Buying a Toyota? Here’s everything you need to know about the brand’s transmission issues.
Japanese automaker Toyota has long been a leader in the automotive market, renowned for producing reliable, powerful vehicles since 1937, including the Avalon, Camry, Corolla, Highlander, Matrix, and the popular Toyota RAV4, which received a transmission upgrade in 2020 to give it even more efficiency.
Despite Toyota’s reputation as a top auto brand, its cars, trucks, and SUVs are not immune to some of the common problems found in most vehicles, including transmission issues. The transmission is, of course, a vital component to any vehicle and is responsible for working with the engine to provide the vehicle its power. Over time, that complex system will inevitably suffer wear and tear that may lead to transmission problems, especially if your Toyota vehicle is being used as a daily driver.
Toyota, of course, uses many different transmissions in its vast line of Automatic, Manual, CVT, and Hybrid vehicles, including the A-Series to the W-Series, among other transmission options. A few of Toyota’s vehicles have made recent headlines due to transmission problems, specifically in the Toyota Highlander and Sienna minivans, which have faced consumer complaints about the direct shift of their 8AT transmissions. In fact, a class-action lawsuit was filed against Toyota in 2020 and covers over a million 8-speed transmissions.
Your Toyota transmission should last the life of your vehicle. But if transmission problems should arise, it’s best to tackle the issue immediately before its leads to even bigger problems. Let’s go over what to look for and how to resolve transmission problems that may arise in any model of Toyota’s vehicles.
Common Toyota Transmission Problems
There have reportedly been a number of complaints made to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) about the power train in 2017-2020 models of certain Toyota vehicles. But there have been no safety recalls yet.
The most common Toyota transmission problem logged with the NHTSA involves a lack of power or acceleration in certain Toyota vehicles. Consumer complaints have also included problems with the automatic transmission remaining stuck in a particular gear.
Additional complaints about the transmission in Toyota vehicles include:
- rough, delayed or sudden shifting
- failure to accelerate from a stop
- transmission shudder
- sudden loss of power
- premature transmission failure
In this article, we’ll examine the vehicles that are impacted by these transmission problems and the potential class action lawsuit involving it.
Toyota Models Impacted by Transmission Problems
In September 2020, attorneys began assembling a class action lawsuit against Toyota and have identified the following vehicles in that case:
- 2017-2020 Toyota Highlander
- 2017-2020 Toyota Sienna
- 2018-2020 Toyota Avalon
- 2019 Toyota RAV4
NHTSA Complaints about Toyota’s Transmission
The variety of transmission complaints related to the Toyota vehicles mentioned above have not yet triggered a safety recall from the NHTSA, which regulates auto safety in the U.S. If enough similar complaints do eventually arise, the NHTSA would initiate an investigation to determine a cause and enforce a resolution from Toyota.
Some owners have reported that their Toyota vehicle fails to accelerate when they hit the gas pedal, which could potentially create a safety hazard when merging onto a freeway. Other car owners have claimed that when the when “Eco” mode is engaged in the 2018 Toyota Sienna, the vehicle may randomly decelerate when cornering. The complaints mention that the vehicle owners can not locate an option to turn off the “Eco” mode.
The NHTSA has not yet initiated an investigation into any of the consumer complaints.
Fixing Toyota Transmission Problems
Since it is Toyota’s newer vehicles that are experiencing transmission issues, many of these vehicles may still be under warranty. Contact your nearest Toyota dealership and ask about having the transmission looked at and potentially repaired for free. It’s not uncommon for automakers to extend the power train warranty on vehicles if enough owners make them aware of a potential problem.
For updates and more information about Toyota recalls, vehicle owners can contact Toyota online or call the Toyota Customer Experience Center at (800) 331-4331.
Toyota vehicle owners may also check with the NHTSA, which posts all vehicle safety recalls on its website. Generally, any repairs made to a vehicle under a safety recall are handled by the auto manufacturer at no cost to owners. To check your Toyota vehicle to see whether there are any recalls on it, simply enter your vehicle’s 17-digit VIN number on the NHTSA Recalls website.
