot. You only need to do this if you're replacing all 4 bushings.

You will do this after you've removed the 8 bolts that mount the plate to the body of the tunnel. I believe there are 4 spots where you have to do this. 2 in the middle on both sides and 2 towards the rear on both corners. Where the bolts come out of is a piece of the rubber acting as a grommet and a small little metal 'tube' piece in the center. Push the metal piece out by hand. Maneuver your hand under the plate and pull the rubber portion away from the plate near the hole. This will slide the grommet portion out through the hole. I've attached a picture as a representation of what the rubber and the little metal tube looks like. You can see it in the top right corner of the picture. Once you've separated the rubber from the plate, you can maneuver the entire assembly past the 4wd shifter and away from the truck.

Keep in mind before you go yanking, disconnect the multi-mode shifter electrical plug located to the left of the lever near the floor.

Once it's free you can flip it over and you will see another similar rubber lining. Under this boot is where the other shaft is hiding. Remove 2 corners the same way you did before for the 4wd shifter liner and the boot will move far enough out of the way to reveal the shaft.

Hope this helps.

 

[dirtysouthjacket]

You don't have to completely remove the entire assembly and flip over. Just remove the 8 bolts, lift the assembly a few inches, slip a screwdriver underneath to hold it up, then slip out 2 of the rubber grommets to expose the shaft above the tranny tunnel.

 

[leonor700]

fix bushings shifter 4runner

I fixed my 4runner 2.7L RWD shifter, even paint the rusty base in gray glossy color
looks much better

 

[fourfive]

As a note for those with the multi-mode 4wd. You will not want to remove the 4wd shifter. This in itself is a tedious task. Therefore you have to separate the rubber lining under the shifter plate that connects to the 4wd shifter boot. You only need to do this if you're replacing all 4 bushings.

You will do this after you've removed the 8 bolts that mount the plate to the body of the tunnel. I believe there are 4 spots where you have to do this. 2 in the middle on both sides and 2 towards the rear on both corners. Where the bolts come out of is a piece of the rubber acting as a grommet and a small little metal 'tube' piece in the center. Push the metal piece out by hand. Maneuver your hand under the plate and pull the rubber portion away from the plate near the hole. This will slide the grommet portion out through the hole. I've attached a picture as a representation of what the rubber and the little metal tube looks like. You can see it in the top right corner of the picture. Once you've separated the rubber from the plate, you can maneuver the entire assembly past the 4wd shifter and away from the truck.

This information was very helpful when I was replacing the 2 lower bushings. If it wasn't for this tip I probably would have torn the rubber boot up trying to get to that nut. Thanks!

 

[ToyotaBrah]

I just completed replacing all four bushings on my '01 with the multimode 4WD yesterday. Turns out, my old bushings were still intact, but they felt stiff compared to the new ones. I wasn't expecting much of a difference with the new bushings, but it actually made a dramatic difference in the shifter behavior. It feels tight now with reduced noise from the shifter when I am shifting through gears. Well worth the effort.


Some takeaways:

1. Wear gloves and make sure your up-to-date with your Tetanus shot. You will be lifting and constantly moving around a rusty shifter plate with sharp edges that will cut your hands up in a hurry. Ask me how I know.


2. This has been mentioned, but I think it's worth it to rehash. The lower two bushings were incredibly hard to replace and consumed the most time. Just take your time. I spent 30 minutes alone on this part. I found out that saying not-so-nice things to your truck will make it comply a little better.



IMG_3003 by FaheemBB6, on Flickr

 

[phattyduck]

If you already have the shifter out that far, climb under the truck and remove the nut on the transmission rod... and pull the whole thing out of the truck. The bushing replacement should be easy on the bench.

-Charlie

 

[Nixid]

1996 Runner Limited

Just changed out the top two on mine, great improvemt, for little effort or cost. No slipping side to side and no slipping back and forth.

 

[swelleriffic]

If you already have the shifter out that far, climb under the truck and remove the nut on the transmission rod... and pull the whole thing out of the truck. The bushing replacement should be easy on the bench.

-Charlie

Can confirm. It was a piece of cake on the bench.

Finally did mine tonight after a year of ownership, 185,000 on the odo. Old bushings were blue powder, shifter bolt was like a hot dog in a hallway (to borrow the euphemism). I dare say nothing has changed the "feel" of driving it like new shifter bushings.

