Losiracer2

So since the weather has gotten colder this past week, in the 40s vs. 70s-80s, my 97 LS w/ A340E has been making a transmission noise when idling and when revving.

I did a Toyota T4 fluid change about a month and a half ago and everything was normal, no metallic shavings in the fluid, even looked pretty red and healthy, probably didn't need to do it.

I checked the fluid level now and its still fine, and color is nice and pinkish red with no leaks. I don't feel any odd vibrations, and the car still drives normal, but this noise is worrying me with the winter coming up.

Also, something weird its always done....the transmission shift selector never highlights D until the engine has warmed up for a few minutes of driving, is this typical? or a sign of something else not functioning as it should? car has 294k on it.

Here is video of the noise, maybe someone has experienced this before?

Sin1UZFE

https://drive.google.com/file/d/13cY5IxG3o1adeqRH4S9IqnecrUwhhn6W/view?usp=drivesdk


That's mine, been doing it since I got it 3 months ago

Losiracer2

I'm going to try a drain and refill tomorrow and see if that helps it out any, but I really think this noise is a bearing or gear related....the fluid condition looked perfect and healthy from what the dipstick pulled up. Just over 20k miles ago, I did 3 consecutive drain and refills as well as replaced the transmission filter and lockup solenoid since it had a P0770 code pop up along with the tranny shuddering when coming to a stop. This was close to 2 yrs ago though.

Sin1UZFE

Had the fluid drained and refilled 2 weeks ago noise didn't go away. I hope it's something that doesn't require a rebuild

Losiracer2

Well, good news is I found one for $75 nearby me if I do need one, said CORE PARTS ONLY though, not sure what that means. But also found a confirmed tested one with under 100k about 150 miles from me if I do need to go get it on this video:

dveneman

That "american flag" LS400 they are parting out looks like it was nice! Its a shame it was rear ended. What's wrong with drivers these days? Texting or what?

I'll bet that front seat won't last long.

Cant help with diagnosing that sound Losiracer. Wow, it makes a racket even while parked without driveshaft turning .

Superfast1

I'm afraid your tranny is on its way out. I also have a 97 LS400 bought it when it was a year old so I have it for 20 years now. I've been taking great care of the car all these years & always drained the tranny fluid w/ Toyota Transmission Fluid Type T-IV at every 25K miles interval. The tranny lasted until 240K miles then started to slip & made noises. Had a trusted local tranny shop to rebuild the tranny last year. The torque converter was bad & all the soft parts were hardened like rock. Car is shifting silky smooth again. If yours is in great shape & you plan to keep it for a long time then you may want to think about overhauling the tranny. Good luck.

Sin1UZFE

Shifts are smooth and quick, it's just the noise. I already got a $1400 quote to install a rebuilt tranny. Just in case

Losiracer2

So should I not bother with trying to do a drain and fill with a new filter? I'm trying to figure out what that noise is, it seemed to develop very suddenly when it got colder out last Thursday and now won't go away. It is really bad when the engine is cold but goes away slightly when warmed up. Could it be a clogged filter you think?

Superfast1

There's a different between a flush & a drain. A flush will requires about 10 quarts whereas a drain will only takes a little more than a quart. Since the car is so old & I presume the tranny is still original, flushing may actually do more harm than good. You should give it a try to drain & refill & see what happen. You can also replace the filter but that requires more work as you will have to unbolt the dipstick & drop the pan. If you want to go this route, make sure to get the Toyota gasket maker material for the pan rather than using a pre-cut corked or rubber gasket as it will leak on you.

deanshark

Parts only means it's only good for parts, like sensors and stuff. When ya buy a rebuilt tranny from the junkyard, or wherever, you give them your old tranny or they charge ya $75-$100.

Losiracer2

The noise is completely gone! I think I solved the problem. The transmission was night and day quiet after I did this filter and drain and fill. My gear indicator lights also function better now too, before they didn't illuminate until the car was driving for a few minutes.

So I did the transmission filter this afternoon and WHOA! it was dirty! The mesh screen was covered with grit, though the fluid didn't have any metal shavings, and neither did the magnets. I last did it at 275k, so maybe I need to do a filter every so often now since the tranny is getting up there in miles, only took me about 2 hrs taking my time and cleaning gunk off the dipstick tube. Did a drain and fill of 3 qts Toyota T-IV fluid.

Check out the results:

Sin1UZFE

Noise gone?

Losiracer2

YEP! All I hear now is the engine running and fuel injectors firing. Transmission is very quiet now, don't hear any noise from that area of the car now. No more tapping or whining power steering pump noise. I really hope this solved it.

I got a email back from that guy with the 100k low mileage Lexus in the YouTube video and he wants $522.50 + 195 shipping for the trans which is too much for me.

-Tranny filter was $15 at Napa, since they didn't have a gasket in the box, Made in USA (Indiana)
-FelPro trans pan gasket for $6.99 at Autozone (wasn't rubber but not cork either, not paper but pretty thick yet pliable)
-2 qts of Toyota T4 were $4.96 ea. at Toyota with my parts supplier discount I already had 1.5 qts left over from my last drain and fill 2 months ago.

Sin1UZFE

Nice! Congrats