A Somber Hello (1 Viewer)

[Neek]

I picked up a 2015 GX460 Luxury with 107K miles from a used car lot 5 days ago. The wife and I were excited to bring it home to our two kids to welcome the GX to be our family offroader for years to come. The day after we brought it home, the CEL illuminated and the dash read 'Trac Off'. I read the codes and found P0761, P2714, P2757 indicating transmission issues. I called the car lot who confirmed that the vehicle was sold as-is and there was no assistance they would be able to give. This is my first GX460 and first Lexus, but I've owned 10+ Toyotas.

After searching the forums between here and ClubLexus, it seems to be a common enough issue and purchased the supplies to complete a drain and fill, thinking (hoping) that it is just old fluid.

Today I entered the VIN into the MyLexus site and found extensive service completed at the Lexus Dealer with one final service entry from 5/8/22 at 106,460 - CUSTOMER STATES THAT THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT HAS BEEN COMING ON GIVING CODES FOR COMMUNICATION WITH THE TRANSMISSION. ~|~VEHICLE HAD FAULTS P0761 AND P2714 WHICH IS RELATED TO THE TRANSMISSION MALFUNCTIONING. DURING THE INSPECTION OF THE TRANSMISSION I NOTICED THE FLUID WAS LOW, RECOMMENDED ATTEMPTING TO DRAIN AND RE-FILL THE FLUID TO THE PROPER LEVEL AND RE-EVALUATING. ~|~I PERFORMED THE DRAIN AND FILL, UNFORTUNATELY THE FAULTS IMMEDIATELY RETURNED UPON TEST DRIVING WHICH INDICATES INTERNAL DAMAGE TO THE TRANSMISSION, A TRANSMISSION REPLACEMENT WAS QUOTED. #619 2.0HRS

BTW, the GX doesn't seem to have any driving issues. Moderate weirdness in shifting, but I'm upgrading from a 2000 T4R so I don't have anything close to compare it to. I'm pretty mechanical from installing lifts on multiple Toyotas to headgasket changes on a 4.0L Tacoma as well as many mechanical and electrical mods in between.

So what do I do? Attempt another Drain and Fill? Attempt to replace the solenoids and valve body? Clear the codes and trade it in to some other lot(just kidding of course...unless)?

Looking forward to your collective knowledge and any responses of where to go from here.

 

[Rednexus]

It seems unlikely that the car lot had no idea the vehicle was throwing codes and had transmission problems. I'm wondering if the codes were cleared via a OBDII reader to help with the sale, being that they reappeared so soon after you bought the vehicle. It may be worth looking into the used car laws in your state (possibly via an attorney) and trying to recover something from the used car lot. A letter from an attorney to the car lot may be enough to do that.

If you don't want to go that route I'd take it to an actual transmission shop for another opinion. If you are throwing codes it's typically something beyond a simple drain and fill to fix it.

Edit: Sometimes a more advanced OBDII code reader can tell you when the specific codes last appeared and were last cleared. If this data is available and codes were cleared within the time of the car lot's ownership on the GX, you might have a slam dunk claim. If not, than maybe they actually had no idea. Those fancier scanners are often $300-600+.

 

[McDuff123]

Sorry about your situation…
I agree with Rednexus that you should pursue the used car lot. Of course they will deny deny deny. Then they’ll squeal like a stuck pig when you threaten legal action.

Seems to me this is the only way you won’t be shelling out for a new transmission…
good luck

 

[Neek]

I appreciate the thoughts and ways forward. I've moved past holding the dealership accountable for their sale (For now). I could have done more research prior to my purchase, but was excited and rushed into it.

If an independent transmission shop says that the AT needs to be replaced, is this a job that a fairweather weekend mechanic in their own garage can tackle? And what are the options for sourcing a replacement? Lexus seems to have reman'd ones for $3500 + $1000 core. Is this a better option than used?

 

[jonshonda]

Yeah I would imagine advanced diagnosis is a good idea, not sure how well equipped most transmission shops are to diagnose via techstream vs physically driving the vehicle. I obsessed over maintenance records when looking at our GX470 and now GX460. Something like that transmission issue would have been a hard pass for me, but you are beyond that point so there is not need to beat a dead horse. Maybe have a transmission shop drive it and see if they think you can wait until it is completely dead, or if it should just be replaced.

If you are like me the thought of it not being in excellent condition would keep me up at night, and it would be money well spend to replace it with a used unit. Good news is there should be plenty around.

 

[Rednexus]

If it were my rig, and the trans gets a terminal diagnosis from a shop, I'd get a OEM Lexus/Toyota reman and pay a independent import/Toyota shop or a reputable trans shop to swap it. From crawling under mine, there really isn't a lot in the way of dropping down the trans, it's just very big/bulky and probably heavy, especially with the TC attached. I would personally only attempt this job as DIY with access to a real lift and telescoping transmission jack. It's not something I'd want to even try laying on a creeper, with the GX on jackstands. If you have a friend with a real lift, it would be worth exploring DIY'ing it.

You'll also need to ensure that the trans cooler lines and radiator are flushed really well to remove any gunk/metal/debris from them, that might compromise the new transmission. It's also a good time to install a upgraded cooler, and change the fluid every 30-60K going forward.

 

[re_guderian]

I can't imagine any transmission shop on earth would read those codes and say, "nah, drive it for a while longer" when their reputation, liability, and chance to make a few thousand dollars are all on the line. Make peace with a new (reman) transmission, and be glad it runs well enough that you have the time to shop around and plan down time for the replacement. Frankly, I'm a bit surprised you can actually find a reman from Lexus at all, and that is as cheap as you said. So there's that!

 

[LongDuck]

I told my grandson: "Transmission shops are a scam and should be illegal." Not all of them, but enough that they should be avoided.

If you can find a local shop that works on EVERYTHING, I'd trust them more than a dedicated transmission shop that has no other skills than to sell you,... yaknow,... transmission services.

 

[r2m]

With just 107k on the clock, she's barely been broken in.
Considering the options available, put together a list about the vehicle:

1. How long do you usually keep vehicles.
2. What is your end game with this GX? e.g.: stock soccer Mom, mild trail rig, full on overlander or something in between?
3. How hard are you usually on your vehicles?
4. Do you tow often and how heavy?
5. Do you put a lot of miles on your vehicles?

All these questions will help determine if you should put a more expensive remanufactured trans or a used one.
If you think this is a keeper, I'd go with remanufactured. If you're hard on vehicles and burn through them, go cheap and get a junk yard trans.
Regarding junk yard transmissions, you could probably run the VIN of the vehicle you're pulling the trans from and see what the history of that was like.
Also, if you're doing a trans swap, consider adding an aftermarket trans cooler! There's lots of info on this forum about that.

 

[Rednexus]

A quick check shows used GX460 transmissions going for $3-5K. At that cost there is no reason to go used, especially with GX460 transmission issues being not uncommon (as mentioned previously, there are lots of threads about that and anecdotal evidence).

I'd personally only throw a used transmission in a vehicle if it was a beater I didn't really care about. It's too big of a R&R job and there is too much labor involved in it to risk having to do it again. Reman with a warranty will likely be more cost effective and reliable.