Just got a new 2006 XA and drove it for 1k miles and the transmission started to grind like hell when down shifting from 2nd gear into 1st. This happens when speeds are 15/20 mph. It seems to me like something has happened to the synco on first gear.
I've got into a BIG hassle with the dealer service department. They say all Toyota are like this. I say BS.

Has anyone else had these kind of problems with the transmission?

 

Yikes, you really shouldn't be downshifting into 1st at 20mph. Most transmissions, toyota or not, aren't generally happy to do that.

 

I've got 4 other cars with manual transmissions 2 porsches and a S2000 and miata, no problems with any of them and have also driven a new XB without this problem.

 

Be sure to mention that when you take it in for repair.

 

Ouch. Poor car... poor transmission. You're going to wear the transmission to dust.

 

Maybe you thought downshifting was the proper way to slow the car down. But downshifting for braking spared your cheap brake pads a little wear at terrible cost to the transmission. Over a period of 1000 miles that practice has worn down one or more synchronizers. When your tramission oil is drained, it might be golden with the brass powder of the synchronizers.

1st gear is about redlined at 20 mph, not good to downshift from 20 back into 1st. It is better to downshift to a lower gear when you are near its driving speed and want to use that gear for more power in driving, not for braking.

 

Some have. Seems to be people who downshift for braking or upshift quickly.
Do a search for "grinding" in xA/xB Drivetrain & Power.

 

don't downshift from second to first. it's unneccessary and severly limits your clutch life and your transmission life too apparently , lol.

 

and? the scion trans arent as hardcore as an s2k trans , porsche trans , or what have you. the xb seemed fine cause you probably didnt drive it for any extended period of time at all.

 

Dang, you're rough on your tranny. You can tell by feel if the you're trying to downshift at too high a speed. To maintain any significant life-span of the synchro, you almost need to be stopped to shift into 1st. Your car, your choice.

 

i can shift into first at 5mph...

 

apparently he/she wants to ruin their car and then fraudulently try to get it warranteed. good luck with that.

learn how to drive correctly OR learn to live with and pay for out of your own pocket for repairs.

you are driving a cheap econocrap car , WAY TOO HARD!

 

The car will not even go into 1st gear at over 15mph without grinding the gears. I'm not releasing the clutch to slow the speed down i'm just rolling into a stop, and what would the correct way to drive it be.
I think you hit the nail on the head with that econocrap car comment.

 

Are you saying that you are trying to get into 1st and not let the clutch out? Well, that is still a problem. The tranny is being driven from the output side when the clutch is disengaged. The synchro issue is still there. The output side is spinning too fast for a 1st gear engagement at 15 mph. Well not without some significant synchro wear.

 

why would you shift into first gear while rolling to a stop? there is no reason to do that?

lemme guess you hold the clutch in the entire time you're sitting at a stoplight too right?

there is no point for shifting into first unless you are about to take off from a stop or very very low speeds aka under 5 mph.......

you're being hardheadded in your wanting to shift into first and in doing so you are ruining a car that isn't built with top of the line 1000 dollar carbon fiber synchro's
you will have many many expensive transmission problems in all of your vehicles if you always drive like this......

 

a troll are ya? i don't believe you even own an xa , or the porsche's . maybe you own an s2k. you seem to have the honduh owner attitude pegged.

 

It sounds like for 1,000 miles you have been downshifting when you approach a stop, a practice which includes downshifting into 1st gear at 15 mph and then holding the clutch in as you roll to the stop. Perhaps you also remain in 1st gear and hold the clutch in while you are stopped.

These habits are very hard on the synchros and clutch throwout bearing. You ask the correct way to drive. Correct is a value judgement, and everybody likes to drive their own way. I find pleasure in driving with the least wear possible on the transmission and clutch, feeling how the car wants to be driven, and doing what it tells me. And this is what I do:

1. At stops, wait in neutral until time to drive off.
2. Upshift in a deliberate motion with a slight pause passing through the gate durng which time the rpms drop, allowing the next gear to be engaged with no resistance and no slippage of the clutch.
3. Downshift only when needing to use a lower gear to maintain or increase speed.
4. Downshift in a deliberate motion with a slight pause passing through the gate during which time touch the accelerator to raise the rpms, allowing the lower gear to be engaged with no effort and no slippage of the clutch.
5. When approaching a stop, slow down in whatever gear is being used at the time, then shift into neutral as the car stops.
6. Allow the clutch to slip only when starting off, not during upshifts or downshifts.

In 5,000 miles, I have never felt a grind upshifting or downshifting, and love the buttery feel of the transmission and clutch. In decades of stick-driving, the xB is the best city car I have ever felt.

 

vintage42 gives excellent advice. I had problems with my tranny even while driving as he has suggested here... once the transmission was replaced, the car was uber smooth (minus my 5 new problems .... see my 'fed up with xb' thread for details if you wish)... mine was not smooth when I bought it.

I think your problem is not a defect at all - you've ruined the transmission by beating on the synchros. When you were downshifting to 1st, I'd imagine you met with some resistance & forced the transmission into gear... noo way you should be doing that.

If you get scion/toyota to fix it, you'll be really lucky & should change your driving habits when you get it back... If you're driving faster than you'd walk, you should NEVER downshift into first.

Good luck though,
Robert

 

I'm not forcing the transmission into gear at all. I've been driving manual transmission cars for over 45 years and have never had any trouble at all before this. I even have a car that I've owned since new that is 32 years old (1974 914 Porsche ) was still going strong at 260k miles with the orginal pressure plate and second clutch disk.
I have even done a v8 conversion to this 260K transaxle and still using it so I don't think I' too hard on them.
Vintage 42 thanks for taking the time for the thread well written

 

you may have been driving for 45 years with a 914 , then the modded 914 and even if your transmission is not in pieces or dust it still will have vastly accellerated wear compared to someone who doesnt downshift unneccessarily and doesn't hold in the clutch while stopped.


another question. how does a stock 914 pressure plate hold all of the power that a v8 conversion puts out? not even possible. the transmission yes , the pressure plate is WAY too weak too hold that much power. a miracle if true.

cause i've never seen a pressure plate designed for oh say 60ish hp , work with over 200 probably over 300 and still do an adequate job.