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Hatchbacks Toyota Yaris Toyota Yaris Transmission Problems
88 messages, Last post on Oct 12, 2009 at 1:03 PM
You are in the Toyota Yaris Forum. Your Host is pf_flyer
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Wait, if the Yaris owner manual tells you how to do it, then why are you worried? I doubt they would tell you how to do something that would damage the car.
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Replying to: nippononly (Nov 02, 2006 7:15 pm)
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Replying to: robertkn (Nov 02, 2006 8:25 pm) |
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With regards to the question as to whether I use my engine to downshift and slow the car the answer is: NO! I am aiming for 300-400 thousand miles on my motor and drivetrain. I will GLADLY pay for a lousy set of brake pads over reduced engine longevity. This is NOT ROCKET SCIENCE! Its simple common sense that the less strain put on your engine will extend the life of your engine. The benefits of downshifting and bringing the RPM's up over 3-5 K are what exactly? I won't put brakes on for an extra 10,000 miles? BIG DEAL! I drive this car completely differently than my performance cars. I keep my RPM's under 4K at ALL TIMES and generally run at 2.5-3.5 thousand RPM. I not only get outstanding gas mileage but I am also putting very little stain on my powerplant and drivetrain. I have owned several Porsches, Audis, M3 BMW's etc. and I certainly don't drive a performance car in this manner. The Yaris is an OUTSTANDING econobox BUT IT IS AN ECONOBOX! Downshifting a Yaris to slow the car down is IMHO not the best way to extend engine life which is my ultimate goal. If your driving a Yaris as a fun sporty car and can't afford a performance car than I certainly can understand revving the engine and downshifting at red lights etc. Its ALOT more fun to drive this way! Unfortunately it is not something that helps to extend the lifespan of the engine. As for "lifetime transmission fluid" if someone is that stupid as to not change the transmission fluid at least every 30,000 miles than God bless them when they need a new tranny. This again is simple COMMON SENSE. Would you not change your engine oil? Your transmission fluid is as important to the transmission as engine oil is to the engine!!
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Replying to: yaris46 (Nov 03, 2006 8:33 am) Well, bringing the RPM's up obviously isn't the intent of using engine braking. The intended benefit would be to slow the car down. But, I see your point now. The downshift brings up RPM's thus increasing heat and putting the stress of the car's inertia on the drivetrain rather than the rotors. Since brakes pads are cheaper than gears, why do it? Seems logical. "If your driving a Yaris as a fun sporty car and can't afford a performance car than I certainly can understand revving the engine and downshifting at red lights etc." Nah, not so much. I just sold my Volvo 240 with 214,000 miles on it and it still ran great. So, what does that tell you? (I know--hard to believe it actually ran "great," but it did. No internal engine work ever done--other than valve adjustments.) I quit using the Fram stuff a couple years ago once I learned the "truth." The average consumer just doesn't know any better, as Fram has been around for so many years. I use Baldwin oil filters which seem to be really well made. It almost instantly cleared up a tappet noise I had in my 1988 Caravan. Now, if you go to synthetic oil do you still have to drop both the oil and filter every 5k during the warranty period? I thought I once heard that with synthetics you don't need to drop the oil at every change. Thanks for the tip about formally "notifying" Toyota of the lubricant change. |
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Replying to: yaris46 (Nov 03, 2006 8:33 am) Maybe you can post your mechanic credentials online since you feel that you obviously know more than the rest of the universe. LIGHTEN UP!!!! While someone who doesn't change their transmission fluid ever is on one end of the spectrum, you are on the other end and needlessly wasting money. My mechanic who has been taking care of my vehicles for the past 14 years recommends 60,000 mile change and I trust him a lot more than I do a random poster on this message board. 
