A340E (not the airbus) problems

[Stomps]

hey... i should start by saying i HATE auto's... but..

i got a a340 out of a jza70 supra in my z20.. behind a 1j with around 280rwhp.. i run a decent size tranny oil cooler..

recently the box has started slipping a little.. but in a strange way..

when cold, i have to rev it a little before it goes anywhere.. it acts sort of like it has a hi-stall.. where the car will not move until i reach 1500odd rpm...

once warmed up the problem seems to go away...

i thrashed the living shit out of it on the weekend and it didnt slip once..

when auto's have failed on me in the past.. they are fine at low RPM, but will slip once you give the car a little shit... this is not the case with this one..

also. it sometimes holds gears too long during normal driving.... it doesn't like going up into 4th (OD)... but if you give it shit.. it will hit limiter and change straight away..

also.. when i slow down and stop at lights/stopsigns etc.. it sometimes waits until i stop, then the car lunges forward.... with foot on the brake.. i can hear a slight thump..

someone suggeted solenioids? could this be the problem? is there an easy way to check them?

or is it well fucked already and on its way to the auto gearbox graveyard?

suggestions... tips...

solutions...

R154 donations..

all above welcome and will be rewarded by a nice helathy + rep slap to the back of the face..

cheers in advance..

Stomps

[wilbo666]

Checked fluid level?

Cheers
Wilbo

[Stomps]

Checked fluid level?

Cheers
Wilbo

yeah i did... a while ago though... it seemed fine before.. the oil was a little dark, but not roasted...

Ill have a look in a min though..

is it true you check auto fluid level with car in gear, running?

soz for the dumbass questions, but like i said..i hate autos..

Stomps

[wilbo666]

Yep engine needs to be running and fluid needs to be at operating temp for accuracy

Run it through the gears and then N / P is fine.

Cheers
Wilbo

[Stomps]

Yep engine needs to be running and fluid needs to be at operating temp for accuracy

Run it through the gears and then N / P is fine.

Cheers
Wilbo

cheers... off to do that now..

Stomps

[Stomps]

Spot on Wilbo...

i seem to have a leak somewhere.... and it must be recent... BAH...

at running temp, with the car in Drive, the fluid is half way up the COLD part of the dipstick....

So now... another question...

does anyone know the fluid level difference between the COLD and HOT sections of the dipsitck??

Is it sweet to just top it up, or do i have to flush it etc...??

The oil is a little brown too... smells like crayons...

Stomps

[CrUZida]

Top up is fine, won't require much, maybe 200mL at a guess.

Put 100mL in, drive for a day, recheck, then another 100mL, etc.

[triptek]

Might be worth dropping the fluid in it stomps. The oil thats in it i got off a mate that works at kmart tyre & auto. He reckons it was good shit. But i had it in my grande aswell, at times the gear changes would be really sloppy. Last week i drained it and put some Penrite stuff in, it shifts so much better.

[Stomps]

hmmm.. ill have a look at changing it... but you gotta get if properly flushed dont ya, to get the oil out of the converter?? who the fuck does that?

Stomps

[CrUZida]

You can drain 2.0L at a time, drive for a day, drain 2 more, drive, drain, drive, etc etc.

Or take it to any auto place and they'll pump new fluid through it.

[Stomps]

I so dont have time to be dumping a few litres per day...

May be worth taking it to a tranny shop...

cheers

Stomps

[Officer Doofy]

Pull hose off tranny cooler, aim at empty coke bottle.
Start car in park and let 2Lt of fluid squirt into bottle.
Stop car, replace 2Lt of fluid with new toyota red tranny fluid.
Repeat untill exiting fluid is no longer brown and smelly, and is nice and cherry red.
Reconnect tranny hose, you now have a flushed tranny.
Break new fluid in with a skid.
Put pic's on toymods.
Profit.............

[Stomps]

lol, nice...

i've heard a while back (after blowing 3 a340's in a row with my 7m) that changing fluid once they are at that point can actually do more harm than good? im guessing that is a load of shit though?

Stomps

[big_zop]

Stomps, send your thanks to Ribfeast and 1JZ.747 for this...

Drove around to Shane (1JZ.747)'s place this afternoon so he could show me how to change the ATX fluid properly in the cressida (instead of just the lazy way that Toyota mechs do it), and photographed the procedure in case anyone else wants to do it

Required:
Someone to help you as you cannot do this alone
14mm hex spanner for removing atx sump plug
8L of Toyota Type IV transmission fluid (comes in 4L metal tins). A third spare is useful too
Oil drain pan
Couple of old 2 litre drink bottles
A funnel that fits nicely into the ATX dipstick hole
2 litre measuring jug
Car jack + jackstands
Spare piece of hose

Optional:
New sump washer and/or plug

Steps:
1. Go for a drive to get the car up to operating temperature, then leave it for half an hour to cool slightly.
2. Jack up the car & place it on the jackstands (you don't want to die do you?)
3. Place drain pan underneath the ATX sump and unscrew the ATX drain plug with the 14mm hex spanner. This will get you about 3 litres of the old ATX fluid. But we are doing this properly, aren't we

4. Put the new washer on and screw the drain plug back in.

How gross does that old fluid look! And it smells burnt (well mine did)

5. Empty out the drain pan into a container for recycling. Don't tip it down the drain!

6. Open up the tins of the new Toyota Type IV ATX fluid. The trick is to press in the middle of the white cap until it pops, otherwise you'll have a hell of a time opening the tin up.



7. Remove the ATX dipstick and place the funnel in the hole SECURELY.

8. Measure 2 litres of the new ATX fluid into the measuring jug

9. Get your buddy to SLOWLY pour it into the funnel, while you hold the funnel in tight.

[big_zop]

10. Measure another litre of ATX fluid and pour that in. That should replace the oil that was drained out earlier. But there is still around 5 litres of the old stuff left in there! This is how you get rid of it.
11. Remove the splash guard if present.

12. Unplug the transmission hose, have one of the 2 litre bottles ready to catch any stray fluid as you do this.


13. Find a small piece of hose and attach it to the nipple on the radiator, and run the other end into the second 2 litre bottle.

14. Put the dipstick in then start the car and run it until the 2 litre bottle is full of the old fluid (get your buddy to yell out when it is full). This will only take 5 - 10 seconds approx.

15. Pour the fluid into the drain pan for recycling later.

16. Measure out 2L of new transmission fluid and put it in via the dipstick hole like earlier. Put the dipstick back in.
17. Put the bottle back onto the hose again and run the engine for another 5-10 secs till the bottle is full again. Repeat this drain/refill procedure until the fluid that is coming out of the hose is a cherry red colour rather than a muddy brown, this indicates that all the old fluid is gone.

18. Re-attach the transmission hose and put the dipstick back in.
19. Start the car and shift between the gears, leave it in D for a bit so that the fluid cycles around a bit. Top up the fluid if necessary. All done!! Thank your buddy and help clean up any mess, then recycle the old fluid.

If you have a 1JZ-GTE engine then this fluid swap is mandatory every 5000kms if you want to preserve the life of your transmission. A transmisson cooler is a worthwhile purchase too. Fitting a temperature sensor to your transmission is good too, that way you can tone down your driving as the temperature approaches 100°C. High temperatures will kill the lubricating properties of your transmission fluid.

If you pay your mechanic to do this, make sure he doesn't stick in Dextron III like mine did, as you can see what my fluid looks like after only 5000kms.

Hopefully this how-to is useful to someone. Big thanks to Shane for helping me with this

This is obviously suited towards a JZX83 Cressida so the lines may be a little different but still plenty of info to help you do it yourself.