ES350Bob

PDG,
I just now read your post and sorry to be aware you have experienced the exact same thing as I just did only in a different way.

I was told last week by a Lexus FTS that my car had a TSIB done on it in Japan during manufacture and when I strongly objected to his claim, that was changed to will check and see if it had it done when he got back to the office. My car has a June build date.

My slipping was called learning and denied any slipping was going on yet I had 2 recordings of it doing it that the Lexus FTS refused to listen to. I had made them for the engine noise, but without intending had caught the transmission slipping twice!!! Flat refusal to listen to the recordings, just kept saying it was learning. My transmission is like Wanderers, slips when it darn well feels like and you cannot demand it do it when you want to duplicate it.

Now I see the same line used on you and it ANGERS me to no end we are being deceived on the scale going on. My car has been "learning" for a thousand plus miles now.

coleco

Im sorry, just wondering how to tell when the build date is? For the past few days I have noticed a couple of engine glitches but not sure if this is the slipping or not.

I would like to investigate further but not sure how to tell when build is.
Thanks..

coleco

nevermind, i saw in another thread its on the door jam of drivers side. sorry!

onsknht

I didn't read all the way through the post...The same thing is going on with the Camry... They call it a "shift flare" between 3rd and 4th. My SE V6 will do the same thing, once, when it is cold in the morning. I first noticed it about a week ago with less than 500 miles on the car.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmhPoBh0JJA

At this point, I'm inclined to leave it be. I'm not a trans expert but in my limited knowledge, it would appear a valve/passageway dries out/drains when the car sits for long periods (overnight)... Only until the gear change is called on is when the "bubble" is there and no fluid to do the job. Also I notice a little pulsation/surging while at a steady speed, this is not a gear change from the trans but appears to be the torque converter locking/unlocking ever so slightly.

It doesn't seem perfect by any means, but it is new and with drive-by-wire, I'm wondering if this is more electrical issues rather than mechanical... If you know how fuel injection works, it's apparent that computer codes/algorithms for making adjustments on the fly are not always perfect. It's just now they include transmission shifts, torque converter locks, speed sensors, inclinometers, etc, etc. There's more to deal with and may be not all its cracked up to be.

PDG810810

350Bob,
I thought I would post a reply on this thread,
My 3-4 slippage is still going on but I have not contacted the dealer about it. It does not bother me much, and I thought I would wait until my ODO rolls in at 5K. I've got a couple of door rattles that are driving me nuts since they are at ear level. I told them (dealer) about it but they did not fix.
I need to pinpoint the location exactly to help them out.
The wait might also help Lexus get a handle on the slip issue. So I figure to wait about a month.

ES350Bob

PDG...thanks for letting me know. If they just told you it is learning rather than document it is still slipping even after a TSIB they did on your car, I think that is wrong to do as it doesn't let the factory know the TSIB isn't working unless they already know it isn't working and are letting you deal with it until they can come up with something else. It is odd though I was told the same ..."it's learning" when the darn thing is slipping or a very, very slow learner.

As for door rattles, check the passenger head rest, passenger seat back, in case it is rattling as mine does which at first I thought was coming from the door. Next time you hear rattles grab ahold of the passenger head rest and place light to medium pressure forward and see if you are lucky enough to have found at least one source of the rattles.

Mine has a rattle in the back seat area somewhere I'm trying to better identify exact area. It is almost always quiet when on smoother surfaces but irregularity on a road and it can be heard.

Given the other issues with my car, I don't even mention those.

Julez

I'm taking my ES to the dealer in an hour and telling them to fix this transmission problem. It is so blatent a problem, I won't be satisfied until they admit there is a problem and fix it.

ES350Bob

kilowatt,

My car is a build date June like your car is.

My transmission slips multiple gears with one gearset the most often and the other just once in a while by comparison and I thought it was 2 to 3 that slipped most often but also 3 to 4 but the transmission is otherwise so quiet you cannot be certain it may be 3 to 4 most often and 4 to 5 occasionally. It does this with no pattern at all, just when it darn well feels like it.

The problem I have is even though your car and mine have the same build date I was told my car had it's transmission TSIB during it's manufacture in Japan. And when I objected to that claim that was changed to will check and see if my car had it's trans TSIB done in Japan.

First it was said to me as an absolute, then it changed to will check into it and I am still waiting for the results of them checking into it.

Either way, repairs to my car were denied completely even though I had tapes of it slipping which the Lexus FTS refused to listen to. He said it was learning, not slipping.

Can you let me know if you are also told your car already had the update before it left Japan? And if it is claimed it did, what is the TSIB or plan of action for those that still slip after such a TSIB?

I think I was fed a truckload of BS on mine supposedly having it done while it was still in Japan, more so now since I am waiting and waiting for this check and see but will allow that maybe it did and it still slips afterward.

kilowatt

ES350Bob,

Took the car to the dealer last week, after first denying the slippage they were finally able to duplicate it on a test ride, was told they had to order parts and would call me back. Have not heard back yet.

Help me out, what exactly is the TSIB ?

ES350Bob

kilowatt,

A TSIB is a technical service information bulletin and one for the transmission slipping was issued August 2.

It is to replace a valve body relating to gears 2 to 3.

I'm glad you got more than one drive of your vehicle to duplicate it, one is all I got even though I had brought recordings of it doing it.

If not too much trouble, ask your dealer if they are performing the August 2 TSIB on your transmission and let me know.

Thanks

kilowatt

ES350Bob,

Thanks, will advise when I return from the dealer.

ES350Bob

Sorry, the TSIB was for gears 3 to 4 not 2 to 3 as I posted.

2 to 3 is what I Thought/think my car does in addition to 3 to 4.

kilowatt

Just checked my service invoice, part they ordered was "valve body"...guess that answers the TSIB question. Part must also be in demand !

ES350Bob

Yes that sure does answer that question and thank you.

Our cars are same build date so I'm leaning more toward I was totally lied to in order to deny me repair to my transmission in stating to me mine had it during it's manufacture, which as I said changed real fast to will check and see if it did. Something told me right as he was saying it to me he was BS'ing me and he sure did backpedal on that claim as an absolute when I let him know I didn't believe it. When something is an absolute you don't see a backpedal, it stays an absolute.

I sincerely hope it fixes the problem for you, but judging by several posts by members on here who have had it done, it doesn't fix the problem and maybe it's because Lexus does not realize it is more than one gearset that does it and the valve body is not THE fix.

Keep us all posted on how it does afterward for you and good luck with it.

ES350Bob

kilo.....

I received a phone call last week pertaining to my having tried to follow up on what i was told about car's transmission having received it's TSIB update in Japan.

Seems the Lexus guy now cannot remember telling me my car had a TSIB in Japan. He did, and now I know I was right, I was just BS'd and it was done on purpose.

Then same conversation, story given me was that he refused to listen to my recordings of it slipping because of the computer meter results had already shown my car was fine. Problem with that claim is he refused to listen to them BEFORE the drive with meter attached as tech foreman had to connect the device, connection is under my/your steering wheel, and recheck it's connection before we set out.

The car was stone cold when started at roughly 9:15 am so the refusal to listen came before any testing counter to the claim made to me last week.

I hope you fare far better than I in dealings with your transmission and in general with your car.