2006 2.0L Petrol Xt4 Gearbox Issue

[Rav4ndy]

I have had my Rav now for nearly a year and love it.

One thing that is niggling me is when it is cold when you change from 1st into 2nd gear it seems to crunch a little, not a massive amount but it isn't as smooth a change as it is throughout the other gear changes.

Does anyone have any ideas or have had the same experience

Many thanks

Andy

[Doosan]

Hi Andy, this is a common problem, what I tend to do and it works for me, is as soon as I start to move in first gear I change in to second. I find it best to hesitate very slightly between gear shifts, if that makes sense. Some people here swear by changing the gearbox oil.

[Rav4ndy]

Superb! Thank you for your advice, I will give it a try. What i have found is if i change it to neutral slide the gear stick across once and then put it in to second, that seems to help too.

First job is the oil, once I have sourced a trusted 4x4 mechanic. My normal guy has given up and gone to work at Jaguar Land Rover.

Will keep the forum up to date

Many thanks again

Andy

[Devon Aygo]

Superb! Thank you for your advice, I will give it a try. What i have found is if i change it to neutral slide the gear stick across once and then put it in to second, that seems to help too.

First job is the oil, once I have sourced a trusted 4x4 mechanic. My normal guy has given up and gone to work at Jaguar Land Rover.

Will keep the forum up to date

Many thanks again

Andy

Make sure that a mono grade 75w oil is used as multigrade 75w90 etc will cause even more shifting issues

[Rav4ndy]

Superb! Thank you for your advice, I will give it a try. What i have found is if i change it to neutral slide the gear stick across once and then put it in to second, that seems to help too.

First job is the oil, once I have sourced a trusted 4x4 mechanic. My normal guy has given up and gone to work at Jaguar Land Rover.

Will keep the forum up to date

Many thanks again

Andy

Make sure that a mono grade 75w oil is used as multigrade 75w90 etc will cause even more shifting issues

again thank you. noted that I will get the oil first and I have now decided to see if it is easy to in house, if not then mechanics here we come

[gjnorthall]

A full description of gearbox oil changing is given in the technical section. Before draining a gearbox - ensure that you can remove the filler plug!

[Rav4ndy]

Hi

Thank you for you reply, fortunately I have more than a large hammer in my tool box!

Of the top of your head, is it easy to do? 13mm ring spanner may be or am I not that lucky!

[Rav4ndy]

Right then, how to totally look a complete idiot so hear goes.

I understand that the notchy change may be down to the gearbox oil needing doing, fair enough two plugs to undo, then it mention front and rear diff oil..... well I'm out of my depth hear guys, do I need to change this as well? I understand i think that the diff have something to do with how the wheels spin at different speed going round corners hence the need for diff's it that correct? Told you I was an idiot, but if you dont ask you never learn. So how will changing the diff oil help gear changing?

I'm hoping I dont, as two bolts under a 4x4 I know nothing about is enough for me to cope with

Can anyone help please.

Many thanks

Andy

[gjnorthall]

If you read the article in the Tech Section on changing transmission oils - in addition to the gearbox, there's a diff at the rear and a diff / transfer box adjacent to the gearbox. Each has it's own oil system but at this point in time, your concern in gear change quality so it's only the gearbox oil that's involved.

[Rav4ndy]

Fantastic, you're good! Gold star on your chart at the end of the week

If you old enough to remember those things at school!

Many thanks

Andy

[gjnorthall]

It's actually quite difficult to find a monograde 75w gear oil so there isn't a lot of choice - you won't find it on the shelves of Halfords or similar. Many application charts will list 75w80 or 75w90 as alternatives but these multigrades don't suit this particular gearbox and gear change will deteriorate.

[Rav4ndy]

Thank you for your advice, there does seem to be conflicting reports on the correct oil to use as some say the monograde is the one to use, some say Castrol do a better gear change oil, I don't know whether the drips at Halford will know what is the best and will only want to sell me the most expensive one on the shelf that's in stock.

Getting hold of Monograde is difficult, do I trust eBay? Probably not, so this weekend is the time to source some

Thanks again everyone.

Also just to raise another point, flaking material underside the wheel arches, after a jet wash, cant be right either can it?

[gjnorthall]

You can buy 75W gear oil from

http://www.opieoils.co.uk/c-668-75w-mtfs-manual-transmission-fluid.aspx

(note that Fuchs race oil is unsuitable - it's not a hypoid oil)

Opie also sell on eBay. Demon Tweeks sell Castrol 75W online and on eBay.

Sections of the underside of the Rav are coated in a PVC abrasion resistant finish. Sections can come away but check that you're down to metal since layers of muck can come off with water jetting.

[Rav4ndy]

Thank you again for your reply and help.

It look like it has gone down to bare metal, which I'm disappointed about as the jet wash is only a home use job, not an industrial one.

Again I ask, is there anything I can paint /spray on the areas that have flaked off?

many thanks

Andy

[gjnorthall]

Suggest Dinitrol Stone Chip Protection S445 - comes as an aerosol. Cover CV boots and brake discs with newspaper if applying to wheel-arch areas.

