Rav 4 Auto - Advice Needed

[Wayne71]

Hi there

I took delivery of a brand new automatic XT4 last week.

When the car is on a minor incline facing up the slope in drive, and no pressure is applied to the brakes, it is rolling back as though it's in neutral.

My understanding was that being an automatic, it should at least hold if not tick over and move forwards. All other autos I've driven do this.

I have spoken to the dealership, and they are denying this as a fault. They claim that autos do not necessarily hold on slopes, which I find pretty unbelievable (and unnacceptable!). As I say, it is only a very minor slope. On a steep hill I would agree with them.

Does anyone out there have any advice/thoughts/experiences of an Auto RAV?

Advice greatly appreciated,

Wayne

[bothwell_buyer]

Hi there

I took delivery of a brand new automatic XT4 last week.

When the car is on a minor incline facing up the slope in drive, and no pressure is applied to the brakes, it is rolling back as though it's in neutral.

My understanding was that being an automatic, it should at least hold if not tick over and move forwards. All other autos I've driven do this.

I have spoken to the dealership, and they are denying this as a fault. They claim that autos do not necessarily hold on slopes, which I find pretty unbelievable (and unnacceptable!). As I say, it is only a very minor slope. On a steep hill I would agree with them.

Does anyone out there have any advice/thoughts/experiences of an Auto RAV?

Advice greatly appreciated,

Wayne

Hi Wayne and welcome to the house of fun!!!!

Lucky you - you'll need to post a photo of the RAV up!

I'm sure some of the experts will respond quickly - I remember when I had my auto Previa, that it didn't hold on inclines without giving it a bit of 'gas', but then it was a heavier vehicle.

Once you've got the answer, and thrown the chocks away, I'm sure you'll get addicted to the forum

best wishes

Ian

[anchorman]

When I did my auto transmission training you had to do a stall test to check out the slip in the transmission. This was done by engaging D and pressing the brake fully and then the accelerator. You were looking for the revs not to exceed about 2000RPM (do this check very briefly as the transmission will get hot).

Now Toyota recommend that it is done with a pressure gauge on the centre test port and check for a pressure of 135/150psi in forward and 256/285psi in reverse.

Now. I think you will find that there are several factors influencing your experience;

The modern thought is that too much creep can be dangerous, can reduce the life of the transmission through heat build up (some people will hold it in drive for ages when it should be shifted to neutral for longer periods) and obviously fuel consumption is improved by allowing the engine to "run light" by not working against the transmission (the ECU has to "idle up" to counteract the drag from the transmission).

As long as there is no excessive slip there is no need for concern and I think you will find they all do it. I hired a new Saturn Vue recently in the USA (SUV similar in size to a RAV) and that would not hold on a slightly inclined driveway.

Try to get used to using your HAC which I use all the time now. It allows beautifully smooth hill starts.

Cheers