Transmission Issue? Thud/Clang/Slam going from idle to first gear

I just bought the truck a couple weeks ago, 131k miles. No gear shifting or transmission issues on a thorough test drive including testing 4hi and 4low.

This morning I shifted to drive and noticed the truck was not inching forward when I took my foot off the brake. I gave it a little gas and the engine revved a little without engaging the gears. Gave a little more gas, then BAM!...slams into gear and I start driving along. No noticeable issues when driving.

After my errand, which took a couple hours, I returned to the truck and the exact same pattern ensued. The engine was cold by that time. When I got home, I put it back in Park, then shifted to Drive and the truck behaved normally, inching forward and responding immediately when given gas. So guessing the mechanisms work as they should once the engine heats up.

Any ideas? Right now it seems like I did not get what I paid for as I did not expect an immediate powertrain issue....especially with Toyota. But I know things happen.

 

Start by greasing your slip yoke and u-joints. I'm sure somebody will post a dozen links on how-to. These symptoms have been covered a number of times.

 

https://www.tundras.com/threads/black-hole-zerk-wtf.93630/

https://www.tundras.com/posts/1590863

https://www.tundras.com/threads/black-hole-zerk-wtf.93630/

Or try advanced search feature for 1st Gen forum with search term "clunk" should come up with some additional help.

 

https://www.tundras.com/threads/shutter-or-jolt-as-i-come-to-a-stop.39219/

 

Please do yourself a monstrous favor and read this thread, @theleeb: https://www.tundras.com/threads/so-you-wanna-buy-just-bought-a-1st-gen-tundra-eh.115928/

 

Yes, great thread and I read it thoroughly when I first purchased the truck and noticed a couple of (what turned out to be) minor issues....thanks for the reminder, took another gander and found the below. Will have the lube done and see what happens. I see the 1st gen trucks, especially 4WD, require a little more TLC than later generations but I reckon that is to be expected with any make/model through the natural evolution of technology. I am not much of a DIYer...to have this particular service done, would a dealership be my best bet?

• 2WD trucks have no grease zerks on the driveline. 4WD trucks have ample grease zerks on the driveline and need to be lubed with moly-fortified NLGI 2 grease every 5k-10k miles unless you like clunks/jolts when braking and accelerating. Note the slip yoke's zerk has a special fill process. If you've got no history on your truck, this is one of the first things you'll want to do.
• If you're 4WD and you want to re-gear, your front gear ratio must match the rear gear ratio, plan to upgrade both.
• Also for 4WD trucks, Toyota recommends logging at least 10 miles per month in 4HI to keep things lubed, actuators firing, etc. Do it. 4WD is expensive to diagnose & fix. In case you don't know, DO NOT turn sharply on pavement in 4HI on a Tundra (Sequoia is AWD/Torsen, so it's OK).

 

Have you checked trans fluid too?

 

Greasing is easy, you just need a grease gun. I'm guessing a dealership would charge you $120 to grease the driveline, it's a $40 tool and maybe $10 of the right grease to do it. You'd be nuts to pay them, IMHO. And you should really be lubing driveline every 5k-10k miles, that adds up fast.

As @ToyotaDude says, you've got the 4spd auto, which means you actually have a dipstick. RTFM about how to check your trans fluid correctly and confirm, since low fluid can produce that symptom. Don't just willy-nilly fill, or read it wrong and add too much, it's just as bad as not enough.

 

I had pretty close to this same issue after I bought mine. It drove home just fine. After a tune up and some regular maintenance I was going to test drive it again and went from park to R N D and with each shift the whole truck jerked! I was really worried the trans had an issue or I messed it up changing the trans filter and ATF. After a lot of research. Checking, searching, double checking. I found a wire coming from the throttle control motor that had pulled out of a crimp from the previous owner. Some solder and a 2inch length of the same wire and some heat shrink sleeves and its shifting like butter again. Check your wires and connectors.

 

That sounds like low fluid if it revs a bit then slams into gear. Mine did that exact thing after I did a drain and fill and didn't put enough juice back in the trans.

 

I read the owners manual and did not find anything on transmission fluid level checks....there's even a section on the various types of oil/fluids but transmission fluid is not listed.

I see there's a hot and cold marker on the stick...had to run an errand anyway, got the engine hot and checked the fluid level...twice. Got the same result both times and on both sides....looks like it is overfilled.

 

Correct, you should be using the Service Manual, not the Owner's Manual. Check this thread for link: https://www.tundras.com/threads/so-you-wanna-buy-just-bought-a-1st-gen-tundra-eh.115928/

I agree with your findings based on the picture alone, but just a picture isn't always the whole story.

 

Scratch the first attempt....followed the Service Manual steps this time....looks like I am good to go. So the next step is y'alls recommendation to lube the grease jerks on the driveline to, hopefully, eliminate that jarring clunk when getting the truck to move into first gear.

 

From your description, I doubt a little driveline lube fixes it. Still sounds like a transmission related problem.

 

This. As mentioned above, wrong fluid level can cause that issue (usually low fluid) . But if you’ve checked the level and it’s good, then your problem is more likely valve body related - a worn bore or pump, or bad solenoid. A transmission shop is able to check pressures at idle, in gear stopped, and while driving and shifting gears. I have had a bad pump solenoid cause the exact same issue on a fresh transmission build.

If you want to skip the transmission shop and hope for the best, a couple hours of your time and a shift kit MAY correct your issue. But I’d try some diagnostics on the solenoids with a multimeter first. Being basically electromagnets, solenoids can behave differently when warm vs cold.

 

does Toyota do this when you take your truck in for service ?

 

I don’t let other people touch my truck usually. So I really don’t know. I’m totally speculating on the above.

 

I asked them to do it every time I brought my truck in with Toyota Care. They did it exactly Nonce

 

This is FGT land. We have greasy hands. And pride.

 

doesn’t look to be grease fittings on a 2021 4wd so doesn’t look like my hands will be getting greasy.

 

It’s ok, we already knew that

 

I think they only put grease fittings on trucks that are meant to do things, and need to last. Everything is disposable these days.

 

It's interesting because after the initial issue from a cold stop, by the time I get to the end of the driveway when I have to stop again, the issue is gone....even though everything is still cold. It seems to me that the level on that dipstick is within an acceptable range....but closer to the first notch than the second. Could try adding a tad more fluid.

 

That's just what mine did. It did it when hot too though. Yours looks overfull so I'm not sure if it would do the same. Maybe too much fluid sitting in the TC that gets spun out on the trip down the driveway? I'm fuzzy on how ATs work so I'm not sure.

 

Actually if you look at my second photo from the Mar 26, 2024 at 1:47 PM post, you'll see the fluid level after I followed all steps from the service manual that Shifty kindly referred me to. The level is between the first and second notch for the hot indicator. Seems acceptable to me but I don't have the experience others do. I just bought the truck so no idea what type of fluid the previous owner used....one-owner truck and CarFax shows he had it serviced at either a dealer or auto shop. I see stuff like "rear axle oil seal replaced" and "brake fluid changed" but not a peep on transmission service.

 

Adding a little more color to the commentary....after the initial "slam" when giving the needed gas to get the gears to shift, by the time I get to the end of my 150' driveway and come to a complete stop before entering the road, the problem is gone...e.g., the engine is still cold.

 

Sounds like what happens to me regularly when I leave in the morning, and is one of the symptoms listed in the megathread.

 

Update to issue: as it turns out, it's not a grease or transmission fluid issue. It was the rear u-joint. I appreciate all y'alls input and feedback. More issues to come, I'm sure, lol.