[Madasafish]

http://tinyurl.com/l7h3ayf

is Castrol's offering for poor gearchanges..

[Rav4ndy]

75w90 is the oil from Castrol, but some people are advising me not to use it as it isn't monograde and or hypoid, and can lead to more gear box issues?

Not sure what is the best to use, the standard 75w, or the 75w90. !Removed! hell i dont have a clue!!

[gjnorthall]

When in doubt - follow the manufacturers specification! If you go to the technical section then scroll down to Service Data Sheets then click on the 4.3 model - the spec for the gearbox oil is SAE75. Use of a multigrade is not covered in the manufacturers spec and owners who have gone down the multigrade track have generally suffered problems.

[Devon Aygo]

Mono grade oil is just that. it does not change state due to temperature a mono grade 75 oil will always keep the same viscosity hot or cold. A multi grade oil changes its viscosity with temperature e.g a thin 75 grade when cold but a thicker 90 grade when hot. Toyota has designed their gearbox to use a mono grade.

Use of a thicker grade has been proven many times on this forum to cause noticeable gear shift issues, there are plenty of posts from people having had a gearbox oil change only to find the gear shift is badly affected and when the garage is questioned its found a common 75w 90 has been used.

The correct oil is available from your local Toyota dealer part number 08885-81001 LV 75 1lt

[gjnorthall]

The viscosity of a mono-grade oil reduces as it's temperature increases. A 75 oil will have a viscosity of 75 when cold but this will reduce to say 50 when it's up to operating temperature. Multi-grade oils have a viscosity enhancer added - so a 75W90 oil will consist of a 75 base oil together with a viscosity enhancer. When cold it will behave like a 75 oil but at operating temperature it will behave like a 90 oil. For a multigrade oil - the viscosity still drops as temperature increases - but not as dramatic as the change with a mono-grade. Before the advent of multi-grade engine oils - it was necessary to use different grades during summer and winter. Some gearbox designs require a mono-grade oil so that the viscosity drops significantly by the time the oil reaches operating temperature. A multigrade oil in these gearboxes wouldn't give the required viscosity drop so that the oil would be too viscous at operating temperature.

Some Fords, for example, are fitted with MT75 or MTX75 5-speed gearboxes. These require a 75 grade gear oil and use of a multi-grade as in many other Ford gearboxes causes a serious deterioration in gear change.

Bottom line is that manufacturers stipulate oil grades for a reason - and you'd be wise to adhere to the specification.

[Rav4ndy]

When in doubt - follow the manufacturers specification! If you go to the technical section then scroll down to Service Data Sheets then click on the 4.3 model - the spec for the gearbox oil is SAE75. Use of a multigrade is not covered in the manufacturers spec and owners who have gone down the multigrade track have generally suffered problems.

Superb, again thank you for explaining things to me, I'm happier now in what to get

[Rav4ndy]

Mono grade oil is just that. it does not change state due to temperature a mono grade 75 oil will always keep the same viscosity hot or cold. A multi grade oil changes its viscosity with temperature e.g a thin 75 grade when cold but a thicker 90 grade when hot. Toyota has designed their gearbox to use a mono grade.

Use of a thicker grade has been proven many times on this forum to cause noticeable gear shift issues, there are plenty of posts from people having had a gearbox oil change only to find the gear shift is badly affected and when the garage is questioned its found a common 75w 90 has been used.

The correct oil is available from your local Toyota dealer part number 08885-81001 LV 75 1lt

Excellent!, thank you for all your help, much appreciated

[Rav4ndy]

You can buy 75W gear oil from

http://www.opieoils.co.uk/c-668-75w-mtfs-manual-transmission-fluid.aspx

(note that Fuchs race oil is unsuitable - it's not a hypoid oil)

Opie also sell on Ebay. Demon Tweeks sell Castrol 75W online and on Ebay.

Sections of the underside of the Rav are coated in a PVC abrasion resistant finish. Sections can come away but check that you're down to metal since layers of muck can come off with water jetting.

Unfortunately I have mobility problems. I haven't been able to check properly until today. The sections that have come away look like they have gone down to bare metal, but and it is a but, the finish underneath doesn't feel like bare metal, it's does feel like a plasticky, excuse the word, finish in a light grey colour, which I assumed was metal. So it looks like it could well be just the muck and crap that has come off, as I know the previous owner never cleaned around the wheel arches. I have also found that the RAV's don't have much protecting around the rim of the arch, so I have made sure that all the muck and grim that would generally hold the damp and start to rot the arch has been removed. Another cup of tea and now the sun is shining again I'm going to double check, and get some help and the rear wheel off and see properly what is going on. It was the colour of the underneath that threw me, normally it's either a plastic inner cover or colour covered metal body spray, even a sound proof matting as in my old zafira, but I've never come across a finish like this before, having said that I've never had a Jap car before.

Knowledge is a wonderful thing isn't it eh

Guys, many thanks for all your help and assistance it has been good support, as I thought I was entering a minefield again

Kind regards

Andy