Any progress?

 

Ah yes, thanks for the reminder. So I did 2 things:

1. Cleaned out my original MAF sensor, still had the P0101 code, so i overnight shipped a new MAF sensor, and replaced it, the MAF P0101 code didnt go away yet as it's under "permanent" status, until i run through a couple of trips first for the code to go away, but it's not "CURRENT" status any longer which means the MAF issue should be cleared now. But the car wouldnt accelerate in Drive when stopped. It just revved out like it was in neutral.

2. dropped the Transmission pan, it had minor buildup on the 2 magnets on the pan, the transmission fluid i drained (2.8 quarts) was BLACK if not really dark brown, and low... BUT there weren't any metal shavings or pieces from the trans or bits in the bottom of the pan, I switched out the Transmission fuild filter, torqued the filter bolts, the pan bolts back up. Replaced about 3.1 quarts of FRESH Toyota Genuine WS ATF into the transmission dipstick and measured it out to the proper amount while the car was running and in PARK. STILL wouldnt accelerate in Drive when stopped. It just revved out like it was in neutral.

Also I noticed a noise from the car's engine bay when the car it in D, 3 or 2, it sounds normal and operated normal in Low, Neutral, Park, and Reverse. Here's a video of the noise, in this video the car is being switched from Neutral to Drive several times:


The car's status: STILL doesn't accelerate or move or crawl forward while in Drive if stopped. also wont in 2 or 3, I can get the car moving forward if if I revved it up in Low, but it would start to SLIP even in Low if i went past 5k RPMs, so i kept it below that whenever i needed to get the car moving to run a test trip around the block. ONCE the car it at speed, (above 10mph) it will accelerate in Drive normally as it should, through the gears even up to and past 5k RPMs without seemingly any slip, if i slow down it will properly downshift through the gears as well, but if i go below 10 mph and let off the gas and start to coast or stop, the car wont crawl forward or accelerate back up to speed in Drive... I searched and found this thread about a similar issue on another forum member's corolla. He said it was a bad forward sprag (forward gear, or forward one-way gear, etc). and it may be the same for me, ive reached out to him in PM's with no reply though. https://www.toyotanation.com/forum/...0-corolla-will-only-drive-reverse-tranny-axle-sensor.html?1609434=#post13650298

I'm going to take it to a transmission shop to have them verify that it is the transmission. And if it is... I'm gonna consider 2 options. Rebuild my transmission for about $2500-3000. Or my other option is to go ahead and upgrade the transmission, to Level10's "bulletproof" U341E, I spoke extensively and went back and forth with Pat Barrett himself on the specs of the transmission his shop builds... and he gave me the following information: said the U341 will be custom built for me to my application. Since i plan to turbo the car he'll build it specifically to handle a Turbo'd application to hold boost, and handle power up to 500whp & 650wtq using a high pressure valvebody, special shafts, added clutch packs to unit, a better oil pump to keep it cool, and an upgraded high stall Torque Converter to help with boost and possibly other proprietary methods he uses in his custom fabrication to build and hold it higher line pressure in the transmission. The Level10 upgraded bulletproof transmission option is 3,998.00 to Level10 + 650 for installation by a local transmission shop, and it will allow me peice of mind, knowing that I can safely turbo the car later and that the weakest part of my car will be able to handle it now, as long as i treat it more kindly (and not drive it like i stole it) and keep up regular transmission drain & fills every 20,000 miles using Genuine Toyota WS ATF as suggested by Pat Barrett himself. Any thoughts guys? I plan to try to document the transmission upgrade process as much as possible every step of the way if the shop lets me, for all our learning purposes.
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Here's pics I took along the way of my U341E Transmission oil filter change:

 

So a local transmission shop, told me i was right, its the forward sprag or (forward one-way gear).. and that I'd need a rebuild ($2800-$3000) or to buy a used U341E transmission and have it swapped. I DO NOT want a stock auto trans back in this car because of my future plans to Turbo the car...