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Of course you can change transmission fluids at 60,000 miles. I suggest you perform a test on your own car. Drive 60,000 miles and then extract a cup of tranny fluid from your car using an extraction pump (20 bucks ebay) then have your transmission fluid changed and changed PROPERLY (I doubt your mechanic even flushes the system if he thinks 60K is satisfactory, he probably drops the pan and changes the filter and fluid, this leaves over 2/3 of the old fluid in the tranny) After changing the fluid PROPERLY then drive your car 30K and change the fluid. I GUARANTEE THE 60K FLUID WILL BE DARK BROWN AND HAVE A SMELL. I ALSO GUARANTEE THE 30K FLUID TO BE FRESH AND PINK WITH NO SMELL. This kinda stuff is just plain common sense. Why on earth would someone be so cheap as to only change their tranny fluid every 60K? ITS CHEAP INSURANCE TO CHANGE IT EVERY 25-30K! ALOT CHEAPER THAN REPAIRING AN AUTOMATIC TRANNY!! As for synthetic oil changes you can actually go for over 25,000 miles on some synthetics and by having your oil tested you can confirm its OK. Once again this is also simple common sense: I WILL GLADLY PAY THE EXTA MONEY FOR MOBIL 1 AND A MOBIL 1 FILTER AND CHANGE MY OIL EVERY 6,000 MILES. Does my car need a filter and oil change at 6,000 miles when using Mobil 1? Of course not but its CHEAP INSURANCE and synthetics have been proven time and again to be superior particularly during cold starts where alot of engine wear occurs. BOTTOM LINE: SPEND THE LOUSY FEW EXTRA BUCKS AND DUMP YOUR TRANNY FLUID AT LEAST EVERY 30K! USE FULL SYNTHETICS AND A MOBIL 1 FILTER! (At this time there is no other quality oil filter available for the 1.5 liter motor) If you were fortunate enough to buy a manual I suggest dumping the gear oil and replacing it with REDLINE SYNTHETIC. |
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Replying to: yaris46 (Nov 03, 2006 1:23 pm) Well MR KNOWITALL...as a matter of fact my mechanic uses a device which replaces 100% of the fluid. Funny how you like to make assumptions about the quality of his work. I would stack his knowledge of cars against yours any day of the week. ITS CHEAP INSURANCE TO CHANGE IT EVERY 25-30K! Why start at 25K miles. Why not change your schedule to every 15 thousand or maybe even drop it to 10 thousand miles. And you could buy that expensive synthetic oil and change it and your filter every 1000 miles.WHY.....BECAUSE IT'S CHEAP INSURANCE AGAINST AN AUTO REPAIR you could also attach foam rubber to the exterior of your car to avoid ding and dents from stone and car doors in parking lots. Let us not forget about acid rain...make sure to cover your car each and every night to protect the finish. WHY...BECAUSE IT'S CHEAP INSURANCE AGAINST COSTLY AUTO BODY REPAIRS AND REPAINTING BILLS. Please do tell us how you have amassed such an expansive knowledge of auto care and repair. I don't know why we didn't see sooner that all the car manufacturers and mechanics in the world are wrong and you are right.
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the freaks come out at night, huh?! My car was an '03 Toyota Matrix. Not only did the maintenance schedule for that car SPECIFICALLY SAY no routine fluid changes were recommended for the automatic transmission fluid, they actually put a sticker right on the transmission dipstick handle saying the same thing. The only exception was if you used the car for towing (that car had the very modest towing limit of 1500 pounds). So it wouldn't be stupid, it would be following the owner's manual, written by THE PEOPLE WHO DESIGNED AND BUILT THE CAR. SERIOUSLY, lighten up, your tone is fairly offensive.  edit...BTW, many modern cars are the same way. I haven't read the Yaris's owners manual so I don't know what is recommended for this model, but since other Toyotas have the same maintenance-free auto trans fluid, the Yaris may also...
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So the common wisdom in this thread is to NOT CHANGE FLUIDS EARLIER THAN SPECIFIED? Toyota SELLS CARS. They MAKE MONEY when you BUY CARS. This is routine maintenance 101. ALWAYS change fluids earlier and more often than recommended. My MX5 states oil changes at 7500 miles using dino. Do I wait 7500 miles? Thats ridiculous. I change my oil at 6K PERIOD and use only synthetic. My Porsche 911 manual specified oil changes at 15,000 miles. Do I change it as specified by Porsche? Of course not. Oil and filters are far too cheap too wait 15,000 miles between changes. Its YOUR CAR, YOUR TRANSMISSION. I can assure you of one thing. An automatic transmission that is flushed and maintained properly every 25-30K has a FAR BETTER chance of extended life and being problem free. Has anyone ever changed their own tranny fluid? Anyone ever dropped a pan on an automatic to see what happens when fluids aren't changed? I have seen clogged filters, burned and filthy transmission fluid, and failed transmissions because PEOPLE THINK THEY KNOW WHATS BEST. Another common misconception: rear end gear oils last the life of the car. Ford specifically states on my Explorer that the rear end gear oil is not to be changed for the life of the vehicle. THE QUESTION IS: WHO DETERMINES THE LIFE? FORD WHO SELLS CARS OR YOU THE OWNER? And why are there plugs in the housing that allow you to change the gear oil? So I assume that using the logic presented that the SMART THING TO DO IS NEVER CHANGE THE GEAR OIL? Even if the Explorer has 300,000 miles and a new engine for example? ITS SIMPLE COMMON SENSE, CHANGE ALL LUBRICANTS AND FLUIDS IN YOUR DRIVETRAIN ON A REGULAR BASIS AND DON'T USE COMPANY SPECS AS A GUIDE. THEY SELL CARS!! |
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