[quote=Buddha]This is one of the main reasons why I MUST have a manual transmission. I spent 2 months finding the right color/cab/interior/price with a manual transmission. The dealer(s) tried on multiple occasions to upgrade me to an auto. I told them I dont feel safe and I always have auto tran problems.... but it seemed like 9 out of 10 tacoma's on any given lot were auto's.
Is it just that people don't buy the man trans anymore or is it the opposite, where everyone is buying all the manual trans off the lot ???
Well, when your trying to drink your freeking starbucks, talk on the freeking phone, play with your darn blackberry and maybe look out the window once in a while, I guess you just don't have time to shift!! - not that I dislike people that do the above .Which means Toyota noticed this trend and just don't make many sticks anymore.
My 03/05 built Tacoma's transmission shifts perfectly - every time. I would say that the problems posted on this thread are not normal, and I would keep after the dealer until they fixed the problem. It seems like all dealers will give you the run around if you let them.
Well, when your trying to drink your freeking starbucks, talk on the freeking phone, play with your darn blackberry and maybe look out the window once in a while, I guess you just don't have time to shift!! - not that I dislike people that do the above .Which means Toyota noticed this trend and just don't make many sticks anymore.
They should make a Toyota Yupamo model especially for that. It could come with a sweet soccer emblem on the tailgate just to save them the trouble of buying one. Perhaps a stock collection of adult alternative MP3's
My 01/05 built Taco doesn't have the shutter. Only problem I have with the trans is the stupid shifting it does. I hate that if you take your foot the whole way off the gas pedal, it will go into an 'engine brake' mod. This isn't a diesel!!! If I let off the gas, I just want it to coast down!! lol
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Chad M. Germer
ASE Master Technician
'05 Tacoma DC, ToyTec, 285 BFG A/T's
One of my vehicles is a diesel (VW TDi) and it even coasts much better than my '06 Tacoma when I let off the gas, um, 'fuel' pedal. Seems that we all agree that the Tacoma transmission leaves much to be desired in it's present form. Seems much of the problem resides with the programming of the transmission. I would have to believe that a new chip or reflashing of a chip would solve most of our problems. I drove my '06 Taco on a 500 mile trip this past weekend. Up one long hill with the cruise and a/c on, it hunted between 4th and 5th too much and at one time dropped down from 5th to 3rd unnecessarily. I also dislike the downshifting for braking downhills; the frequent shifts are annoying and are probably wasting gas which lowers MPG. I would have preferred a manual transmission but one is not offered on the 'quad cab' version.
BTW, I wrote to Toyota but have not heard any reply, yet. I plan to talk to the dealer again, but maybe we all need to write Toyota and press them on this. I do expect that Toyota will make things right for us--eventually. (Hope I'm right.)
UPDATE: I received a phone call from Toyota today in response to a letter I wrote them some weeks ago. They are arranging a service visit with another dealer to inspect the Transmission (as well as my weak rear springs). I mentioned this forum, that others are experiencing similar problems. They seemed to agree that it may be a programming issue. I'll keep you posted, hopefully they will make things right. Write letters to Toyota...
UPDATE: I received a phone call from Toyota today in response to a letter I wrote them some weeks ago. They are arranging a service visit with another dealer to inspect the Transmission (as well as my weak rear springs). I mentioned this forum, that others are experiencing similar problems. They seemed to agree that it may be a programming issue. I'll keep you posted, hopefully they will make things right. Write letters to Toyota...
I'm in agreement here. Calls and letters. After Toyota gets enough calls and letters it will be difficult for them to ignore certain issues. I prefer letters, as they leave a paper trail, in comparison to calls. And always....keep good records, make copies of letters, and I send them "signature requested" so they can't say..."We never received it." Ya know, it's a shame things have come to this. This is my 5th Toyota, and I have NEVER had this many issues with a Toyota product. My garage contains 2 Toyotas at present, but I'm not sure I can keep buying from what these folks have apparently become. Then again, I hate considering the alternatives, but why not?
Well, yes, I'm a little disappointed but if they make things right, I'll be a happy customer. My T100 had a front suspension issue when I bought it new. Toyota corrected it and the T100 was great after that. On the other hand, I had a new 2001 Honda Accord that was a lemon from day one. Honda and the dealer gave me a big run-around and even thwarted the Lemon Law--tortured me for a year. It was my first automobile horror story. I still have such a bad taste from that that I promised myself NEVER to buy another Honda again. I can understand that people make mistakes, designs can have flaws, manufacturing defects, etc. but as long as a company is willing to make things right, I'll be back. Afterall, we don't live in a perfect world! None-the-less, Toyota is getting huge; I hope that they can maintain good customer service and support. We'll see what happens...
