chasing some shifting issues

[Johns06yota]

Alright so this has been somewhat intermittent for about 2 years and its really starting to become noticeable every time I drive.

Rewind to when it started I was getting an occasional surge when slowing to almost a stop then pressing the gas again. It wasn't every time and only a little noticeable.

As time went on it got a little worse and I decided to have the fluid and filter changed. This seemed to resolve it for the most part for about 3/4 of a year and then it came back. This time much more noticeable. I tried greasing the driveshaft which didn't do much. I this past march ended up just doing a full fluid exchange (13 quarts) with valvoline maxlife which seemed to completely resolve it. I couldnt even feel the shifts. About 3 weeks later though it came back and I've been chasing this issue since then.

Now its a whole mix of things. I get the surge with the rolling stops and 1-2 is pretty harsh. Like you feel the car move a little on the shift every time. Other shifts are fine until OD. Sometimes it shifts into OD fine other times it sits at 2k rpm and almost feels like its bogging down then the rpm jumps up about 100 as it shifts into OD.

I am also experiencing what can only be described as a on and off vibration in the gas pedal at times whether I'm driving or stopped. It isn't terribly noticeable but its still there.

Does anyone have suggestions on this or have experienced something similar? I've already checked the level of the trans which was a little low at one point but other than that its been at the right level. I'm not sure if this is an issue with maxlife or something else.

 

[AuSeeker]

Alright so this has been somewhat intermittent for about 2 years and its really starting to become noticeable every time I drive.

Rewind to when it started I was getting an occasional surge when slowing to almost a stop then pressing the gas again. It wasn't every time and only a little noticeable.

As time went on it got a little worse and I decided to have the fluid and filter changed. This seemed to resolve it for the most part for about 3/4 of a year and then it came back. This time much more noticeable. I tried greasing the driveshaft which didn't do much. I this past march ended up just doing a full fluid exchange (13 quarts) with valvoline maxlife which seemed to completely resolve it. I couldnt even feel the shifts. About 3 weeks later though it came back and I've been chasing this issue since then.

Now its a whole mix of things. I get the surge with the rolling stops and 1-2 is pretty harsh. Like you feel the car move a little on the shift every time. Other shifts are fine until OD. Sometimes it shifts into OD fine other times it sits at 2k rpm and almost feels like its bogging down then the rpm jumps up about 100 as it shifts into OD.

I am also experiencing what can only be described as a on and off vibration in the gas pedal at times whether I'm driving or stopped. It isn't terribly noticeable but its still there.

Does anyone have suggestions on this or have experienced something similar? I've already checked the level of the trans which was a little low at one point but other than that its been at the right level. I'm not sure if this is an issue with maxlife or something else.

Not sure if this would cause the issues you're having..BUT..I know some have had problems with the wiring connector pins to the transmission corroding and causing shifting issues.

 

[Johns06yota]

Not sure if this would cause the issues you're having..BUT..I know some have had problems with the wiring connector pins to the transmission corroding and causing shifting issues.

I think I've heard about that. Would a scanner pick up trouble codes if that was the case?

 

[AuSeeker]

I think I've heard about that. Would a scanner pick up trouble codes if that was the case?

I don't think so, if I recall the ones that discovered it was corroded did so by disconnecting the connector and a visual inspection, the tough part is the connector is very hard to get too.

I also remember one guy fixing his which was badly corroded did a Youtube video on the fix, definitely not very fun, he ended up cutting a hole in the floor to access the connector, but I still think it would be a helpful video for anyone trying to fix corroded connector pins no matter how they access the connector.

 

[Johns06yota]

I don't think so, if I recall the ones that discovered it was corroded did so by disconnecting the connector and a visual inspection, the tough part is the connector is very hard to get too.

I also remember one guy fixing his which was badly corroded did a Youtube video on the fix, definitely not very fun, he ended up cutting a hole in the floor to access the connector, but I still think it would be a helpful video for anyone trying to fix corroded connector pins no matter how they access the connector.

Yeah I’ve seen that video. That does not look like fun at all. I may try to change it out with ws fluid again and see if that makes a difference. I just know what it’s doing right now is not normal. My buddy has a Tacoma with the same trans and his shifts perfectly smooth

 

[AuSeeker]

Yeah I’ve seen that video. That does not look like fun at all. I may try to change it out with ws fluid again and see if that makes a difference. I just know what it’s doing right now is not normal. My buddy has a Tacoma with the same trans and his shifts perfectly smooth

Definitely worth trying a different fluid before going down the rabbit hole and checking for corroded pins on the connector.

