2010 Toyota Corolla transmission whine

[dkrivosheyev]

Here is some interesting discussion I had on corolland.com about viscosity of Toyota WS vs. Toyota T-IV ATF fluid:

http://www.corolland.com/forums/index.php?/topic/24138-2010-corolla-le-transmission-whine/

If anyone here got a toyota with U340E / U341E transmission and WS fluid in it, do you have the similar issue? I am trying to collect some statistical data as I believe the local toyota dealer won't let me test drive any more cars for the research purposes

 

[unDummy]

I noticed more noises in newer Toyota transmissions. I think that they are cost cutting on their gears and its across the board.

Complain to the dealer and repeat until they replace.

Viscosity point is irrelevant here.

And, transmission noise is normal. Cars have become more wind quiet so that you pick up more other abnormal noises. I find that the stereo volume knob fixes the transmission noise instantly.

 

[dkrivosheyev]

I think toyota switched to WS fluid for many of its transmissions without actually redesigning them. WS is supposed to bring better fuel economy, but at the same time it is prone to increase the final drive gear noise due to lower viscosity. Toyota actually had to redesign Rav4 transmission after increased number of complaints of the final gear noise. I am trying to collect some more data from other toyota owners with U341E transimissions to actually prove the point. I would love to test drive more toyotas from the local dealer, but I don't think they will let me...

 

[dkrivosheyev]

On another note - I will probably complain to the dealer when I come in for 5000 mile service; however, I test drove another Corolla recently (although Canadian-built and mine is Japan-built) and noticed the same faint whine around 60 mph in this corolla. It does not do it until transmission fluid reaches normal operating temp of 160 F, so I think it has to do with the viscosity of WS fluid.
I heard a lot of stories that many times dealerships try to repair an issue and screw up something else in the car and then you have to go back several times. A lot of times their mechanics are not that good... I am still trying to collect more data from other Corolla owners to see if their 2009 - 2011 corollas have the same noise at 60 mph. The average driver with no mechanical experience will not notice it, it takes some experience to be able to distinguish between normal engine noise and this fain gear whine. Any Corolla owners on this board?

 

[RF Overlord]

Originally Posted By: dkrivosheyev
The average driver with no mechanical experience will not notice it, it takes some experience to be able to distinguish between normal engine noise and this fain gear whine.
I mean absolutely no offence, but remember it's a Corolla, not a Lexus. There are reasons why it costs less, and low noise/soundproofing is just one of them.

 

[dkrivosheyev]

This is true; I am just trying to determine if this noise can be considered "normal" or not. I have 2003 Toyota Echo and it also has some whine, actually louder than my new Corolla; however, my mom's 2003 Corolla does not whine at all. My 2001 manual Echo does not whine either...

 

[INDYMAC]

The RAV4 has a TSB for gear whine. The first step is to install more soundproofing. Step 2 is to replace trans axle with remanufactured with new parts. Most dealers are skipping step1 now, but remanufactured trans axles are on back order.

 

[JHZR2]

Boy. Seems like a lot of folks got tricked on the quality product part.

Id expect zero whine from a new car. Whine to me means either a tired bearing set, pump or similar part.

Are you 110% sure it isnt a harmonic on the tires at that speed?

 

[dkrivosheyev]

I am positive it is not a harmonic. The whine happens only under acceleration, i.e. when final drive gears have load on them. It is interesting that another bdand-new Corolla off the lot had the same whine at the same speed! I would love to test drive yet another Corolla but I don't think local dealership will let me to - I already been there three times to test drive 2 Corollas, one Prius and two Yaris

Looking for input from other Corolla owners...

 

[panthermike]

I don't have experience with the new model, but have experience w/ an '03 and '05. Both have this whine under load as well. This is even with the thicker T-IV fluid. It usually happens above 55mph or so. For some reason, the '05 whine is much more audible than the '03.

I also believe there was a recent thread w/ an Echo(?) doing the same thing. I think it's just the nature of the beast.

The '03 has 75K and the '05 has 124K, both transmissions shift very well. As someone else said, I rarely hear it because I have the stereo on all of the time.

At least I'm hoping this doesn't cause long term damage!

 

[dkrivosheyev]

The recent thread with an Echo was actually mine too, I have this Echo and it does whine above 35mph under load and the whine goes away at 60 mph. I had T-IV and the whine was quite audible, I switched to Redline D4 and the whine got better but was still there. I later switched to Redline High-Temp ATF and the whine was still there. Otherwise the transmission shifts great and the fluid stays clear. I had this echo for 35k miles and did not have any other issues with the transmission, it works great, the car has 125 k miles on it now.

The whine on my 2010 Corolla is a lot less noticable that in Echo and only happens in the narrow range of 58 to 62 mph under acceleration. I cannot really hear it while maintaining a steady speed.

