I know we have discussed the problem at length, has anyone found a solution for the "notchy" shifting from 1st to 2nd, and from 2nd to 3rd in a manual xb?

Mine is currently at the dealership for this problem and they don't seem to really be solving anything. The tech said the shifting bits (cables, trans, synchros, shifter (quickshifter in my case)) all appear to be in proper working order, so that isn't the problem.

It is possible that the trans is just a bum design and the problem cannot be solved? If so, I think those of us with problems have a legitimate beef with Toyota.

Let me know what solutions you have found, or actions you have taken to fix this problem.[/u]

Yeah, I think it's the actual transmission that's the problem. I'm in the process of putting new shifter bushings (waiting for my refabricated bushings) and it's either the angle the cables are moving the arms or something in the transmission. I lubed the regular shifter bushings with some Triflow and it smoothened it out a little...I got poly urethane and aluminum bushings coming in...so I'll come back with the differences.

I have Manabu Morisaka's email address...He's one of Toyota's Executive Head Engineers. He's in charge of a lot of Toyota cars, especially the NCP chassis...maybe I'll throw him an email... :lol:

Keep us posted... can't wait to hear, hopefully it will make a difference!

Being that this was my first stick car I've driven...I just thought thats how it was supposed to be until I got in my friends '04 civic the other night and marveled at how smooth the shift was....the 1-2 shift can be quite difficult sometimes and the 2-3 shift I've missed a couple times because of this...please keep us in the loop as to what the dealership finds....

~wC

For those of us coming from Hondas the shifter feel of a Toyota is crap. I've gotten used to it. It got better as the tranny got broken in. I'm waiting for someone to figure out something that would be a good fix. I drove a 5spd tC and their shifter feels way better, but their clutch feels crappier.

well coming from a line of driving 5% crappy work trucks, i like the feel of the scion shifts very crisp i shift at around 3k untill i lay my foot into it then i shift around 4k-4200 rpms godda shift at the peak torque when i lay my foot on it i like third gear alot lol

My biggest shifting issue was dropping from 3 into 2, if I pull too far to the left it's really rough moving through the notches. I've learned not to pull so much towards me and it works better, but not as well as previous manuals. Perhaps less side to side pushing when you shift could help?

So I spoke to the service manager at my local dealer. The District Service manager for Toyota and Scion was in the area and my service manager had him drive my car to see if he thought the shifting was a problem or not. This guy has driven quite a few Scions around the area and should be considered an expert in how they perform and react. He said that the transmission for the xb manuals "are a little notchy" and it can be considered "characteristic of the vehicle". Furthermore, a quickshifter installed would cause the notchiness to be more pronounced. He did not feel that there was anything wrong with the transmission.

At this point, the dealer had already gone through the whole thing and remeasured and relubricated all the working elements they could, to make sure it was as factory spec as possible. When I got back in the car, I did feel it to be a little smoother, but only a very small amount smoother. I then readjusted my shift knob to make the length of the gear stick as long as possible. That also made it smoother, but again, only in a very small way. As far as I am concerned, the problem is still there.

I plan to take it to another dealer in the area, but don't expect the results to be any different.

I might also get the service manuals and see if they can shed any light on the subject. I just don't think this is the way it should be, especially considering how easy it is to shift every other car out there. It makes sense to me, being as its just glorified bicycle cables, that there is some amount of play in the system that we can use to adjust it all.

What do you folks think? Had any luck with your own efforts?

According to TIS there is no adjustment for the shifter cables at all.

THe shift is precise, however it does not like to be rushed. In my xA, 2-3 is no problem, but 1-2 is problematic. It does not like to be hurried, no matter how hard I try to force it. It has resulted in me grinding the gear on occasion, and a couple of missed shifts, but that's only when I shift at full speed. Occasionally N-1 can be slow, as well as N-R(helps to have the E-brake off and the car rolling a little before shifting). But otherwise normal shifting seems to be fine 99% of the time.

THe shift is precise, however it does not like to be rushed. In my xA, 2-3 is no problem, but 1-2 is problematic. It does not like to be hurried, no matter how hard I try to force it. It has resulted in me grinding the gear on occasion, and a couple of missed shifts, but that's only when I shift at full speed. Occasionally N-1 can be slow, as well as N-R(helps to have the E-brake off and the car rolling a little before shifting). But otherwise normal shifting seems to be fine 99% of the time.

Exactly the same for me, 1-2 is the issue. On most cars 1 is harder to get into, but the others should be easy. The xA/xB has a very notchy shifter. Not the best but also not the worst.

btw, swapping out the stock shift knob for a lighter aftermarket one only makes that first-to-second shift harder.

