Another Tranny Fails!

[utexasrick]

Well another tranny goes down.... I was 100 miles away from home and it started acting up, it would feel like it was in neutral when it was in gear. I still have to go pick it up with a dolly. From what I've read this was probably because of the pick up getting cloged. When I left it there it could still move but I would have to turn it off and restart for it to get moving. what I'm thinking is to change the fluid, filter and clean it and see if it runs normal. If that doesn't work then I'll have to take it to a tranny shop. I rather not take it to the dealer because they will prob just say I need to get it replaced. any advice?

[wwest]

Well another tranny goes down.... I was 100 miles away from home and it started acting up, it would feel like it was in neutral when it was in gear. I still have to go pick it up with a dolly. From what I've read this was probably because of the pick up getting cloged. When I left it there it could still move but I would have to turn it off and restart for it to get moving. what I'm thinking is to change the fluid, filter and clean it and see if it runs normal. If that doesn't work then I'll have to take it to a tranny shop. I rather not take it to the dealer because they will prob just say I need to get it replaced. any advice?

Advice depends heavily on knowing the MY and mileage....

[Rollingstone]

Well another tranny goes down.... I was 100 miles away from home and it started acting up, it would feel like it was in neutral when it was in gear. I still have to go pick it up with a dolly. From what I've read this was probably because of the pick up getting cloged. When I left it there it could still move but I would have to turn it off and restart for it to get moving. what I'm thinking is to change the fluid, filter and clean it and see if it runs normal. If that doesn't work then I'll have to take it to a tranny shop. I rather not take it to the dealer because they will prob just say I need to get it replaced. any advice?

My advise, based on very expensive experience: If you manage to get it moving on it's own, proceed directly to any dealership other than Lexus and trade it in. Whatever you do, don't put in a Toyota rebuilt transmission. After spending more than $5000 on a certified rebuilt that failed to funtion properly from day one and after 13 months of problems, the dealership here in Calgary (Stampede Toyota/Calgary Lexus) offered me another transmission at at 'slight' discount. Not the Lexus service one expects from this class of vehicle. It was dangerous to be on the road with a tranny which one could not count on engaging when a downshift is expected.

Good luck - I miss the RX300 but I need a car I can have confidence in...

[lenore]

Take it to an independent tranny shop. you will save thousands over a dealership. Dont forget to file a complaint with the NHTS board online. You will need your vin number. So the failures keep coming in. Sorry about your failure.

[bluestu]

I talked to a guy in the parts dept. at Lexus of Knoxville and he said there had been many RXs come in with burnt transmissions. He said the problem is that owners weren't having their transmissions serviced. He also said that their service dept. now only performs flushes on RX transmissions. The drain and fill is no longer recommended for these vehicles. I guess this might be a little too late for many owners. Lexus should be held accountable for their flawed maintenance schedule that is listed in the owners manual.

[lenore]

That dealership is full of bull, Lexus has a problem and will not admit it. I serviced mine evey 30k miles. and it still failed. Why do you think Lexus changed their tranny in the 2001 and 2004 years, because they know they had a problem, but will not stand behind their product for the rest of us saps. So sorry for your failure, DID YOU FILE A COMPLAINT WITH THE NHTS BOARD ONLINE? By the way you will be sucked by Lexus for $4300 or more. Go to an independent Transmission shop and get it done for $2000 and enjoy the satisfaction as well as more money in your pocket. Their guarantee is only 1 year by the way at Lexus, hardly worth it...... Good luck

[bluestu]

I haven't had a tranny failure because I've had mine flushed every 15k. A 1999 and 2000 with 110,000 miles. That sort of eliminates your theory concerning the year models being the cause. You performed a drain and fill every 30k which is useless according to every mechanic that I've talked to. You live in an extremely hot climate and your fluid simply burned up which led to your premature failure. I do agree with you concerning the Lexus liability and having an independent shop rebuild the transmissions.

[lenore]

Hey bluestu, I agree, but you did 15k flushed from new, I wish there had been a heads up from Lexus when I bought my car, but no, they didnt give me that courtesy, I changed mine every 30k and thought I was way ahead of the game, the book flat didnt require it. thank you

[Kauz]

All this talk about transmission failures is scaring me. We have a 2000 RX that we bought used with 70K miles and now close to 95K miles. The service record shows that the fluid was changed at 60K and I have not replaced the fluid since. I checked the fluid condition the other day and still looks decent. The car has been in a warm climate all its life.

So, I'm wondering what are the signs that the transmission is on its last leg out? Is the tranny problem just a 4 wheel drive RX issue?

BTW, I'm going to drain and refill the tranny any days now just to be safe. Hopefully that'll not jinx it.