Did your corollas have this whine since new or is this something that developed over time? Like I said before, I will bring it up to the dealer, but I hate for them to do such a major work as replacing otherwise good-working transmission with a possibility of screwing up something else. Their technicians are not the best and their shop is far from the assembly line in Japan. I heard a lot of stories of dealerships trying to repair one thing and screwing up two other things...

 

[panthermike]

I honestly can't tell you if it developed over time or not. We got the '03 w/ 25K miles, its done it since. The '05 has done it for a long time.

I've done two/drain fills on the '03 w/ Maxlife ATF, which is quite thin. It doesn't seem to have worsened the whine, I will wait and see after the third drain/fill. The '05 just had 3 drain/fills and like I said, is pretty loud. Not sure why?

If the '03 starts to get louder, I'll switch to the OEM thickness of ATF.

 

[whitearrow]

if the corolla and the highlander 4cyl share the same transmission then my service guy said that it was normal. i can only hear it when i have the window down and kinda gettin on the gas mroe than a leisurely jaunt. i had my guy at the toyota dealership,which is an actual car guy not a geek off the street if ya know what i mean,drive my wifes 2010 highlander and he said that he knew that the highlander and the 4cyl camry share the same trans and both have a whine. he said normal operation. i have a 2005 camry 4cyl the the trans seems better built to me. no whine even though it has 145,000 miles and will hold itself on a hill without using the brake where the newer trans rolls back.

 

[dkrivosheyev]

We also have 03 corolla and it does not whineat all, we run T-IV in it. It looks like it's hit and miss, some transmissions have whine and some don't. Hopefully will have more input from 09-11 corolla owners...

 

[dkrivosheyev]

Originally Posted By: whitearrow
if the corolla and the highlander 4cyl share the same transmission then my service guy said that it was normal. i can only hear it when i have the window down and kinda gettin on the gas mroe than a leisurely jaunt. i had my guy at the toyota dealership,which is an actual car guy not a geek off the street if ya know what i mean,drive my wifes 2010 highlander and he said that he knew that the highlander and the 4cyl camry share the same trans and both have a whine. he said normal operation. i have a 2005 camry 4cyl the the trans seems better built to me. no whine even though it has 145,000 miles and will hold itself on a hill without using the brake where the newer trans rolls back.


No, Corolla has different transmission than highlander. Depending on how loud your whine is, I would still argue their statement that it is normal operation. Some dealerships don't like to do warranty work and say things are "normal" but it actually is not. I've researched the whine issue excessively and at this point I am of the opinion that the whine does not affect the life of the transmission and will not cause premature failure. I've done several UOA of the fluid from whining transmissions and it never showed increased amount of wear metals in the fluid. The whine is not a sign of accelerated wear, it is just a nuisance. It is too bad that toyota's transmissions have this problem and it seems to be more than just an isolated case...

 

[The Critic]

I just had the transmission drain and refilled on a 06 Prius with 85k. The vehicle had the original fill of WS in there. For 60k of those miles, the car was driven in Phoenix. The last 25k was driven in hilly terrain. After the drain and refill (which removes all of the fluid since there is no converter), some of the whine that was found before was gone.

 

[dkrivosheyev]

This is interesting. Normally changing the fluid with the same type of fluid does not help the gear whine. Did this Prius have the whine since new or did the whine develop over time? I've never had a chance to drive a Prius, but I read that many of them have characteristic transmission whine since new and this is considered normal.

 

[dkrivosheyev]

I took the car to toyota dealership yesterday and complained about the whine. They took it for a test drive and told me that they do not hear the whine. I insisted to drive it myself with the service manager. Once we reached 60 mph I gave it some gas and could hear the whine. The service manager finally heard the whine too but said it was normal for this transmission. I insisted on taking another Corolla off the lot for a test drive together. The manager did not want to do it, but after some arguing finally agreed. He drove the car and I sat in the passenger seat. He could not make it whine; however, the transmission was still cold. I asked to drive it myself and by that time transmission was up to 150 F (I had IR thermometer with me) and we both heard the same whine at 60 mph. At this point the manager said that all Corollas do this and this is part of the design. It was hard to argue this statement since a brand-new car off the lot did the same thing as mine. Still wonder if this is a coincidence... The manager did not want to try yet another Corolla as he already spend over 2 hours with me. I am still looking for more input from other Corolla owners....

 

[dkrivosheyev]

Over the weekend I changed the fluid from factory fill WS to Redline D4. I did three drains and fills. The whine is now completely gone! Also transmission seems to run about 10 degrees cooler now. I have IR thermometer so I can check the pan temperature very accurately. This confirms the theory I posted a while back about WS fluid being too thin for the transmission that was originally designed for T-IV fluid. Toyota switched to WS in U341 transmissions is 2009 for better fuel economy withough changing the design, this is why I believe many late toyota transmission experience this subtle geat whine at certain speeds. The shifting did not change at all, so I think from now on I will stay with D4....

 

[panthermike]

That's good. I wonder what the real cause is?

I mean, my fiancee's mom has an '05 that has had the whine since new I believe. It has had T-IV fluid.