-So.. I am currently in the process of having Pat Barrett @ LEVEL10 Transmssions build me a custom U341E auto trans capable of 500WHP & 650WTQ... The upgraded transmission is $3998 + $100 shipping once I send my old one back. And it is being done instead of a $2800-$3000 rebuild of my stock trans, or a used stock trans swap... because i plan to put some more power into the car and i want to be SURE my transmission can hold the power and build and keep line pressure without slipping even with 8.5+ PSI of boost.

-Trans is in preparation to eventually install the Turbokits.com 2ZR-FE Turbokit on the car.

I will be posting updates to the Transmission swap and install in my original build thread here.

 

Try to consider standard transmission instead of auto, good luck with your built :grin:

 

With the plans you have it makes sense to go with the beefier trans for not much more money.

 

Yup, i surely don't want my new U341E to fail with 225+ whp, lol. Fortunately this new one is said by Level10 to be able to take 500 whp and 650 wtq, plenty of headroom!

That noise you heard from the trans which you captured in that video is what I heard in my Corolla with a 4 speed when in Drive as well but my transmission is fine. I remember noticing it last year and getting slightly worried about it but nothing has come from it and I don't even think it makes that noise now. Sucks to hear your trans went out but how many miles did it have on it? Do you have an idea as to why it went?

I had only 80,000 miles on the car. But remember, if you read my first post, i had NEVER changed the ATF, and I would seldom drive it very hard.

Try to consider standard transmission instead of auto, good luck with your built :grin:

lol, yeah I need my car to be able to be driven by family in case of emergencies, so a manual transmission was not an option. But thanks! I hope this will be over soon.

The turbokit will take some time, because I plan to save up the cash for it before buying it (and with the turbokit maxed out with all the extras on turbokits.com, the 2ZR-FE kit will go from $2,895.00 to $6,492.99 + $150 for shipping, a little over double the price)... so yeah It'll take me a couple months to save up for that alone, I'll never put new mods on a card again, I hate debt now that I'm debt-free after paying off the car and all my previous mods. So the Turbokit wont even be purchased at LEAST until February 2020 comes... but I'm planning for all the supporting mods, catch can, trans cooler, proper DEFY gauges (W/B AFR, boost, and oil pressure) and the sensors and the custom bung fabrication to wire them up.

unfortunately, black atf is a sure sign that you need a trans rebuild...

Yeah, it was definitely burnt.

So an update, the Transmission was finished being built on Saturday (Jan 19th) (normally they have trans builds done in 3 days but mine was delayed a little), i didn't get any pics of it or the build of it from Level10 probably because of the proprietary process they used to upgrade the unit... but it should arrive at my local trans shop by next Tuesday Jan 29th.

I brought the car to the transmission shop this Monday, expecting the trans to have a 2-day shipping time as they had mentioned. But it's actually a 1 week shipping time... so I hope to have the new transmission in the shop Tuesday, I'll come by to take as many pics as i can. I'd love to take the day off work when the trans is being put in, so i can take pics and videos of it for y'all, the trans shop has no problems with me recording at all! We'll see.

So far the old trans has been out of the car and the car is up on a lift since Monday January 21st lol. I see it everyday as I pass the shop on the way home from work, lol.

More updates once the trans arrives.

 

That noise you heard from the trans which you captured in that video is what I heard in my Corolla with a 4 speed when in Drive as well but my transmission is fine. I remember noticing it last year and getting slightly worried about it but nothing has come from it and I don't even think it makes that noise now. Sucks to hear your trans went out but how many miles did it have on it? Do you have an idea as to why it went?

 

unfortunately, black atf is a sure sign that you need a trans rebuild...

 

Sorry i forgot to update you all.. here's the gist of it:

New trans came in, it was in the shell of an old trans, I didnt get to see it open, nor did i have the trans shop open it to verify the modified status of the trans, torque converter, valve body, and clutch packs, as that would be almost 1,000 just to crack it open to look... so i have to trust Level10 did their job right and this U341E now is capable of holding 500 whp and 650 wtq.. Here's some pics of the old one out of the car before i sent it back as the core (they sent me back my core charge almost instantly upon receiving it), and the new one in the car...