[bluestu]

Hey bluestu, I agree, but you did 15k flushed from new, I wish there had been a heads up from Lexus when I bought my car, but no, they didnt give me that courtesy, I changed mine every 30k and thought I was way ahead of the game, the book flat didnt require it. thank you

That's what I've been saying all along is that the maintenance schedule in the owners manual is flawed. The parts guy I spoke to at Lexus Of Knoxville was very aware of the tranny problems with the RX. He thought the drain and fill was rediculous since more than half the fluid gets trapped in the torque converter and connot be drained. He certainly wasn't defending the Lexus corporation. He asked me if I had been flushing my transmission because that is what their service dept. is now recommending. Lexus is obviously very aware of the problem and are now trying to remedy it. Hopefully it will be like the engine sludge issue where they will issue the owners a notice certificate extending the warranty of the transmission. It's one of those issues that doesn't get resolved until a significant amount of failures and complaints are reported.

[edbro]

He thought the drain and fill was rediculous since more than half the fluid gets trapped in the torque converter and connot be drained.

But doesn't it get recirculated and you would drain that out the next time? Nobody is saying that a drain and fill gets it all at once. Usually I've seen people advocating a series of 3 drain & fills.

I'm not sure about this and I started another topic about this very subject.

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...showtopic=35506

[bluestu]

He thought the drain and fill was rediculous since more than half the fluid gets trapped in the torque converter and connot be drained.

But doesn't it get recirculated and you would drain that out the next time? Nobody is saying that a drain and fill gets it all at once. Usually I've seen people advocating a series of 3 drain & fills.

I'm not sure about this and I started another topic about this very subject.

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...showtopic=35506

If you mix new fluid in with old fluid, then the new fluid immediately becomes contaminated. You don't drain half your engine oil out and add a couple of quarts and then repeat the procedure and expect it all to be clean. This is really a no-brainer. It's not even worth mentioning or debating, and I'm very surprised that anyone would advocate such.

[TunedRX300]

He thought the drain and fill was rediculous since more than half the fluid gets trapped in the torque converter and connot be drained.

But doesn't it get recirculated and you would drain that out the next time? Nobody is saying that a drain and fill gets it all at once. Usually I've seen people advocating a series of 3 drain & fills.

I'm not sure about this and I started another topic about this very subject.

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...showtopic=35506

If you mix new fluid in with old fluid, then the new fluid immediately becomes contaminated. You don't drain half your engine oil out and add a couple of quarts and then repeat the procedure and expect it all to be clean. This is really a no-brainer. It's not even worth mentioning or debating, and I'm very surprised that anyone would advocate such.

To be exact, drain and fill 4 out of 9.8 quarts of ATF is the same as replacing only 2 out of 5 quarts of used engine oil and left the engine oil filter unchanged. If one can not accept the later, why is he more than happy with the former solution?

Just because certain methods are commonly accepted, does it mean they are best for the car?

[lenore]

the other method is to undo a tranny cooler line and flush it until clear after dropping the pan and refilling. You would probably get about 7 quarts out with this method. Seems to work on the Ls sedans. Hey dropping the pan and getting the bulk of metal filings out has to help. My External filter probably does the best job. By the way I am 34 k on my use of the external filter and so far good. Next a cooling fan for the summer time on the external aux cooler.

[tmastres]

I haven't had a tranny failure because I've had mine flushed every 15k. A 1999 and 2000 with 110,000 miles. That sort of eliminates your theory concerning the year models being the cause.

Well the theory was thet the 99/00 models have the problem and they're the vast majority to fail. I too have a 2000 AWD RX that I've only had a drain and fill at 60 and a flush at 90 and (cross your fingers ansd knock on wood) not even a hint of problem. As we've gone over in laborious and painstaking detail on this forum only a relatively small percentage of 99/00 tranny fail at all but most of those reported here are 99/00 with less than 100k. In fact many have failed even though the owners did some kind of trans fluid replacement so we cant even pinpoint that as the cause. The only thing we DO know is that after 00 we have far fewer reported failures.

[wwest]

I haven't had a tranny failure because I've had mine flushed every 15k. A 1999 and 2000 with 110,000 miles. That sort of eliminates your theory concerning the year models being the cause.

Well the theory was thet the 99/00 models have the problem and they're the vast majority to fail. I too have a 2000 AWD RX that I've only had a drain and fill at 60 and a flush at 90 and (cross your fingers ansd knock on wood) not even a hint of problem. As we've gone over in laborious and painstaking detail on this forum only a relatively small percentage of 99/00 tranny fail at all but most of those reported here are 99/00 with less than 100k. In fact many have failed even though the owners did some kind of trans fluid replacement so we cant even pinpoint that as the cause. The only thing we DO know is that after 00 we have far fewer reported failures.

