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Panic & Anxiety

1559 Views 10 Replies 7 Participants Last post by  SuperchargedMR2
Happy Saturday Everyone:
First time poster, long time lurker! I have a 2015 Toyota Corolla Le Eco with 102,200 miles on it, with a CVT Transmission. I bought my Corolla from a person-to-person sale so I'm unsure of the previous maintenance for the vehicle?? I have been keeping up with tire rotations & oil changes religiously every 5,000 miles though (from previous nightmare experiences with other cars)

My question is this: I realized that I went over the 100K mark and have not had my CVT Transmission flush.? I am 1000% panicked at the idea of my Transmission failing and being stuck with an $8K repair bill. The vehicle has been having a jumpy RPM needle (2-3000 RPM between 40-60 MPH) and tonight showed a slight bit of sluggishness and no needle movement about 3 miles from home. I have not seen any warning lights, any changes in the MPG, or the full tank of gas will get you this far range.

My nearest Toyota dealership is 45 miles away, and I have an appointment for first thing on Monday (2/10) morning to get my car checked, but am so worried that I have already done the damage & my Transmission will just fail between here and Savannah.

Any advice at all is greatly appreciated, Thank you so so much!!

Melissa
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Happy Saturday Everyone:
First time poster, long time lurker! I have a 2015 Toyota Corolla Le Eco with 102,200 miles on it, with a CVT Transmission. I bought my Corolla from a person-to-person sale so I'm unsure of the previous maintenance for the vehicle?? I have been keeping up with tire rotations & oil changes religiously every 5,000 miles though (from previous nightmare experiences with other cars)

My question is this: I realized that I went over the 100K mark and have not had my CVT Transmission flush.? I am 1000% panicked at the idea of my Transmission failing and being stuck with an $8K repair bill. The vehicle has been having a jumpy RPM needle (2-3000 RPM between 40-60 MPH) and tonight showed a slight bit of sluggishness and no needle movement about 3 miles from home. I have not seen any warning lights, any changes in the MPG, or the full tank of gas will get you this far range.

My nearest Toyota dealership is 45 miles away, and I have an appointment for first thing on Monday (2/10) morning to get my car checked, but am so worried that I have already done the damage & my Transmission will just fail between here and Savannah.

Any advice at all is greatly appreciated, Thank you so so much!!

Melissa
I wouldn't necessarily think that the CVT is going out. Have them check it out and get the CVT fluid changed. I would change it every 50k miles at the most. I try to change the trans fluid every 30-35k miles on all of my cars no matter what type of transmission, CVT, MT or AT. And I own cars that have at least one of each of these.
I am 1000% panicked at the idea of my Transmission failing and being stuck with an $8K repair bill
Hope that it turned as a more minor issue! It may or may not be CVT related as there is a lot of other possibilities from your general description, from a simple batch of bad gas to air flow, plugs, brake booster pump (to be serviced at 120K on Eco's Valvematic engine)… too many to be more precise.

The mechanic may read codes from the car computer even if the “Check engine light” didn’t show up. Also, check if the car firmware is up to date. There were two service campaigns for those models: one for the CVT and one for the Valvematic ( Lookup Safety Recalls & Service Campaigns ).

Note that the car may enter “limp mode” (obvious limited speed) to prevent damage with some issues (including but not only CVT related). It might be a good thing to change CVT fluid anyway (“flush” being a non-recommended way of doing it in older cars), the maintenance schedule suggesting 60K (30K for manual transmission).

If by any bad luck it is the CVT, I wouldn't go for an $8K job. You can easily find a salvaged one for less than $1K plus time. Good luck!
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Just change it now. Do 3 drain and fills. Should be okay. Make sure they did the service campaign too


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hi joseph I near 115k miles on my 10th gen it had a tranny fluid change done around 70k, To do a simple drain and fill : I need (4speed auto 2011) WS fluid, a pan, a funnel?

I measure what comes out and put back in about the same in new fluid?

I wouldnt be against changing the filter too... In that case, I still measure the amount of fluid, but also unbolt the pan and the filter and rebolt everything on with a new gasket?

I hear in a youtube vid theres 18-19 bolts on the pan :O
A lot of varying opinions out there on CVT service. Even Toyota dealerships are not consistent and some confused (no maintenance required, sealed unit) with their assessment of the service interval requirements. I've called a bunch. Some out of state. Most won't touch it until 100K miles. Also the price has a very wide range from $500-$800. The owners manual only references an "inspection" in the maintenance section. Unfortunately, Toyota's service departments won't tell you the details of what is included in an "inspection". Secret sauce, I guess.
hi joseph I near 115k miles on my 10th gen it had a tranny fluid change done around 70k, To do a simple drain and fill : I need (4speed auto 2011) WS fluid, a pan, a funnel?

I measure what comes out and put back in about the same in new fluid?

I wouldnt be against changing the filter too... In that case, I still measure the amount of fluid, but also unbolt the pan and the filter and rebolt everything on with a new gasket?

I hear in a youtube vid theres 18-19 bolts on the pan :O
I’d watch a YouTube video regarding that so you get a better understanding of it.


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hi joseph I near 115k miles on my 10th gen it had a tranny fluid change done around 70k, To do a simple drain and fill : I need (4speed auto 2011) WS fluid, a pan, a funnel?

I measure what comes out and put back in about the same in new fluid?

I wouldnt be against changing the filter too... In that case, I still measure the amount of fluid, but also unbolt the pan and the filter and rebolt everything on with a new gasket?

I hear in a youtube vid theres 18-19 bolts on the pan :O
The AT in the 10th Gen is very different from the CVT in the 11th Gen.
A lot of varying opinions out there on CVT service. Even Toyota dealerships are not consistent and some confused (no maintenance required, sealed unit) with their assessment of the service interval requirements. I've called a bunch. Some out of state. Most won't touch it until 100K miles. Also the price has a very wide range from $500-$800. The owners manual only references an "inspection" in the maintenance section. Unfortunately, Toyota's service departments won't tell you the details of what is included in an "inspection". Secret sauce, I guess.
That's because they sell it as lifetime fluid. There is no such thing. From the time you put any fluid in your car it begins to break down. The CVT fluid is said to be life time fluid for the CVT because when the CVT fails the fluid survived until the CVT died. If you want it to last, change the CVT fluid at regular intervals. I have several people that I know that work for Toyota as Master Techs and they all say the same thing. If you want you car to last, change all fluids following the severe use schedule and for things that don't show a change interval do it at no more than 50k miles for a transmission.
That's because they sell it as lifetime fluid. There is no such thing. From the time you put any fluid in your car it begins to break down. The CVT fluid is said to be life time fluid for the CVT because when the CVT fails the fluid survived until the CVT died. If you want it to last, change the CVT fluid at regular intervals. I have several people that I know that work for Toyota as Master Techs and they all say the same thing. If you want you car to last, change all fluids following the severe use schedule and for things that don't show a change interval do it at no more than 50k miles for a transmission.
LOL because my definition of "lifetime" is longer use of the car than their definition of "lifetime".
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LOL because my definition of "lifetime" is longer use of the car than their definition of "lifetime".
Exactly, mine too. That's why I change my fluids more often and my cars last a lot longer.
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