The new trans was a perfect model-identical swap, the car didnt seem to need to have the transmission re-learned to the car. The trans shop overfilled the trans with an extra quart of ATF to account for the higher pressure valvebody and unit, and to supply adequate lubrication to all the new clutch packs as they wear in.

How does it run? I took it back March 1, 2019 and broke it in for 1,000 miles, keeping it under 3k RPMs, under 20% throttle, and under 60MPH at all times, i didnt use cruise control, so i could vary my RPMs and speed to wear in all the gears and synchros properly. I could immediately feel it was shifting crisper and holding line pressure much better, it held RPMs more efficiently, and dare I say it even runs more efficiantly than my original trans. It takes me less % of throttle to reach my desired speed than it used to on my original trans, this thing seems to certainly be built well. Hat's off to Pat Barrett and the Level 10 Transmission team!

After the break in-period, I started counting my miles to change the ATF completely as recommended every 20-30k miles, depending on how rough i drive it, so be safe I'll be doing it every 20k (so it's due at 100k) (i may try 3 drain and fills 500 miles apart, or an actual complete fluid flush using a pump, not sure yet)... Also, after the break-in period i was able to WOT the car only AFTER the engine and trans had reached operating temperature... this is KEY to maintaining the hardware from serious wear... the first few driving minutes after a cold start must be easy-going until your engine oil and trans fluid reach full operating temp, if you wish for your parts to maintain longevity, which i intend to do, lol. But once the fluids warm up is SHIFTS extremely crisply and quickly. I keep it in D while driving, i dont play with 3,2,L anymore like i used to do when i would rev my original trans through those gears like a fool... I'm sure that kind of thrashing i used to do contributed to what killed my original trans. I also dont change the gears at all unless the car is at a complete stop and i have the brake pedal pressed in, especially when going to and from Reverse.

This trans seems to be the real deal... the only way to tell if it will handle it supposed rated built 500WHP & 650 wtq is if i build out the engine and turbokit the car, and push it past the rated 8.5psi and reach past 225whp (which is where the original stock trans would start to fail).. but for now i am going to remain stock.. as this transmission upgrade has cost me a pretty penny And I will be paying the credit card bill for it for a few months now. The turbokit and engine build has been set back at least a year from now due to this added financial burden... sorry yall!

Anyone have any questions, please feel free to ask!

 

That's very good to hear that the new built transmission is performing well. Even though it may have pushed back your turbo build, it's always better to do things the proper way and bulletproof your car for high horsepower applications instead of boosting the hell out of your car and then blowing things up right away. :thumbsup:

 

yeah, absolutely! I agree, i just gotta make sure i take care of the transmission, and it should serve me well for the life of the car, it should outlast the rest of the components on teh car, if it is truly built internally the way they say it is. And it will allow me to handle the bigger power im eventually going to be reaching for out of the turbokit once i get it.

 

Good news to close the chapter of this issue with my 2013 Corolla!
(The transmission is running perfectly in the car, no issues)

Last Friday May 31st 2019, I finished paying off my transmission credit balance! Here's the breakdown of the costs for all the issues that came up in that Month of January 2019:

*$31 New Lug Nuts (1 went missing, bought new set)
$85 8 quarts of WS ATF for new trans
$119 Alignment (PB Toyota)
*$144 New MAF Sensor (old one turned out to be fine after all, lol)
$305 Rental Car for one week 1/12 to 1/26
$1032 Transmission Installation (832 + 200 for delay) from a reputable local transmission shop
$4398 Level10 U341E Transmission (-$300 after i shipped my old trans back)
$6,114 total (before cash-back from transmission core)

I had to stick to a SERIOUS paycheck-to-paycheck budget to get this payed off so quick considering my salary is below the US poverty line lol... So the turbokits.com turbokit is only half that (just under $3000 stock).. it doesn't seem so far away anymore... but I plan to upgrade the turbokit significantly to the near $double the stock price to do it how i want, and to do it right. So this is going to take a while to save up to do it right...

edit, moved future build plans to build thread

 

my fluid is also dark (100k miles), was changed once... bet its time to re-change it! i also drive it hard , and use the L-2-3 sometimes