This whole thread is getting to be a bit crazy...but.

There is no indication whatsoever, nor any evidence that suggests, that the condition of the ATF is playing a part in the premature failures of the 99/00 transaxles. The failures, seemingly, is the result of extraordinary wear rates of the clutches frictional surface due to the new shift schedule adopted with inital RX production.

For '01/03, on the otherhand, the obvious overheating and burning of the ATF can and will lead to premature transaxle failures in those model years.

For the 99/00 model years the downshift immediately following an upshift due to a full lift-throttle event could not be completed prior to the engine beginning to build additional torque for acceleration. Pretty much the same as would happen with a stick shift if you allowed the engine RPM to rise substantially before beginning to release the clutch after each downshift.

It is my firm belief that Toyota overcame the problems with the 99/00 RX in the 01/03 models by substantially increasing the displacement of the gear type oil pump. The downshifted clutches would not have enough pressure/flow to quickly and firmly seat.

But.

The larger displacement ATF oil pump resulted in TOO much pressure/flow at high engine RPMs when no shifting action was required.

The result...?

ATF being burning and its formulation compromised due to overheating.

And we all know the next corrective measure, the '04 and after models have a DBW throttle to protect the drive train by delaying the onset of engine torque until those clutches can be seated.

[RXHound]

This whole thread is getting to be a bit crazy...but.

. . .

It is my firm belief that Toyota overcame the problems with the 99/00 RX in the 01/03 models by substantially increasing the displacement of the gear type oil pump. The downshifted clutches would not have enough pressure/flow to quickly and firmly seat.

But.

The larger displacement ATF oil pump resulted in TOO much pressure/flow at high engine RPMs when no shifting action was required.

The result...?

ATF being burning and its formulation compromised due to overheating.

And we all know the next corrective measure, the '04 and after models have a DBW throttle to protect the drive train by delaying the onset of engine torque until those clutches can be seated.

WW, In trying to drive to protect this '03 transmission then, can I infer from your last sentence that if I kind of drive more slowly with a more steady throttle rather than rapid jump accelerating that the clutches will seat better with less torque applied by the engine - and maybe last longer?

[TunedRX300]

I haven't had a tranny failure because I've had mine flushed every 15k. A 1999 and 2000 with 110,000 miles. That sort of eliminates your theory concerning the year models being the cause.

Well the theory was thet the 99/00 models have the problem and they're the vast majority to fail. I too have a 2000 AWD RX that I've only had a drain and fill at 60 and a flush at 90 and (cross your fingers ansd knock on wood) not even a hint of problem. As we've gone over in laborious and painstaking detail on this forum only a relatively small percentage of 99/00 tranny fail at all but most of those reported here are 99/00 with less than 100k. In fact many have failed even though the owners did some kind of trans fluid replacement so we cant even pinpoint that as the cause. The only thing we DO know is that after 00 we have far fewer reported failures.

Newer models on average pile fewer # of miles on the tranny. I think people focus on ATF because that is one of two items owners can service, DIY or perform at the dealer. Fresh ATF helps to prolong tranny life, but it is not likely the root cause of the failure, just one of symptoms.

[wwest]

This whole thread is getting to be a bit crazy...but.

. . .

It is my firm belief that Toyota overcame the problems with the 99/00 RX in the 01/03 models by substantially increasing the displacement of the gear type oil pump. The downshifted clutches would not have enough pressure/flow to quickly and firmly seat.

But.

The larger displacement ATF oil pump resulted in TOO much pressure/flow at high engine RPMs when no shifting action was required.

The result...?

ATF being burning and its formulation compromised due to overheating.

And we all know the next corrective measure, the '04 and after models have a DBW throttle to protect the drive train by delaying the onset of engine torque until those clutches can be seated.

WW, In trying to drive to protect this '03 transmission then, can I infer from your last sentence that if I kind of drive more slowly with a more steady throttle rather than rapid jump accelerating that the clutches will seat better with less torque applied by the engine - and maybe last longer?

The only suggestion I would be willing to make for the 01/03 series is to check your ATF on a regular basis, say at every oil change, and change it out when it get to looking and smelling burnt. I don't know if any of these models are suffering premature failures but if that ATF isn't changed out...

For the 99/00 models a light touch on the gas pedal for an initial acceleration period after a brief period of coastdown would undoubtedly extend the life of those clutches.

[RXHound]

WW, thanks, interesting thread, wish I knew more about these things.

[jllowery]

Hey Everyone:

I've heard a lot of anecdotal evidence of transmission failures; has anyone calculated the numbers of these rx300 tranny failures? I suspect there is fertile ground for a class action here. I know a lawyer who is interested in pursuing this.

John Lowery

jllowery@aol.com

Nashville, TN