2008 SR180 broken 6th gear .

[acrmnsm]

Firstly my 75k  Diesel SR180 Rav 4 manual 6 speed, has recently developed this noise which I had thought was "just" a worn thrust bearing. 
In neutral there is a kind of rattle, but clutch in and it goes away. 

Anyway yesterday I was driving at 75 on the motorway in 6th gear and it just started spinning, the gear lever stayed in 6th but no drive and a spinning sound. 
Back down to 5th and its fine. 
However changing from 1-2-3 there is a spinning/graunch, and what I thought was the thrust bearing rattle in neutral has now turned into a sound like a tin can full of bolts..
The car drives in 1 to 5 fine so I drove home (70miles).

I am wondering what to do now..
Obviously gearbox needs to come out and be repaired/replaced.
But I am wondering are SR180 gearboxes reliable? I see lots on eBay for £300 ish, so it makes me think decent ones are plentiful? Is mine failing just a bit of bad luck?
If they are normally reliable, should a risk a 2nd hand one, or should I pay to get mine reconditioned?

Also, I am mildly heartbroken as I had hoped I was getting some legendary toyota reliabilty. My dads 2003 Land Cruiser has just died at 320k, only due to living near the sea and rusting out everywhere, but his engine and drivetrain were sound. 

[DerekHa]

Hi Luke,

From your intitial description my first thought is that you have a a failing clutch but then I'm no expert and just going on past experience.

Sounds rather like the clutch starting to slip which will usually be most noticable in the highest gear(s) to begin with which fits with losing drive in 6th. The sounds you describe in all other gears could well be the clutch actually starting to break up causing the tranmission to sound like a tin full of bolts.

I wouldn't be so quick to condenm the gearbox so quick. A replacement clutch will be a great deal cheaper than a replacement gearbox and a lot easier to source. The gearbox will have to come out whatever it is and I think you'll find the clutch is the cause of all your issues. Others here are more knowledgable than I so they will no doubt chip in with their thoughts.

[acrmnsm]

Derek, thanks for your reply, that gives me some hope, you could be right. 
It did not sound graunchy, it just literally dropped drive and started spinning, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. 
 

[Cyker]

It might not be the gearbox but the gear linkage cables - I have a theory my Mk2's gearbox shat itself because the shifter cables had somehow gotten out of where they were supposed to be, and were putting stress on the shift forks, which eventually caused one to shear off (That was fun, suddenly only having 1 working gear...).

So maybe get someone *competent* to check first (My dealer missed that when I asked them to investigate, and I had to give them the TSB number I found on this forum when I got the 2nd gearbox for them to fix it!) and make sure the gear cables are all adjusted properly.

[acrmnsm]

Ok thanks, what is a TSB number?

 

[acrmnsm]

Technical Service Bulletin! Got it cheers.

[Cyker]

Yup, you got it   That was specific to this as it's a known problem with the Mk2 Yaris with the 1.33 that the gearbox cables get squiffy, so Toyota produce a TSB, essentially an idiot's guide on how to fix it for their dealers.

(The problem is where the dealer doesn't know how to or can't be bothered to search for the symptoms - They were even questioning me on how I got the TSB in the first place and tried to insist I pay £150 for a diagnostic before they'd even take another look at it! I've learned paying them the diagnostic fee is just throwing away money as 9 times out of 10 they won't find a problem and just take the money.)

 

[acrmnsm]

So do you know the TSB number for the cable adjustment on my gearbox?

[Cyker]

I don't even know if there is one - The reason there was for mine is it was a common problem for that particular car, but I don't think I've heard of many people having that problem with yours.

That said, you don't need a TSB necessarily - A competent mechanic should be able to adjust the linkage cables correctly if they're off, but hopefully they'd also be able to figure out what it is if it isn't that!

 

[skidlid]

9 hours ago, acrmnsm said:

Also, I am mildly heartbroken as I had hoped I was getting some legendary toyota reliabilty.

Problem is the car is 15 years old and could have been owned by a number of people who abused it during those years. Because of that its a bit unfair seeming to blame Toyota for your failure.

[local hero]

Forgive my ageing memory, but back in 2007 didn't we have pretty much those same symptoms and if I am correct, which seems highly unlikely, it  turned out to be clutch related and on investigation was down to the  (dual mass flywheel? 🤔 Stew

[acrmnsm]

Yeah I have been researching this all day, if it is the DMF, then I think I might be wishing it was the gearbox. Ouchy.

[DerekHa]

If it turns out to be your clutch and it is infact a DMF then you could consider converting to a solid mass clutch and flywheel kit which may workout less expense. I know there are different camps on converting to a solid flywheel/cluth!

All very much depends on what the verdict is when it's been looked at by a compotent mechanic if it's not something you can tackle yourself Luke.

[acrmnsm]

I used to do all these things, I once changed a gearbox in a car park in the snow over the christmas holidays. 
But these days I prefer to pay people to solve these problems...

[acrmnsm]

Update - I have an appointment next week to get my  car looked at by a local clutch and gearbox specialist. 
They were hopeful - apparently there is an easy fix for 6th gear on this model, when I described the symptoms they said it was common. They did not elaborate but I will find out when it goes in. 
However he did say the bag of bolts in neutral did sound like clutch and/or DMF..

I will report back when I know.  I'm warming up my chequebook.

[acrmnsm]

Verdict - Gearbox recon at £1800 inc vat and fitting etc.  They seem to think clutch and DMF are fine.  Ouch. 

Edit - also they said it was quite common on my car. 

[Stivino]

Just live without 6th gear.

[acrmnsm]

6th gear splines knackered, bearings all knackered. 
All caused by DMF being locked up. 

[Dippy]

Nice to get a definitive answer on the mechanics and cost rather than leaving it as speculation, thanks for the update. 
 

“Caused by DMF being locked up “  does that mean you have to get a new DMF as well?

[acrmnsm]

On 11/21/2023 at 7:16 AM, Dippy said:

does that mean you have to get a new DMF as well?

Sadly yes, and clutch. I looked at it all and it was all in need of doing. Don't ask the cost..

 

[Dippy]

Good luck. Well done for keeping it on the road, the value in UK pre-Covid meant several seemed to scrap theirs, or at least offload them. Where I live they have a higher value so still worth repairing a bit longer. Mine has about 150k now despite the DCAT engine scares, and I’m stringing it out as long as possible before launching at full EV (let the tech and infrastructure advances continue!) I do like the car (unlike the 4.2 I couldn’t wait to sell), and it’s currently in for a leaking injector.