 

[having fun]

Not sure if removing the trans crossmember would give enough room to access the conector.

 

[Montego Murph]

For an inspection, you should be able to access the connector in question from underneath the vehicle.
I had a pretty severe version of this issue earlier in the year which "fixed itself" upon inspection of the connector -- I am guessing that the removal/reconnection scraped off enough corrosion to make a better connection.
I still need to get in there and give it a De-Oxit treatment and put some grease on the connector seal. For some reason I chickened out -- when I got under there and looked at the connector, I couldn't figure out exactly how to disconnect it and did not want to risk breaking anything while figuring it out.

 

[AuSeeker]

For an inspection, you should be able to access the connector in question from underneath the vehicle.
I had a pretty severe version of this issue earlier in the year which "fixed itself" upon inspection of the connector -- I am guessing that the removal/reconnection scraped off enough corrosion to make a better connection.
I still need to get in there and give it a De-Oxit treatment and put some grease on the connector seal. For some reason I chickened out -- when I got under there and looked at the connector, I couldn't figure out exactly how to disconnect it and did not want to risk breaking anything while figuring it out.

Your post has me a bit confused, you say or seemed to have said that disconnecting it and reconnecting it made the connect better...BUT.... then you say that later you chickened out after looking at it to disconnecting it to treat it and grease the seal....so did you or did you not disconnect it in the beginning and if you did disconnect it and that made the connection better...or what did you do to make the connection better?

 

[Montego Murph]

so did you or did you not disconnect it in the beginning and if you did disconnect it and that made the connection better...or what did you do to make the connection better?

A fair statement....

I was unable to diagnose the issue myself (very cold weather and fresh out of a surgery with lots of restrictions) so I brought it to both the dealer and a transmission shop. I think you and I went back and forth about this back in February, now that I think about it.

I personally did not disconnect the connector -- however I did ask the Toyota Tech to take a look and tell me what he saw (they were insisting that the whole transmission was toast and all they could do was replace it as a unit - no parts, no solenoid, just all or nothing.) He reported back that there was some mild corrosion on the pins. When I went to pick up the vehicle and bring it home and figure out what to do next, I realized that the problem was gone and has not resurfaced in over 7 months of regular use.

Not knowing what (if anything) the dealer did when inspecting the plug, that leaves me wanting to properly treat the connection to prevent any further corrosion and excitement.

 

[AuSeeker]

A fair statement....

I was unable to diagnose the issue myself (very cold weather and fresh out of a surgery with lots of restrictions) so I brought it to both the dealer and a transmission shop. I think you and I went back and forth about this back in February, now that I think about it.

I personally did not disconnect the connector -- however I did ask the Toyota Tech to take a look and tell me what he saw (they were insisting that the whole transmission was toast and all they could do was replace it as a unit - no parts, no solenoid, just all or nothing.) He reported back that there was some mild corrosion on the pins. When I went to pick up the vehicle and bring it home and figure out what to do next, I realized that the problem was gone and has not resurfaced in over 7 months of regular use.

Not knowing what (if anything) the dealer did when inspecting the plug, that leaves me wanting to properly treat the connection to prevent any further corrosion and excitement.

Thanks for the clarification, it's good to know that you don't have the issues anything longer, which makes it worthwhile for anyone to check that connector for corrosion and if it's corroded clean it to see if it solves the shifting issues as it did for you!

 

[Johns06yota]

A fair statement....

I was unable to diagnose the issue myself (very cold weather and fresh out of a surgery with lots of restrictions) so I brought it to both the dealer and a transmission shop. I think you and I went back and forth about this back in February, now that I think about it.

I personally did not disconnect the connector -- however I did ask the Toyota Tech to take a look and tell me what he saw (they were insisting that the whole transmission was toast and all they could do was replace it as a unit - no parts, no solenoid, just all or nothing.) He reported back that there was some mild corrosion on the pins. When I went to pick up the vehicle and bring it home and figure out what to do next, I realized that the problem was gone and has not resurfaced in over 7 months of regular use.

Not knowing what (if anything) the dealer did when inspecting the plug, that leaves me wanting to properly treat the connection to prevent any further corrosion and excitement.

well may have found my issue. when I did my fluid exchange I used maxlife which seems to be an alternative to ws that people have used. I decided to change out about 4 quarts with ws and it actually helped with the shifts a lot. planning to do the rest with ws asap. I'm just hoping that fluid didnt do internal damage