ron44ald

I bought my 02 ES 166k miles at an abandoned car auction sight on scene. I knew before purchasing that i was going to spend some money into getting it running again. Turns out the car starts like new and engine sounds smooth and revs strong with no lights on the dash . All the electronics works except some buzz coming from the front speakers when i turn the radio on (if anyone know how to fix this LMK)

Heres the issue.... When i shift from Park to Drive, NO MOVEMENT!! all i get is nothing but revs and the car rolls like its on neutral. I dont feel or hear the transmission engaging either, it feels like its disconnected or something lol. When i shift, my cluster tells me which gear im in and when i put it back in Park it still rolls so i have to keep the Emergency Brakes on.

This is what i checked..... i went ahead and checked the tranny fluid, Dipstick reading looked good (i checked it while engine was cold)....Then i opened up the center console to check if the Shifter cable was broken but Nope it also looked good. I then checked the Shifter cable on the outside connected on the tranny, it also looked good as well.

What the heck? Could this transmission gone bad? I dont mind forking some $$ on a new trans, i know what i got myself into, i want to see if i fix it myself before i buy one. Only reason i ask is because ive never heard of Transmission issues on these lexus ES models so i figured it could be a bad solenoid or something. these things are really reliable and are strong as tanks.

Any help or feedback would be appreciated

FromFL

Make sure the cable actually moves at the trans and shifts. I looked at a Solara and the guy jury rigged the cable end at the transmission. The cable moved, but he said the attachment point broke or something.

Moisture

^ if it's not the cable then dont worry, the transmission is likely fine, just needs new transmission shift solenoid(s).

have the car towed to a transmission shop and have them drop the pan

Arsenii

Hello,

I don't think that the issue lies in the cable, since, at least in my 3rd gen, the illumination on the dash board depends on the transmission itself, not on the shifter, meaning that if dash lights are changing, the cable is attached to the transmission.

My guess would be similar to the Moisture, it is most likely a solenoid failure. You can also warm up the car and, while the engine is running, check the fluid again, since it can also cause issue like that.

Hope this helps and best of luck!

ron44ald

Yea everything moves, i threw my hands in there and manually shift it from the trans itself, the dash told in which gear i was in

ron44ald

You might be right, i feel like it could be a Solenoid too. The only problem is that my dash has no CEL, Usually when theres a transmission problem doesnt the CEL come on? I ran my OBD2 and all i get is an Airbag fault in the driver seat position.

ron44ald

Yea, i felt like i was supposed to check it while the engine was hot. i will do that again when i get the time off.

speedkar9

Since the engagement of the parking pawl is a purely mechanical system, this leads me to think that its not just a solenoid or an electronic fault.

Have you checked the park/neutral switch?

ron44ald

I realized that. i took off the emergency park then shifted to park this morning and it didnt move. i guess that one time it it decided to roll. if its a transmission issue why am i not getting any transmission codes.

edit: Im actually subscribed to you on youtube since july lol small world. any help from you would be appreciated

Richardsr

I’m thinking it may be an electrical problem. So, here’s a link to your fuse panels (2) and a description of what each one involves. Anyway, try Fuse No.40 in your passenger fuse panel.

https://www.autogenius.info/lexus-es...e-box-diagram/

speedkar9

Thanks. If you've seen my techstream video, you can sure do a lot of diagnostics with it.

Get the factory repair manual and begin the test procedures with techstream by checking the function of all solenoids and sensors within the transmission. A drain and fill couldn't hurt either, top it off with some fresh fluid.

Margate330

Hi ron44,
I only have experience testing external tranny selenoids but I found an awesome video by a master transmission tech the other day
who goes into detail on the failures of the internal valve body selenoids and common problems and it appears this can be done
DIY based on other videos I saw from someone with mid to high level tech abilities.

From a quick search your transmission came up as a U151 which is the same as mine on 2004 RX330 but if it is not hopefully this
video can still help someone.

Toyota U151 Valve Body Selenoids.