I recently acquired a 2007 IS250 with 157k miles for a very attractive price. Previous owner informed me it had transmissions problems along with other minor issues that were neglected. I ran a scan and received p25757 error. After driving it for a couple weeks, it intermittently will not shift beyond 4th gear, even when going to sports mode. The dash indicator will display 5th and 6th, but the transmission remains in 4th. Resetting the ECU will work for a while before the problem comes back.

I was going to replace the lockup solenoid from reading the posts found here, but i'm now leaning towards replacing the transmission with a low mileage one from a salvage yard.

It seems 150K miles is a good life for these transmissions and changing out solenoids may just be a temporary fix. I've found a few sub 20k mile transmissions on the web for $1500.

Do you think it's worth it trying to figure out which solenoid is bad or just go ahead with the swap due to the amount of miles on it?
Anyone out there getting more than 150K on a A960E transmission?
Paul in Htown.

 

Try to bring the life to the transmission, replace the oil maybe it is low ?

Replace 3 liters at a time maximum.

 

i had this same problem but my car wasnt shifting past 3rd gear and throwing a code for the shift solenoid. the dealer wanted me to replace the transmission but i didnt have the money for it so i had my mechanic drop the transmission pan to test / replace the solenoid. he dropped the pan and found the fluid to be brown and very dirty like motor oil which is weird because the fluid should be red-ish. while the pan was off he tested all the solenoids and all tested to be good... so i just had him flush out the transmission and replace the transmission filter and its been a week and my car is good as new

 

I guess it won't hurt to drop the pan and check/change the oil first. I'll go ahead and try that this weekend.

I did check the ECU and 2 more new codes now appeared. P2714 and P0894 both are solenoid related.

Thanks guys.

 

Do a function test on the solenoids while the transmission pan is off while you're at it, I believe they run $200+ per solenoid.

 

hope its just the solenoids so you can get it fixed. New Transmission oil and filter help a lot for smoothness and response after 100kmiles atleast it did for me and i think even mpg improved, do the diff while your at it. I believe after 90k depending on your driving habits everyone should drop the tranny pan and replace all the oil because it sure gets dark and gunky its not lifetime like the manual states at all. after that do the 1/3rd drain fill every 30k-60k depending on driving habits

 

It was my understanding they could not replace all the oil due to the sealed system. Could you describe how you were able to replace all the fluid? Thanks

 

I just got thru changing about 3& 3/4 quarts of the transmission fluid today. The old oil was pretty much black. I also removed and tested each of the 9 solenoids from the valve body. All were within specs for resistance and all had an audible click when 12v was applied. I got 2 gallons of WS compatible fluid and will change out some more next weekend if time permits. The filter was replaced and the ECU was reset and its seems to be shifting thru all gears for now.

Navarachi, as far as I know, you can only do partial changes on these transmissions. You can pull just the drain plug to get most of what is in the pan out, or remove the pan and the valve body to get a little more out, but it is a lot of work. I'll stick to just draining the pan several times over the next month. You should get close to 3 quarts using this method, but make sure you follow the manufacturers method for filling it back up. It needs to be at a proper temperature when the level is checked.

 

Let us know how it holds up! My car just popped the P2714 code and randomly won't shift into 3rd sometimes (works normally again after I shut the car off). I might just replace the transmission at this point..

 

How did you put in the transmission fluid, I thought our cars need a machine to put the fluid in.... Did I miss something.

 

There is a fill plug on the driver's side behind a cover held on with 2 10 mm bolts. You need a 24mm socket to remove the plug. You will require a fluid pump to transfer the new oil from the bottle to the transmission fill hole.
With the transmission at the correct temperature, pump fluid until in starts draining out of the overflow. stop, run the car for 30 seconds cycling thru the gears, and repeat fill process. The level should be right if the transmission is at the proper temperature and oil just begins to trickle from the overflow with the motor running.

The car shifted fine today during my commute to and from work. Will continue to monitor and drain/fill again over the weekend.

 

*subscribed*

Going through the same thing, gonna be changing my oil the week after next.

 

Performed a second drain/fill today. It is shifting pretty good so far. I'll probably to this one more time next week before calling it a day, hopefully it will continue to shift properly and not throw anymore codes.

BTW, I've been using Valvoline Max Life synthetic instead of Toyota WS. Valvoline is WS compliant and

 

Nice! I was too scared buying different oil, good to know that there are other suitable options out there.

Mine has suddenly stopped throwing codes for the past month now, even though I havent changed anything but I do notice that the gear changes are a bit more rough =/

Can't wait to change the oil to see what it looks like =)

 

Toyota dealer will flush out and change the transmission for Lexus IS for $240. I had change my transmission oil by moving transmission oil pan before, and the car run normal.