There is a key to why we are seeing customer service take a dive. Toyota has definitely made a move to "quantity" over "quality". Anyone who has owned Toyotas over the past 25 years can tell you that there has been a transition occur over that time.
The scary part is that they are following the "Big 3" in manufacturing. Example: Most Toyotas are not made in Japan anymore. The transmissions for Tacos come from where?.....Mexico. Chevy trucks (full-size) come from where?....Mexico or Canada. Who now makes the A/C compressors found on Tacos?......Delphi (GM). It seems that Toyota strictly followed a sound business model for lots of years, that allowed them to earn their reputation for quality, and make the "Big 3" look really bad. Now that they have achieved that, they are cutting corners and taking the easy way to the bank. But, all in all, Toyota is still the better of most of the choices out there. What I feel is gonna hurt them most is the attitude they seem to be adapting regarding customer service. This crap of "it's normal" or "can't duplicate it" is just a dodge. If they provided the same degree of attentiveness in "service after the sale" that they do while they're kissing your butt to get you to sign a purchase contract, we would all be happy campers. I experienced tough quality built into my 1979 Toyota 4WD Truck that I presently feel I will never see again. Oh well.
And I'm still getting the "We're waiting on word from Toyota" reply from the dealer while my truck's driveline gets worse with the vibration each day. In a day or two, I'm gonna have to velcro the sunvisors to the roof to keep them from falling down as I go down the road.
[quote=Maddog 03]....the service mgr. advised when I got there, that the "shudder" in the transmission was "torque converter lock-up" and that it was "normal" (I was afraid he would say that). But after having the truck on the rack for 2 hours, he returned and said that Toyota had been investigating the shudder and abnormal shift patterns of the Tacomas, and were coming out with a "fix" in the next week or two. ..As I spoke with the older tech, he said that he personally owned an 06 Tacoma with the same problematic transmission, and he had just returned from a school by Toyota, and at present, they are looking at issuing a TSB regarding the transmissions. The planned fix will possibly include installing a new (different?) torque converter, flushing the transmission fluid, and possibly a re-flash to adjust the shift points of the transmission. Toyota will reportedly advise dealers of the procedures by the 14th of July.... understand that there ARE some problems inherent to many of the new Tacomas, and Toyota is beginning to acknowledge such.
Now....will Toyota make things right? Time will tell.
Has anyone heard more on this? I take mine in on Aug. 8th for this issue as well as the weak rear springs.
Sorry....still in a holding pattern waiting on Toyota....allegedly.
The vibration has gotten to a point on my truck, that I now have multiple rattles in the dash and console. My truck is falling apart.
.....and the hits just keep on coming.
But do advise of what they find out with your truck.
Just got back from the dealers earlier today. They did not find anything wrong with the transmission--as I expected. I told them that driving over flat terrain will not demonstrate the problems. They are aware of other Toyota models that had to have transmissions re-programmed. They now need to wait to hear from Toyota concerning any TSB's on the Tacoma trans, and also to get appropriate software. Looks like I have to wait. Let's keep writing letters to Toyota on this issue!
Looks like you got the "It's normal" treatment. Sorry to hear that. I was back at the dealer for them to repair damage THEY caused on my Rav4 on Sat. (08-05-06). I was again told they expected to hear from Toyota "next week".
This is the 4th time I've been told, "Next week". A total of 45 days have passed since the first "next week".
Gee....I guess if "next week" holds off long enough, I'll be out of warranty...huh?
Gee....I guess if "next week" holds off long enough, I'll be out of warranty...huh?
Seems to me that the date of your initial notice to dealer of the problem determines if a TSB fix is under warranty or not? Or are TSBs fixes always warranty?
Yeah, I can't say that I'm pleased. As this really is a engineering/design issue, the dealers really can't do very much without getting direction from Toyota. The dealers may also need updated parts, and in this case, new software to re-program the chip. So it really is up to Toyota to make this right. [Write letters to Toyota, everyone!] I'm glad this is not my daily driver or I'd be more annoyed. My other issue with the weak rear springs causing it to bottom out easily probably won't get resolved any time soon, either. They have a TSB on the rear springs, but it deals with noise--the dealer told me he thinks my "bottoming out" is just noise! What the heck, I'm only an engineer. Anyway, if they opt to do nothing about the springs, at least it's an issue that I can fix, but the transmission is one I can't fix on my own. (However I was even thinking about looking into how much it would cost to get rid of the automatic and have a manual trans. installed.) Right now I haven't made up my mind if my new Taco is a long term keeper like my past Toyota trucks were.
Re: Toyota addresses Tacoma transmission
.Which means Toyota noticed this trend and just don't make many sticks anymore.
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