94 FJ80 Transmission Woes

[martin vanburen]

Long time lurker, first time poster.
94 FJ80
3" OME, 37's
Cat Delete
210k

Drove 3 hours on Friday, partied all weekend, hopped back in and drove 3 hours home on Sunday with no problems.
As soon as I got back, went out for a few errands and tranny didnt feel right.
Today, cant get it to shift up into second and obviously above.

Parked on level ground an warmed, levels read fine.

I do have a pretty decent mechanical understanding, just been on Landcruiser Hiatus for about 20 years.

any info would be greatly appreciated. I've done some research and it leads to solenoids and Rodneys party trick.....which sounds great, but I dont know if that'll even work on this year.

 

[baldilocks]

1994 FZJ80 with A442F automatic transmission. Is the O/D OFF light flashing at you? Check the fluid level, if that’s ok, go underneath and disconnect the electrical connector from the driver side of the transmission. Go for a test drive by selecting L and then making all up and down shifts manually. If the shifts happen as commanded then you need a new solenoid, probably “shift 2” but it would be prudent to replace all 4 solenoids while you have the trans oil pan off.

You need to have the proper factory service manual going forward. There is a metric ton of info on this very subject archived right here on this site. The search function works great and will provide you with a full day of reading material.

 

[martin vanburen]

no flaashing O/D light.
Fluid is right right where it needs to be when at idle on flat ground.
I disconnected the electrical connector, went for a go and still wont make it to second, even when I manually shift.

I'll keep up on the search function, I've been doing a bunch, will get back to more now.

 

[flintknapper]

So...you have Park, Neutral, Reverse and First. Right?

 

[martin vanburen]

correct.

 

[baldilocks]

Is Low your only forward gear or was 3rd and Overdrive attainable? Do the indicator lights on your combination meter light up in coordination with the shift lever position? Were there any other symptoms or irregularities prior to what you reported in your first post above?

 

[martin vanburen]

Low is my only forward gear. No other gear attainable in forward. Reverse is fine at this point.
The lights on the meter do correspond to the gear shift location. D does not light up (although I cant remember if it did prior to this incident or not). 2,1 and R do light up.
The only other problem to note was the rear wiper sensor sticking while in the super cold, so it ran constantly until it unfroze. All is well with that now.
I did install a new radio about a week ago, but pretty sure that has zero to do with this.

thanks again for the help.

 

[Travis 76]

Look for the OD light to come on when you start up. The bulb in mine was dead when I first got my 94 cruiser. Should turn on then off like the check engine light.

 

[martin vanburen]

the OD light defo comes on and off when i work the button.

 

[baldilocks]

I suggest jumping the diagnostic port on the passenger side fire wall and check the O/D light for any codes that may be stored in the transmission ecu. Your issue is the first I have ran into with the A442F as most shifting issues are due to faulting solenoids. This transmission is very solid mechanically, so internal problems are rare with these transmissions normally out living the engine. It would be appreciated if you keep this thread alive with updates and the final fix.

 

[flintknapper]

I suggest jumping the diagnostic port on the passenger side fire wall and check the O/D light for any codes that may be stored in the transmission ecu. You issue is the first I have ran into with the A442F as most shifting issues are relegated to faulting solenoids. This transmission is very solid mechanically, so internal problems are rare with these transmissions normally out living the engine. It would be appreciated if you keep this thread alive with updates and the final fix.

Agree at this juncture that he needs to access any codes present.

http://www.sugarlump.no/cruiser/HDJ-80_S3.pdf

 

[mechanic58]

Having a similar issue with my ‘92 A440F. It does it only when its cold. Has 281k on it. I’m sure in my case its due to 27yo rubber parts in the transmission. It works fine after about 7-8 miles of driving. No slippage, just won’t make the 1-2 shift. If I get the ground speed up enough in 1st it’ll skip right through to 3rd and work fine after that. I’m planning to overhaul it soon.

 

[baldilocks]

Having a similar issue with my ‘92 A440F. It does it only when its cold. Has 281k on it. I’m sure in my case its due to 27yo rubber parts in the transmission. It works fine after about 7-8 miles of driving. No slippage, just won’t make the 1-2 shift. If I get the ground speed up enough in 1st it’ll skip right through to 3rd and work fine after that. I’m planning to overhaul it soon.

Not so quick.... my 1993 A442F has 290k on it and operates great. Lots of others with well over 300k then. Serious transmission problems are the least of our worries.

 

[mechanic58]

Not so quick.... my 1993 A442F has 290k on it and operates great. Lots of others with well over 300k then. Serious transmission problems are the least of our worries.

I know a bypassing clutch apply piston when I feel one - that’s what mine is doing. I recently resurrected this one after it spent about two years sitting. I had to drop the pan to change the tv cable that was seized. It started cold bypassing on me about 100 miles after the fluid change, which is a textbook example of how high mileage automatics respond to clean oil. Mine’ll get an overhaul.

 

[baldilocks]

I know a bypassing clutch apply piston when I feel one - that’s what mine is doing. I recently resurrected this one after it spent about two years sitting. I had to drop the pan to change the tv cable that was seized. It started cold bypassing on me about 100 miles after the fluid change, which is a textbook example of how high mileage automatics respond to clean oil. Mine’ll get an overhaul.

Your situation is rare.

 

[shocktower]

Ok here is a diagnoses , un plug the transmission from ecu, and now drive start in 1 st then shift 2nd and then 3rd and four, the torque converter will not lock, but if you shift ok manually you have bad solenoids change them, this is a common problem, and there is no set mileage it just does. @baldilocks solenoids is a common issue

 

[baldilocks]

Ok here is a diagnoses , un plug the transmission from ecu, and now drive start in 1 st then shift 2nd and then 3rd and four, the torque converter will not lock, but if you shift ok manually you have bad solenoids change them, this is a common problem, and there is no set mileage it just does. @baldilocks solenoids is a common issue

I said all that earlier.

 

[flintknapper]

I said all that earlier.

Not to mention the OP stated in post #3 that he already tried the ECU disconnect and manual shift.

Some folks don't read before they post unfortunately. But their intentions are usually good.

 

[martin vanburen]

that link is gold. I nerd out on reading like that and very much look forward to getting into that more. Thank You.

update,

so when I unplugged the transmission yesterday to test shifting through the gears manually i noticed lots of moisture in the plug, even behind the rubber boot.
also, this weekends drive was through some heavily salted roads. the extreme cold/salt combo caused the rear wiper reset button to malfunction for awhile.
i left that transmission connection off all night.
plugged it in this morning and still no luck at first. drove a half mile in 1, let it sit for 5 mins, cycled through all the gears, then drove home with it shifting normally.
i'd be elated if it was just because of fouled connections.
today i'm just going to drain 24oz of ATF and then add Lucas Transmission Fix and then drive with my fingers crossed for a bit.

I'd like to note that when in D, the D light does not illuminate. This may obviously just be that bulb is out, but I dont remember if it was on or off before this incident and I'm kicking myself now because of it.

thanks again to all for all the input, was just telling my girl that i rather just come on here and listen to this advice much more that an actual local mechanic.

 

[Tools R Us]

... then add Lucas Transmission Fix ...

Why would you do that to your transmission? Dry the connectors, add some silicone grease, did you check the connector for the solenoids?