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Auto Gearbox Problem - Help !


CycleSi
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Hi,

l'm a newbie so bear with me. My wife has a very nice 2002 RAV4 2.0 petrol with auto gearbox (done 52k miles).

On Friday she mentioned it wasn't changing smoothly so yesterday l drove it and sure enough something is wrong.

The symptoms/details are:

1) Not changing smoothly particularly from 1st to 2nd. Doesn't actually change up sometimes - it hangs onto the revs.

2) lt jolts a little bit when it does change - especially from 2nd to 3rd.

3) There is no oil leak at all and the ATF is red and at the correct level.

4) There are no fault codes present. The diagnostic equipment shows everything is fine and working correctly - a mate works at an independent garage.

5) lt is worse when trying to pull away uphill (under load)- it shudders and 'bangs' a little, but only sometimes.

6) lt is an intermittent fault which suggests to me the gearbox itself is OK.

7) lt seems like it is the gear selector or the 'brain' which tells it which gear to be in - i.e. an electrical issue.

l did a search on the internet and people have mentioned ECU's or wiring on top of the gearbox being rubbed away.

Have you got any ideas/suggestions. lf we can't diagnose it, l can't get it fixed. ls my only option to go to a Toyota dealer?

Thanks in anticipation.....

Simon

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my first guess, and it is a guess, is what you say - an ecu/wiring fault. I'd try an auto trans specialist first or a Jap tuning shop.

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my first guess, and it is a guess, is what you say - an ecu/wiring fault. I'd try an auto trans specialist first or a Jap tuning shop.

Just waiting to find out how much a new 'upgraded' ECU is from Toyota.

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Don't forget that place in the US that Bitman mentioned. They apparently cured a very similar problem just recently for another owner.

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Don't forget that place in the US that Bitman mentioned. They apparently cured a very similar problem just recently for another owner.

l'm always a bit wary of these U.S. companies as l've heard good and bad. At least, if l get a genuine Toyota supplied part l've got peace of mind?

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Don't forget that place in the US that Bitman mentioned. They apparently cured a very similar problem just recently for another owner.

l'm always a bit wary of these U.S. companies as l've heard good and bad. At least, if l get a genuine Toyota supplied part l've got peace of mind?

Absolutely. Just sit down first - the guy who determins the margins for Toyota ECUs has got a nasty dose of financial touretts.

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Don't forget that place in the US that Bitman mentioned. They apparently cured a very similar problem just recently for another owner.

l'm always a bit wary of these U.S. companies as l've heard good and bad. At least, if l get a genuine Toyota supplied part l've got peace of mind?

Absolutely. Just sit down first - the guy who determins the margins for Toyota ECUs has got a nasty dose of financial touretts.

l should find out tomorrow if it is going to be open wallet surgery or not.

Fingers crossed.

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Don't forget that place in the US that Bitman mentioned. They apparently cured a very similar problem just recently for another owner.

l'm always a bit wary of these U.S. companies as l've heard good and bad. At least, if l get a genuine Toyota supplied part l've got peace of mind?

Absolutely. Just sit down first - the guy who determins the margins for Toyota ECUs has got a nasty dose of financial touretts.

l should find out tomorrow if it is going to be open wallet surgery or not.

Fingers crossed.

So, the new ECU is fitted and it is all fixed - smooth gear changes and everything as it should be - an excellent result.

The only slight problem is where we had to disconnect the Battery and then go through the ECU key initialisation sequence it has now left the small red immobiliser light flashing on & off constantly even when driving.

l guess we have done something wrong as there are no fault codes coming up in the immobiliser section of the diagnostic equipment.

Can anyone tell me what we may have done wrong or if there is another way of resetting the immobiliser?

BTW, when the ignition is off and the doors are locked with the remote the small red light is on constantly.

Thanks in anticipation.....

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Try the re-sync first. Stand outside the vehicle with the doors locked and press both fob buttons until the indicators answer back. Dave H says it can take up to 12 seconds with both buttons pressed so be patient! If it fails and you had it done at Toyota get them to sort it out.

Dare we ask hop much?

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Try the re-sync first. Stand outside the vehicle with the doors locked and press both fob buttons until the indicators answer back. Dave H says it can take up to 12 seconds with both buttons pressed so be patient! If it fails and you had it done at Toyota get them to sort it out.

Dare we ask hop much?

OK - l'll try that and hope it works.

l fitted it with a mate who is a mechanic - he got hold of the proper key initialisation sequence so we followed that. It obviously worked as the car starts and runs fine now. lt's just the immobiliser that isn't quite right.

The ECU with 4 litres of Toyota ATF oil cost £750.

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Thats a lot better than I expected!

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Try the re-sync first. Stand outside the vehicle with the doors locked and press both fob buttons until the indicators answer back. Dave H says it can take up to 12 seconds with both buttons pressed so be patient! If it fails and you had it done at Toyota get them to sort it out.

l tried it, but it hasn't worked.

The red light flashes when the car is locked - that is what l would expect.

However, when the key is in the ignition and the engine is running the red light still flashes but in an irregular pattern/sequence?

Everything seems to be working ok except the red light flashes whilst driving and at night it is noticeable and slightly off putting.

Any ideas?

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Not much more than dosconnect the Battery for a minute or two and see if it resets itself.

Immobilisers and alarms are a nightmare.

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Not much more than dosconnect the battery for a minute or two and see if it resets itself.

Immobilisers and alarms are a nightmare.

.....and also the Battery keeps going flat so I assume the two are linked?

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