2005 Taco Automatic Trans ?

[k72516]

Hi all, my dad just bought a 05 Taco and he loves it except one thing. Whenever you're driving it and you let up off the gas it downshifts a gear. My dad noticed it after he bought it... but in it today he said if he had known about it he wouldn't have bought it. He says "Whenever you let up off the gas it downshifts and the RPM's go up and it burns even MORE gas." lol...k dad. He's been a loyal tacoma guy, last truck was a 97 taco 4cyl manual and he loved that thing but he wanted the newer one.

Long story short: Any of you new owners notice this too? And do you think he can get the ECM reprogrammed to stop downshifting? He just wants it to "glide" as he put it...

[Flash75]

I don't have an answer but I'm curious if the downshifting occurrs at all speeds or is it only when slowing for a stop? If it happens at all speeds it would be annoying to me. Not a big problem if only at stops. In any case I would go back to the dealer and ask them to explain this feature. It may not be normal. If they cannot give a satisfactory answer and say they all do that ask to drive another truck. If it happens only when stopping I don't think it will affect fuel mileage enough to notice. If it is normal it may be difficult to impossible to get Toyota to reprogram the tranny without a factory technical service bulletin.

Clifton

[k72516]

It occurs at all speeds, more notable when you're going faster, say 35+. I noticed my dad shifting it into neutral all the time and that's what brought all this about... the bad news is that he's stubborn as hell and will never bring it to the dealer to have it looked at.

[Flash75]

I did some searching around and haven't found any complaints about 2005 Tacoma's shifting down when letting off the gas pedal. We need a post from someone with a 2005 to verify if their truck does the same. There may be some traction enhancing options that could possibly cause this to happen.

I'm not being disrespectful, but based on most driving instructions I have seen, moving the shifter to neutral when slowing down or stopping is a dangerous practice. Of course if your dad is stubborn you probably don't want to suggest that to him. Meanwhile, good luck and hopefully someone with a 2005 automatic will post.

[k72516]

I know, he's just really stubborn like that...

[IndigoTaco]

I can honestly say I haven't noticed this in mine. Will drive around a bit next couple of days to be sure. The only time I notice a downshift is when I make it, by punching it or letting up on the gas then putting it down. I'll pay more attention when I'm slowing down to confirm. Is your dads a 4 cyl or V6?

BTW - New to these forums and new Taco owner. 05 Indigo Ink, V6.

[k72516]

It's a 6.

I dunno, I'm starting to think that maybe it's just because the truck is so heavy that when you let off the gas it just slows down? The more I think about it the more it sounds stupid... I don't think it's downshifting, just when you let off the gas it drops speed really fast... like you have to keep your foot in the gas all the time or else you slow down really fast.

[IndigoTaco]

After driving around, I got up to various speeds and let off the gas. I did notice a downshift at about 32mph. Didn't seem to matter what speed. Did off the gas slowdowns from 40ish, 60sih, 70ish. Every time was at or about 32 for only downshift. Best guess, so it didn't stall itself out. Just by the way it felt, reminded me of when I had a stick and let it coast in 4th. Gets to a certain speed and the engine feels like it's struggling to keep going.

[Flash75]

Lockup torque converters are programed to lock up and unlock at certain speeds, maybe you are feeling the torque converter unlock on deceleration rather than an actual downshift. This action is more noticable on some vehicles. I can barely detect it locking or unlocking on my 2004 Tacoma with 2.4 engine and automatic transmission. It was more noticable on the Nissan Frontier I owned previously.

[k72516]

Originally Posted by Flash75

Lockup torque converters are programed to lock up and unlock at certain speeds, maybe you are feeling the torque converter unlock on deceleration rather than an actual downshift. This action is more noticable on some vehicles. I can barely detect it locking or unlocking on my 2004 Tacoma with 2.4 engine and automatic transmission. It was more noticable on the Nissan Frontier I owned previously.

That sounds more likely. So I doubt my dad's gonna buy a new torque converter, or that they even make one lol.

[Mathys]

The downshifting is a feature of the tacoma. If you read the specs on the website it mentions it on there somewhere. If I remember right it states that it is an inteligent transmission that utilizes low engine speed braking.


And you can reassure your Dad that when you let go of the gas and the RPM's go up it does not use anymore fuel. It is just like downshifting with a manual to slow down. Remember you have to push the gas peddle down for it to use more fuel.

------
Mathys
05 Tacoma

[k72516]

Originally Posted by Mathys

The downshifting is a feature of the tacoma. If you read the specs on the website it mentions it on there somewhere. If I remember right it states that it is an inteligent transmission that utilizes low engine speed braking.

Hey, that's it!

http://www.toyotaoffroad.com/Article...005_Tacoma.htm

Third paragraph up from the bottom is the little bit of info I could find on the subject. I hate how nothing is explained now-a-days. You'd think that if they made all this high tech fancy crap they'd at least explain what it does indepth somewhere for car guys with curious minds and informed consumers. ::end rant:: lol Me on the other hand has a hot lead on a '67 Skylark =]

I'm also gonna check the owners manual... duh, prolly should've started my research there... I'll post if I can find anything.

[Brian R.]

Originally Posted by k72516

It occurs at all speeds, more notable when you're going faster, say 35+. I noticed my dad shifting it into neutral all the time and that's what brought all this about... the bad news is that he's stubborn as hell and will never bring it to the dealer to have it looked at.

It is very dangerous to put the vehicle in neutral while traveling fast. If your engine looses power, there goes your brakes. In many places it is illegal to "Coast".

[Toyotatac92]

sorry for this late reply, but i just started today joining this site. If I was your dad i would sell and buy probally a year older one. Dont let him fear with the tyranny of the car dealer. I just got one from my grandpa, it is a 92, 5-speed, no radio, ordinary truck and it works fine.

-----sorry, Toyotatac92

[k72516]

Originally Posted by Toyotatac92

sorry for this late reply, but i just started today joining this site. If I was your dad i would sell and buy probally a year older one. Dont let him fear with the tyranny of the car dealer. I just got one from my grandpa, it is a 92, 5-speed, no radio, ordinary truck and it works fine.

Nah, the whole reason my dad bought it was because he's "never owned anything brand new." So since it was with the whole redesign he liked that, and it's brand new and just what he wanted and blah blah blah... you know.