 

[phattyduck]

What's funny about this.... I bought a set of bushings with the expectation of replacing them. My shifter bushings were still perfect. And it looked like this before I cleaned it up:

-Charlie

 

[gchapell]

Thanks guys(all inclusive). Just replaced upper 2 bushings. Kind of a pain but went well. Couldn't get key out till i figured out how to set vertical spring loaded piece went. Did the trick and removed worry of unexpected trouble.
-George

 

[FD7683]

I'm getting ready to do this job soon as my key is having issues coming off/turning on the ignition. I already have the 4 bushes but the last 2 seem to be the toughest ones :nono:

 

[mtbtim]

I'm getting ready to do this job soon as my key is having issues coming off/turning on the ignition. I already have the 4 bushes but the last 2 seem to be the toughest ones :nono:

This video might help you out.

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[Doc3g]

This video might help you out.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gCHSRcq-LP8" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

The video mentions that this is for side to side movement, but mine has the front to back movement that makes me need to fiddle with it to get the key out. Do you have a video for that fix too?

 

[mtbtim]

The video mentions that this is for side to side movement, but mine has the front to back movement that makes me need to fiddle with it to get the key out. Do you have a video for that fix too?

Front to back movement is in the shifter linkage and not the shifter. I'm suspecting you need to re-center it and find it's natural neutral position again. Have the rig in Park and undo the nut that attaches the shifter arm to transmission linkage. I'm betting the shifter arm slides to a new position on the transmission linkage once you loosen the nut. Now tighten it down again and see if that helps. I've seen it to where the linkage wasn't adjusted right and it was sort of between gears if that makes sense.

 

[Doc3g]

Front to back movement is in the shifter linkage and not the shifter. I'm suspecting you need to re-center it and find it's natural neutral position again. Have the rig in Park and undo the nut that attaches the shifter arm to transmission linkage. I'm betting the shifter arm slides to a new position on the transmission linkage once you loosen the nut. Now tighten it down again and see if that helps. I've seen it to where the linkage wasn't adjusted right and it was sort of between gears if that makes sense.

Thanks, I haven't looked at myself but when it first started having problems a couple of years ago I took it to my regular mechanic and he said that there was a spacer or bushing or something in the linkage that was wobbled out. When he contacted Toyota they said they only sell the entire linkage as one part (which was a ludicrous amount of money) so he was trying to locate a used one online. Unfortunately, we moved before he ever did.

I have been meaning to tear it apart one day and look but just never got their. When I saw the video I was hoping that was what the topic was about

 

[mtbtim]

Thanks, I haven't looked at myself but when it first started having problems a couple of years ago I took it to my regular mechanic and he said that there was a spacer or bushing or something in the linkage that was wobbled out. When he contacted Toyota they said they only sell the entire linkage as one part (which was a ludicrous amount of money) so he was trying to locate a used one online. Unfortunately, we moved before he ever did.

I have been meaning to tear it apart one day and look but just never got their. When I saw the video I was hoping that was what the topic was about

Did you try what I suggested? There's not much to that shifter linkage that can go wrong. I would suggest getting underneath your rig and take a good look at the linkage to understand what that mechanic was telling you. Take some pictures on the transmission linkage and post them here so we can see what you're dealing with.

You can clearly see the transmission shifter linkage on the driver side of the trans without tearing anything apart. If you want to figure this out, you're going to have to put some work into it.

 

[Doc3g]

Did you try what I suggested? There's not much to that shifter linkage that can go wrong. I would suggest getting underneath your rig and take a good look at the linkage to understand what that mechanic was telling you. Take some pictures on the transmission linkage and post them here so we can see what you're dealing with.

You can clearly see the transmission shifter linkage on the driver side of the trans without tearing anything apart. If you want to figure this out, you're going to have to put some work into it.

Haven't had a chance to get under it yet. I might try to have a look tomorrow. I've been driving it like this for a couple of years, so it's not an emergent issue. ATM, I'm pretty much zeroed in on studying for medical boards. I try to spend a few minutes perusing the forums in order to keep my sanity, but I'm pretty much in a time vortex until May:yield:

 

[mtbtim]

Haven't had a chance to get under it yet. I might try to have a look tomorrow. I've been driving it like this for a couple of years, so it's not an emergent issue. ATM, I'm pretty much zeroed in on studying for medical boards. I try to spend a few minutes perusing the forums in order to keep my sanity, but I'm pretty much in a time vortex until May:yield:

Gotcha. Good luck with your studies.