Pegesus Posted December 31, 2005 Share Posted December 31, 2005 Hello everyone, We've had our lexus for a little over 6 months (second owners) and I've been reading this forum since we got the car but I now have a problem that I can't find the answer for in the "search topics". The car has 52,000 miles on it and it won't shift into overdrive. We can't shift it into D...only 4. We took it to our local Lexus dealer yesterday(our first visit) and explained what it was doing and the technician said he knew what it was...we need a new "shifter". To the best of my knowledge the car wasn't put on a computer for tests or anything. They just came back and said we need a new "shifter" and it would be about $500. I asked if it would be covered by the powertrain warranty and they said it's not. I asked for a copy of the powertrain warranty and they let us look over a laminated form they had but said we couldn't have a copy of it. I asked for the part # and if there was a more technical term for our problem other than a "shifter"....our person said no. We asked if it would hurt the car to always drive it in 4 instead of D and they said that was fine....we'd just lose some fuel efficiency. I don't know but this was not the experience I expected from Lexus. If a car won't shift into a gear WHY wouldn't that be part of the powertrain??? What part of a car does a "shifter" belong to?? I've read about the numerous transmission problems some of these cars have but ours doesn't hesitate or jerk...it just won't shift into Drive. Does anyone have any advice on what my next move should be? Sorry for the lengthy first post...I just wanted to describe this as best as I could. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LexInfo Posted December 31, 2005 Share Posted December 31, 2005 Hello everyone, We've had our lexus for a little over 6 months (second owners) and I've been reading this forum since we got the car but I now have a problem that I can't find the answer for in the "search topics". The car has 52,000 miles on it and it won't shift into overdrive. We can't shift it into D...only 4. We took it to our local Lexus dealer yesterday(our first visit) and explained what it was doing and the technician said he knew what it was...we need a new "shifter". To the best of my knowledge the car wasn't put on a computer for tests or anything. They just came back and said we need a new "shifter" and it would be about $500. I asked if it would be covered by the powertrain warranty and they said it's not. I asked for a copy of the powertrain warranty and they let us look over a laminated form they had but said we couldn't have a copy of it. I asked for the part # and if there was a more technical term for our problem other than a "shifter"....our person said no. We asked if it would hurt the car to always drive it in 4 instead of D and they said that was fine....we'd just lose some fuel efficiency. I don't know but this was not the experience I expected from Lexus. If a car won't shift into a gear WHY wouldn't that be part of the powertrain??? What part of a car does a "shifter" belong to?? I've read about the numerous transmission problems some of these cars have but ours doesn't hesitate or jerk...it just won't shift into Drive. Does anyone have any advice on what my next move should be? Sorry for the lengthy first post...I just wanted to describe this as best as I could. you will need to replace the shifter console mainly due to the fact you will not have overdrive and you will burn alot more gas than it suppose to. the piece they are refering to is the piece that you use to put the car in gear, its located in the center console and comes as an assembly minus the shift knob and the gear indicator cover. The shifter console assembly has an ecu that inputs to the combination meter which will indicate what gear mode you're in when you place the gear selector in D 4 3 2 or L on the combination meter and this is also used to signal the engine ecu what mode the transmission is in so the engine ecu will than shift the transmission according to the gear selector position. I guess its not power train mainly its more body/body electrical related issue. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob95603 Posted December 31, 2005 Share Posted December 31, 2005 Have you checked the level of the transmission fluid? When was the last time the fluid was changed? Is it red or brownish red? I don't know what your transmission warranty is, but it would seem that at 52K it should be covered. Check the fluid and change it if necessary but do not do a power flush. That may void any warranty. Next step would be send a letter (to make sure it's documented) to Lexus USA. Also copy your state's Attorney General. Lexus wants to ensure that they continue selling previously owned vehicles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW03ES Posted January 2, 2006 Share Posted January 2, 2006 Unfortunately the "shifter" (the more appropriate name of the part is probably the shift lever assembly or something like that) is considered switchgear and it no more would be covered by the powertrain warranty than say a gas pedal assembly, even though both control aspects of the powertrain, they are not powertrain components like the transmission itself is. What they're saying is that the shift assembly is not registering the lever being in the D position properly, its not that the transmission itself won't shift into D. At 52k you're JUST out of the bumper to bumper warranty. You could lean on Lexus corporate to cover the repair and they might. That is, if you feel its worth your time. $500 isn't bad for a Lexus repair (thats like, brakes) and I probably would just pay it and go on with my life. You definately must get this repaired though, driving in 4 will put additional strain on the transmission and other powertrain components and should something fail within the powertrain warranty or beyond not having this repaired may void that warranty when the repair they need to cover is $4,000 instead of $500. As for Lexus, unfortunately all the dealers are independently owned. I suggest you talk with your feet and try some other dealers, once you've found one you like your ownership experience will be much more positive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wwest Posted January 2, 2006 Share Posted January 2, 2006 (edited) Or... Many of the newer transaxles will not shift into OD until the ATF is warmed to a high enough temperature for optimum operation. For these transaxles there is a thermistor that measures the ATF temperature and if this thermistor is open the ATF will always "appear" cold to the ECU. Newer models detect "out of range" for sensors but I don't think yours does. Edited January 2, 2006 by wwest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monarch Posted January 2, 2006 Share Posted January 2, 2006 We asked if it would hurt the car to always drive it in 4 instead of D and they said that was fine....we'd just lose some fuel efficiency. I agree with the Lexus dealer for two reasons. Here's one: http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y189/mastertech/74.jpg Another reason is that if you pull out the transmission oil dipstick and feel the fluid after driving 30 miles or more in 4th gear, you'll notice the fluid is only moderately hot - not hot enough to burn your skin - just as it would be if you drove that distance in 5th gear. In fact, the owners manuals virtually all models advise locking out the top most overdrive gear when towing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW03ES Posted January 2, 2006 Share Posted January 2, 2006 wwest- Also a possibility, hadn't thought of that. Monarch, And the purpose of posting that picture is what, and do you agree to take on the liability of paying for his transmission replacement if he should need one and Lexus denied the warranty claim because he failed to maintain the vehicle in a normal operating condition? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LexInfo Posted January 7, 2006 Share Posted January 7, 2006 (edited) its an issue with the 02 and up model ES.. the shifter console needs to be repalced. its an internal open in the console, when selsecting gears it does not output the proper voltage to signal the combination meter ecu to have the "D" indicator to be turned on. Edited January 7, 2006 by LexInfo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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