Gen 4 Automatic Transmission replacement

[kocho]

Time to replace my broken auto tranny on my '00 LE i4. I have the service manuals and the Haynes manual and I can see pretty clearly what I need to do.

But, if you have done this procedure yourself, please share your experience. I'll appreciate it!

Specifically, if you know of any shortcuts or hints on making sure all is done right.

I already got a used tranny at 19K miles from a '01 CE that should be in good shape.

Off to the garage... Keep the advice coming, if you've done this yourself

[Eye8Pussies]

the only advice that I can give is that's pretty easy to pull out the top

for a direct swap- in and out in one day for sure

[Tom 2000]

While you're at it, I would add a transmission cooler.

[xtremeskier97]

Originally Posted by Tom 2000

While you're at it, I would add a transmission cooler.

Do you know of anyone who has done this? Any pics?

[T.L.C.]

http://www2.partstrain.com/v5/produc...ion+oil+cooler

Hope this helps did a very quick search

[kocho]

Originally Posted by Eye8Pussies

the only advice that I can give is that's pretty easy to pull out the top

for a direct swap- in and out in one day for sure

That's interesting. Both manuals I have describe a pretty lenghty procedure, which involves removing the subframe, exhaust, engine mounts, and also losening both knuckles on the wheels (to disconnect the driveshafts from the differential) as well as hang the power steering loose for wiggle room.

If what you say is correct and it can be done from the top, then it may be actually a little easier to do. I see there *may* be clearance enough to do it from the top. Would doing it from the top mean I only need to disconnect the driveshafts, the tranny mount (and of course remove the battery, air filter and may be a hose or two in that area)?

Let me know your thougths. Thanks!

=====================

On a separate note, I did one last try to see if my tranny is not shot but just something small and here are my findings:
- after dropping the valve cover I found theat it is very clean on the inside with only minute amounts of metal shavings (dust really, not large particles) on the magnets. Virtually no sludge either.
- removed the strainer filter and that was clean too

Basically, the inside is very clean and does not look like poor quality fluid had contributed to my trouble (no sludge) and it does not look like anything big had worn out either (no shavings).

I tested the two solenoids and they measured about 12 ohms each, which means they are good.

I tried to adjust the Park/Neutral Position Switch and that seems to be in order as well.

Now that the car is lifted and without wheels, I can feel the one time "knock" when alternating switching into gear in forward and reverse (the knock is normal, just easier to feel when there are no wheels and the car is up). The difference is that in forward gears, if I press the gas (foot on the brake!) I can feel the engine struggle to turn the wheels. When I do the same in reverse, after the initial "knock", there is no additional torque available - the engine just revs up with no effort at all...

So the question - is there anything else easily accessible that I can check before I give-up on my beloved transmission and try to remove it and replace it with a younger one?

[Dave's]

Haven't done it on a Camry but I've helped twice and we pulled engine and trans as a unit, swapped parts, and reinstalled. (About 8 hours and back on the road.)

[xtremeskier97]

Originally Posted by Dave's

Haven't done it on a Camry but I've helped twice and we pulled engine and trans as a unit, swapped parts, and reinstalled. (About 8 hours and back on the road.)

That will cause you to have to recover the refrigerant and re-charge when complete, wont it?

[kocho]

Originally Posted by kocho

Time to replace my broken auto tranny on my '00 LE i4. I have the service manuals and the Haynes manual and I can see pretty clearly what I need to do.

But, if you have done this procedure yourself, please share your experience. I'll appreciate it!

Specifically, if you know of any shortcuts or hints on making sure all is done right.

I already got a used tranny at 19K miles from a '01 CE that should be in good shape.

Off to the garage... Keep the advice coming, if you've done this yourself

OK - I gathered the courage and necessary tools and started to work my way to remove the transmission off my '00 Camry. Watch this thread for more info as I progress.

I am taking photos as I go and will be posting them some time later. Knock on wood, so far so good. I worked my way thru the first few steps of the process and is now time to move under the car to remove the exhaust and front sub-frame. My transmission jack adapter should be coming in the mail tomorrow, hopefully in time to help me with the corresponding steps of removing the transmission.

First impressions - the steps in the Toyota service manual (downloaded from this site's link) are pretty accurate but, as expected, ommit a lot of details on *how* to do things. Also, I found that some steps really would be better performed in a different orded for "DIY" purposes - for instance, it is much better to drain the transaxle and differential fluids the night before so that they do not drip all over you while doing other stuff under the car. Or that plastic engine shields should be removed before unhooking the transmission fluid lines to spare them from getting all oily... Small things like this, nothing that would stop the job from being done, so far.

[greggf]

I hope you have better luck with the transmission jack adapter than I did. I just finished doing my clutch and found that the adapter is very tall - couldn't even get it under the transmission. Of course if you jack the car up really high it shouldn't be a problem. Just do the math before assuming it will work; jack height at lowest point + adapter height + tranmission = space needed. Good luck!

[kocho]

Originally Posted by greggf

I hope you have better luck with the transmission jack adapter than I did. I just finished doing my clutch and found that the adapter is very tall - couldn't even get it under the transmission. Of course if you jack the car up really high it shouldn't be a problem. Just do the math before assuming it will work; jack height at lowest point + adapter height + tranmission = space needed. Good luck!

So how did you do it? I thought about that and I'm still not sure if it is going to fit or not. The transmission itself will fit but not sure when it is on the jack. I figured, I may need to lower it as much as I can, then roll it off the jack onto the floor and drag it out it nothing else works... But I have to measure once I have the jack and adapter in my hands it it will fit with the car raised as it is on normal jack stands. If not, I'll have to either raise the car somehow a little more (may be put some planks under the jack stands) or approach from above - hang the tranny from above and lower it down somehow and then drag it out from under the car.

