I have a long gravel driveway that has the last 50 feet or so at a gentle 4-5 degree incline. I've noticed in the last year that when I'm pulling a 2000 lb trailer load up the drive that I can definitely smell a burning odor at the top of the drive. My '97 is a tripled-locked model and has about 440k miles on it. Without (and with) the trailer it runs flawlessly, with good shifts (the overdrive gear is always a little late the first time on cold mornings, but it's always been like that). The AT fluid stays exactly at the full mark and looks good. Is my transmission on it's last legs? Are the things I can do to extend whatever life it has left, short of a rebuild or replacement? Finally, if I do decide to replace w/a good used unit, will one from any 96/97 FJ80 donor work? Thanks much for any advice. Appreciated.
Triple-locked '97 transmission different than any other 'standard' 96/97 FJ80?
- Thread starter bayouborne
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this is normal. It won't kick in until a certain operating temperature.
How regularly has the fluid been changed out? that's about the best and one of the only things to be done.
- Thread starter
- #4
Thanks for the reply '60. It's probably got 35k mi on the current fluid. I've been reading about the A442F transmission and my thus far trouble-free experience seems to be about par for a vehicle that doesn't spend time off road and infrequently tows things. I guess I'll just start budgeting for a replacement in the next year or two.
Fj80oregon
GOLD Star
You have a A343f not a 442
Your truck is a FZJ80 not a fj80
Just so you know when you’re looking for a transmission. These can likely be had for $200 used if not free. If you decide to rebuild your looking around $2k.
Your truck is a FZJ80 not a fj80
Just so you know when you’re looking for a transmission. These can likely be had for $200 used if not free. If you decide to rebuild your looking around $2k.
Honestly, these rigs are all 30 years old, aren't their auto transmissions are ALL basically near their last legs unless they've been rebuilt already?
I'm guessing you're new to this.
I have two '95 A343Fs that have 300k+ miles on them, and they are just well broken in.
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If I had to pull an additional 2K pounds up a grade like a driveway, I'd be in low range. That reduces the load on the transmission. That's what low range is for.
What? Old Toyotas, Land Cruisers, this website? You'd be wrong in all cases. (For the record, I made an account in 2023, but I was lurking occasionally almost 20 years ago.)
I'm just being realistic. They all either have a ton of miles, or have been underused to the point where they're probably suffering from sitting.
What odor does the burning smell have? Your transmission is probably perfectly fine. I would be checking exhaust mounts and looking to see if oil or grease has leaked somewhere on the exhaust causing the smell.
On my 97 under certain high load drives, I can smell the moly grease that has flung off the driveshaft onto the muffler.
More sarcastic than anything no worries. That said from my experience with the A34xx transmissions in various Toyota and Lexus applications is that even with mediocre maintenance they should be able to shift perfectly fine at 300k, well after the original 1FZ had its second head gasket changed. Even in the most dissed-on variant being the 01+ with DBW kickdown (which is known to have torque converter issues in 4Runners and Sequoias at higher miles), they can regularly hit 300k with just fluid changes. Generally any failure before that is likely from serious neglect(zero ATF changes or severe coolant corrosion causing the radiator based heat exchanger to burst) and/or operating outside of spec(towing with OD on or overloading past manufacturer capacities).
What? Old Toyotas, Land Cruisers, this website? You'd be wrong in all cases. (For the record, I made an account in 2023, but I was lurking occasionally almost 20 years ago.)
I'm just being realistic. They all either have a ton of miles, or have been underused to the point where they're probably suffering from sitting.
I read it as such, I'm not that thin skinned.
Still, what I'm saying is that 300k is relatively low mileage at 30 years old. Also, the odds of one not getting abused or neglected at some point in all that time are going steadily down. And we're discussing junkyard transmissions. What put the rig in the junkyard? The ratio of babied rigs that got totaled in an accident, to rigs that sat for five or ten years in someone's back field with a blown head gasket is going down.
I'm not saying they're definitely shot, but they are getting long in the tooth. Maybe the $200 junkyard transmission gamble pays off, maybe it lasts six months or a year and you're back where you started.
Those a343 transmissions are close to bombproof. It would be worth the investment to do a fluid exchange. You can do it yourself and there are threads here oh how. The od shift delay when cold is normal. You likely will get a ton more life out of it yet.
I agree with @jonheld on using low to pull your trailer up. That is great practice no matter the condition of your transmission. I use it on my steep hill coming up my driveway too.
I agree with @jonheld on using low to pull your trailer up. That is great practice no matter the condition of your transmission. I use it on my steep hill coming up my driveway too.
What makes you think it’s the trans?
Burt smell could be most anything especially on a 1FZ with 400K miles
Burt smell could be most anything especially on a 1FZ with 400K miles
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- Thread starter
- #17
I think you are right about using low range. Honestly the only reason I haven't been using it that way is that the gravel drive ends up at an expanse of concrete. I've never been able to simply engage low range, drive for 50-100 feet and then stop and have it just immediately disengage (in drive, park or neutral). When I disengage I always seem to have to drive at least 50 feet more before I see the indicators go out. The expanse of concrete at the top is only about 30 feet before I can get to grass. I think if I'm still in low range I'm probably ok driving (straight) across that small distance, before I have to monkey with it to get it to disengage in the grass. The new method will be 1) low range when entering the gravel drive, 2) keep up momentum till the top and on concrete. 3) stop and unhitch trailer (while still driving absolutely straight), 4) continue straight off the concrete pad and get it to disengage on grass in the back of the property. Does driving 30 feet straight across concrete in low range seem risky? There is a huge field for overflow parking at a flea market I go to every week. Perhaps I'll start briefly exercising low-range there every week in an effort to get it to more smoothly disengage. Either that of find a maintenance procedure for the locking mechanisms (which honestly I've never performed)
No it won’t hurt it. I drive mine in low with both locker on in sand hollow it’s like driving on sand paper = maximum traction.
And I run 39s
You would really benefit from the seven pin mod it effectively lets you put it in low range without locking up the transfer case.
It’s specifically for what you’re doing
This exactlyNo it won’t hurt it. I drive mine in low with both locker on in sand hollow it’s like driving on sand paper = maximum traction.
And I run 39s
You would really benefit from the seven pin mod it effectively lets you put it in low range without locking up the transfer case.
It’s specifically for what you’re doing
That may be true for other non Toyota Trucks that have electronic switching low/high. The Land Cruiser shifting is purely mechanical with that little lever on the transmission period. What you are possibly describing is the CDL possibly taking time to release. The more that the CDL gets used the faster they become locking/unlocking. In any case what you are trying to do, for a such a short distance on concrete will not damage anything. As suggested above get the "Pin 7" done to allow shifting to low without having the CDL locked.