I've been driving standards since the mid 80's - Ford, Honda, Subaru varieties - and I find the 1-2 in my xB is slightly less smooth - perhaps notchy - but not slow. It took some getting used to, but I can now shift pretty smoothly from 1-2. I don't notice any problem anymore. Maybe I just got lucky with my particular xB. Or maybe it's getting better with more miles (I'm up to about 2300). Also - It's a 2005 - don't think there's any diff between 2004 and 2005 in terms of transmission (or anything else!). I'm easy on manual transmissions - put 140,000 on a car without having any transmission problems - original clutch and all. Matter of fact, the only car I did have transmission problems with was the Honda! But I had bought it used, with 80,000 on it then. I blame the previous owner.

I test drove a 2004 xB that had a very messed up transmission - wouldn't allow you to put it into any gear - well, at first it did, but about a mile from the dealer, it became finicky - it would take 5th or neutral, but that was it. It was fun getting back to the dealer. That puppy went straight into the dealer's garage. Hope they didn't sell it without an overhaul.

I'm gonna take mine to the local dealer also, as any time I try and shift through the gears quickly, 1-2 grinds the gears and makes me want to scream... Every other gear is perfectly fine... I have to say, if I had one complaint about this car, it would be the ____ty transmission...

Also, I'll start another thread about this - but shifting from 3rd to 2nd causes MAJOR grinding EVERY SINGLE TIME unless I CRAWL into 2nd (take about 15 seconds to shift down to 2nd)... Anyone else have this problem? I didn't when I first got the car, but now, it's ALL the time...

what RPM are you at when you're downshifting?

I've never had a problem going from 1st to second until today...but it might be from the poly urethane bushings...

i dont have any problems except for shifting from 2nd to 3rd but only when racing

i tried a funny solution. to make it hard on your gear fill your car up with your buddies 5+you=total 6
2 in front and 4 in rear
and take them a normal nice ride
it might work

double clutching on shifts helps out, especially on downshifting. It shouldn't be necessary with syncros, but it helps. With practice, it's almost as fast as clutch in/shift/clutch out. On downshifting, flip the throttle when in N to get the gears spinning close to the same speed.

Up-shift pattern:
-clutch in
-shift 1-N
-clutch out
-clutch in
-shift N-2
-clutch out

Down-shift pattern:
-clutch in
-shift 2-N
-clutch out
-rev engine
-clutch in
-shift N-1
-clutch out

Of course you could just not use the clutch for an even smoother shift (if you know what you're doing). 1-N-2, no clutch.

im driving a 2005 xA 5 spd which the shifting is: 1) notchy 2) crappy 3) ____ty 4) annoying ... and yea the notchiness became more pronounced after i put in the short throw, but i guess its just something i'm going to have to deal with :?

i've read on some other boards where they would change the tranny oil to help with their shifting problems. For ex, the nissan ser specv had a crappy shift, but when filled with MT-90 tranny fluid, shifts were improved. the wrx had problems with its synchos and when the normal tranny fluid was paired with some kind of synchromesh solution, the crunch slowly went away. there is more to research about this, but maybe some can try putting in a higher quality tran fluid to help with shift feel? just a suggestion, i don:t know much about the scions...yet...

Okay, just wondering... when you grinding gears you mean the obvious "grinding" sound, because i've only had that happen when i thought 2nd was engaged and came up off the clutch (only has happened a couple times, nothing bad). But more frequently on 1 -> 2, 2 -> 3 i get a sort of thump which i'm assuming is the clutch -- which happens when i shift more aggressively (it doesn't cause the car to lurch or shimmy, it moves along smoothly still). Is this normal or should i go easier on it? Sorry don't know to much about the inner workings of the tranny...

try a heavier shiftknob. i hear those things do wonders.

It sounds like there a many reasons to cause this..My XB is notchy I agree. Here is how I would solve 99% of the problems
1) Use Amsoil or Redline- better lubrication means smoother shifting. I did this on my Eclipse GSX(the mother of notchiness) it worked wonders..also less rolling resistance will help mpg's
2) make sure to keep up your rpms when you shift up and down..if your rpms are high enough you can skip the clutch sometimes
3) Double clutch as described earlier this prevents tons of mis shifts
4) Go to 1st gear then reverse when backing up
5)Reverse item 4
I hope these tips help

thanks for the tips is there a specific time to change tranny oil or can it be done at any time?

i've got the rs-type short throw and have no probs whatsoever. i would reccommend that anyone with a shifting problem look into this shifter set-up

my 94 metro shifts nice and smooth compared to my xB.

thanks for the tips is there a specific time to change tranny oil or can it be done at any time?
Any time sooner the better as it will reduce wear.

thanks for the tips is there a specific time to change tranny oil or can it be done at any time?
Any time sooner the better as it will reduce wear.

okay maybe a dumb question and probably in the manual, but where is the tranny oil located? im interested in changing mine to see if it will shift better. :oops: :roll: :wink: