Got my 2021 Luxury ES350 just a little over a week ago. Nearing 500 miles now. I'm pretty disappointed in the lack of smoothness in the shifting. Drive mode doesn't seem to matter much. I can just very distinctly feel every time it shifts gears, particular in the lower gears. Is there any chance it's still "calibrating" and it will get smoother eventually? Or should I just go ahead and make an appointment with the local dealer? My 6 speed auto 2013 F-150 transmission is way smoother than this.

The other thing it does is if I completely let off the throttle and then press it again, such as coasting into and accelerating out of a curve, I can feel a slight but nonetheless noticeable and distracting jerk/hitch. But I can't duplicate it over and over in a short time. It's like I have to drive it 20-30 more seconds before it'll do it again.

 

There are other threads in this forum talking about this same issue. Here is one:

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-...mission-2.html

 

The hitch or jerk when reapplying the gas is a common and well documented issue on the 7th Gen ES (and I believe other toyotas with this drivetrain). Unfortunately, these problems (in my research) do not have a solution yet and there is probably no solutions coming. The jerkiness you describe has been a chronic problem on my ES since I picked it up in 2019. I notice that the transmission does smooth out a bit once the car is fully warmed up but these issues are definitely still there. It might be worth complaining to your dealer, but they will probably tell you that "it is normal". I have grown slightly more used to it over time but when I do notice it, It annoys me a lot. Do you happen to do a lot of city driving or short trips? I think that over longer drives the transmission smooths out a little more since it let's the transmission and all the other drivetrain components come up to temperature better.

 

Thanks for the replies and info. Having some pretty serious buyer’s remorse right now.

Thinking I should have sprung for a low mileage 2018 or 2019 LS 500h instead. We have a 2021 Sienna with the eCVT and I really like the feel of it. Sadly the 4 cylinder sounds awful during moderate to heavy acceleration. Since the LS 500h has a V6, maybe it doesn’t have that problem.

Being regularly distracted by the transmission shifting is not my idea of the luxury vehicle experience.

Hmm

 

I will be unloading my 2020 for this reason. I tried to convince myself I was learning how to subconsciously regulate the throttle to avoid the jerks but that was simply wishful thinking. I hate the jerky transmission which is making me hate the car. Too bad since otherwise the car is very nice.

 

Either my ES is not nearly as bad as yours or it doesn't bother me as much. I can't figure out which it is.

Have you driven other 7th gen ESs? Getting one as a loaner when you go in for service is a good way to go for an extended test drive in one.

 

I run the car in Sport+ for the first few minutes and it's eliminated that annoyance.

 

It seems as if all of the auto manufacturers, in recent years, have been in some sort of competition to see which one can add more speeds to their transmissions as fast as possible.

If you check various automobile model internet boards, it is quite common to find threads complaining about various aspects, including smoothness, of the 8 or 10 (or more) speed transmissions.

While there are theoretical advantages related to performance and fuel economy with 8 and 10 speed transmissions, in actual experience, instead of seeing those advantages manifest themselves, owners frequently are more likely to experience issues with absence of shifting smoothness, transmissions that seem to hunt to find the right gear, etc.

For a fair number of years, Lexus was using 6 speed transmissions in many of its models, and I have to wonder about whether they might have had it right with those 6 speed transmissions.

 

This is nothing compared to Infiniti I had a 2011 M37 shifting was 100 times worse. I feel my 2019 ES shifts a lot smoother

 

I agree with you here. Not that 8 speed transmissions are generally not able to shift as smoothly as the older transmissions (the LS460 had the smoothest 8 speed I have ever felt), but that the toyota/lexus 6 speed transmission was generally smoother. I have a GX460 that has been in the family for nearly 8 years and 140,000 miles and it shifts buttery smooth every time. I do not mind worse fuel economy as a trade off for the 6 speed Transmission. Now I realize that these are completely different transmissions in that the GX uses a longitudal 4wd drivetrain arrangement. But generally speaking I found the older 6 speed transmissions to be far smoother than the newer ones (with the exception of the LS 460 and the F cars).

 

My Hyundai Azera 6 speed was silky smooth, barely felt any shifts. I don't think that can be replicated in 8 or more gears. Every ES seems to have the jerky feel, I've had many loaners. I've sort of gotten used to it as my daily commute is mainly highway but I can see how this could make you consider dumping the car if you do lots of stop and go driving.

 

Probably doesn't bother you or you may not drive much. I've had several ES loaners, EVERY one of them feels the same, FSport, non FSport, normal, sport, eco, doesn't matter. That jerk as you approach a stop sign and it downshifts to 1 is the worst.

 

Although I have to retract my comment about 8 speeds and smoothness. Our RX has an 8 speed and NONE of the jerky feel the ES has. Oh well.

 

Well looks like the LS 500h is extremely rare. I would want AWD, and there are like 2 within 500 miles.

I’ve heard good things about Genesis. Maybe I can go in that direction.

 

But, on the 4th Generation RX forum here at CL, there are plenty of complaints and long threads with posts from people who have not been happy with the 8 speed transmission in the RX.