Anyhow, I'm one step closer today - could not take out the front exhaust pipe as the bolts and nuts are "welded" with rust together b/w the front pipe and the back pipe. Tried monkey wrenches, propane torch, liquid wrench, the hammer - nothing worked. It was not too difficult however to remove the entire exhaust (front pipe, back pipe and mufler) as one piece, so that thing is out of the way now. Will give me a workout to put it back up when the time comes though - not light at all for holding with one hand and attaching it with the other while barely fitting under the car on my back...

Tomorrow - will have to wrestle with the driveshafts, which appear to require quite a bit of torque to losen-up. That and the front sub-frame may get me tired and I hope they come off without too much trouble. The rest seems easy enough...

[marc780]

cant wait to see this post kocho - i noticed you dropped the idea of pulling it out the top, how come?
By the way whats all this stuff costing you? And where did you get the trans, remanuf or new, and how much?

[greggf]

Okay here's the thing...I was originally planning to remove the trans. by using the factory service manual approach (drop the sub frame, etc., etc., etc.). Then a very helpful forum member (bronzemaxell) told me that there is enough room to separate the engine from the transaxle and just move it aside to do the clutch work. He was right. Soooo, I never did have to take the transaxle out. It does not seem possible to remove the trans. from the bottom without removing the sub-frame. Since you will need to use an engine support beam to do this, I recommend using the support beam to also hold the trans. (using 2 chains or 2 cables) while you unbolt it (start at the bottom for safety please). You can use the floor jack for extra support and to help lower it. Another tip; if your model has a passenger side axle that passes through the rear engine mount - leave it. The bearing gets frozen in place. I had good luck just moving the trans. away from the engine and the axle comes right out (again thanks for this tip bronzemaxell).

I'm working on a detailed write-up of the clutch job with some pictures.

[kocho]

Originally Posted by marc780

cant wait to see this post kocho - i noticed you dropped the idea of pulling it out the top, how come?
By the way whats all this stuff costing you? And where did you get the trans, remanuf or new, and how much?

Well, I think it is less work to do it from the bottom for me. May be similar, but I guess I'd rather not have to disconnect more of the engine than I need to...

I got a used transmission and differential assembly from a junk yard locally. $375 + tax off a '01 Camry at supposedly 19K miles. Looking at the fluid condition and the very minimal amount of metal particles in its pan it very well may be in great shape - only the big round torque converter outside is a little rusty from sitting in their warehouse, but I think I can use mine I suppose if it looks any better - it is not a part that looks like it gets any wear so it should not matter if I reuse mine.

If it works, it should be good for some time to go. I need to return to them the "core" to keep my warranty on the "new" transmission, but as it is going I think I will be beyond the 30 days to do so. Plus, if I get it fixed, I can probably sell it for what I paid for mine and off-set the cost a little. I also had to buy some small items that need to be replaced as I go that cost another $20 or so (pan gasket, driveshaft snap ring, exhaust bolts etc.), plus enough oil for a fill-up and then another drain and refill.

I also had to buy the engine hoist and transmission jack adapter and a suitable floor jack, so that's another $200 or so after rebates, but I will probably sell these for not much less, once I'm done if I decide I won't need them any more. I would be lucky if I can do all this for about $500 when all is said and done, but right now I am about $750 out of pocket and the car is still not ready

I will probably drop the engine oil pan while I'm under the car and clean that - it looks I have a small leak there anyway and have not done it yet for 120K miles so I hope it will help for the next 120K

I might put a tranny cooler too, since all is drained and disconnected right now.

[kocho]

Originally Posted by greggf

Okay here's the thing...I was originally planning to remove the trans. by using the factory service manual approach (drop the sub frame, etc., etc., etc.). Then a very helpful forum member (bronzemaxell) told me that there is enough room to separate the engine from the transaxle and just move it aside to do the clutch work. He was right. Soooo, I never did have to take the transaxle out. It does not seem possible to remove the trans. from the bottom without removing the sub-frame. Since you will need to use an engine support beam to do this, I recommend using the support beam to also hold the trans. (using 2 chains or 2 cables) while you unbolt it (start at the bottom for safety please). You can use the floor jack for extra support and to help lower it. Another tip; if your model has a passenger side axle that passes through the rear engine mount - leave it. The bearing gets frozen in place. I had good luck just moving the trans. away from the engine and the axle comes right out (again thanks for this tip bronzemaxell).

I'm working on a detailed write-up of the clutch job with some pictures.

Good advice! I was thinking to try to avoid removing the passenger side driveshaft - it has a mount in the middle. Hope to to just swing the tranny to the left enough so that I do not have to remove the passenger side drive shaft but pull the transmission away from it. It should work as my jack has whells and should be able to move the tranny enough to the opposite side.

Unfortunately, I need to take the entire transmission out, so the sub-frame must go. Looks like a lot of work, but the car is in good condition and I hope it won't give me too much trouble with stuck bolts and nuts. If I can only get past that driver side driveshaft nut - I have to buy a deeper 30mm socket and a longer break bar as my current set is too shallow and stepping on top of it was not enough to remove it.

As I write this, I think I need to check my options again. If I can separate the transmission from the engine and the passenger side shaft (driver side shaft already removed), but not remove the sub-frame (will keep supporting the tranny from below with the jack) and instead of dropping it down, pull it up with the hoist. I need to check, but I think there may not be enough clearance due to the welded piece of the cruise control support bracket... If that works though it will save me a lot of time. I suspect it won't work, but I'll take a look before proceeding further.

I'm also thinking of skipping the step of disconnecting the ball-joit and just swing the thing aside. Will see if that works or not.

Another thought was to replace the front sway bar bushings while I am under there - might do that once I have had a chance to look at the old ones.