DaveZUL8R

So I just picked up a 2003 GS300 (vvti 2jz-ge) with some internal transmission codes and a loopy shift. Needing to pass emissions here in GA I made a few phone calls and a local enthusiast had a vvti aristo transmission. All the plugs were the same on the transmission. The only differences were the Torque Converter bolts were a little farther out and used thicker bolts, and the driveshaft tailshaft holes where the driveshaft bolts to it were a little off. Fortunately I did this trans swap at my buddy's machine shop so I was able to overcome those two hurdles and got everything bolted together.

After doing the transmission swap, the car has passed emissions with no problem and still has no codes almost 1,000 miles later, however from a stop, you give it gas, move 6 feet, then it quickly shifts into second gear bogging down. It also has hard shifts into 3rd and into 4th at WOT.

I'm wondering if this transmission is bad or do I need to move a wire somewhere or something.

A local Lexus technician told me that the aristo trans is 4 speed and my gs300 trans was a 5 speed so perhaps the shift points are messed up and perhaps there's no way around that. He also said to check the voltages at the transmission connector to make sure the trans is getting the proper voltages, which I'm happy to do. I can see the circuit diagrams from ecu to trans from shopkeypro but I can't find anything that tells me what I should be getting to each pin. Perhaps you guys can shed some light there.

I am happy to test each pin going to the trans but don't know what should be getting what to deduce that as the culprit.

I am willing to buy and wire in the aristo ecu to control the transmission shifting if that will fix this issue. I can wire both computers to run tandem with the stock ecu doing everything but the transmission to maintain obd2 compliance if that's what needs to happen.

If this plug and play transmission should have no problems like this at all then perhaps it's just bad... I don't know , but I'm not anywhere as familiar with these as you guys on here are so I would really appreciate your thoughts about my issue.

Thank you in advance,

eefmydee

I really really appreciate this input about the your ATF Built A340E. If I may ask, how long have you been at that power level? How long ago was the tranny built? Is there any way to increase strength on the input shaft? Do you plan on using an aftermarket controller on the APTech car? What converter are you running and at what stall?

Also as I stated before the the A650E that came out of the 2jz vehicles (that are naturally aspirated) do have weaker internals. That is 100% accurate. The ones that are in the v8 vehicles (98-00 sc400 and gs400, sc430 gs430 etc) Have been beefed up by the factory internally because of the increase in torque.

What I am going to do on the next post on here is gather together on a list all of the companys that have TCU"s that could be made to work with these transmissions and also all of the companys that modify the transmissions, valve bodies and torque converters for these toyota transmissions so stay tuned for that list.

gerrb

iTrader: (34)

DaveZUL8R - if you have been using the transmission for over 1000 miles then it is a good transmission . The problem is you are not controlling it with the right ECU if you still have the GS300 ECU . Both transmission may have same wiring and are plug and play but are operated differently by their respective ECUs. Line pressure through the solenoids and shift points on the ECU are programmed for the transmission based on the engine it is mated to.

It will work but not as smooth as when you have the right controller. Bottom line .. you control a transmission with the right controller. Even with after market ECUs , we have to dictate when the transmission shifts on each gear based on RPM so the auto transmission will perform flawless. Soft and hard shifts are controlled by line pressure through the solenoids which again are controlled by the transmission controller which in this case is your engine ECU.

The SC300 converter , plate and drive shaft flange are different from the aristo vvti gte . The GTE have wider hole spacing . The SC300 has a smaller converter and flange thus the smaller gap on their holes.



eefymydee - input shaft .. only way is to have a billet input shaft but without the market or amount of end users willing to pay for it , it is costly so no one will make them for now.

had my trannies for at least 4 years .The trans that I have pushed to +900rwhp has around 2k miles . One trans on a 850rwhp / 650ft.lbs of torque car have 8k miles and the other one at around 420rwhp at 14k miles. I use 3500 stall converters for street use .The secret of these auto transmissions is a good clean always cool transmission fluid ...thus coolers are a must. The more the merrier to the point that it keeps the trans fluid always at its normal operating temperature even with the high torque they are exposed to. That gives them a better chance of lasting longer. One day , I will try to push the ATF Built tranny above +1000rwhp and thus get the torque higher and see if it survives. It is actually the torque that damages the tranny that is why they are rated based on torque and not horsepower.

I always prefer to use the proEFI to control these transmissions due to flexibility and its controlling features to get the transmission work flawlessly. For the APtech Project since it will just be a nice looking go around town car , I will try to piggy back the stock aristo vvti ECU to control trans with a less expensive after market engine ecu to control fuel and ignition .

eefmydee

I was looking it up and I find that in the States the Aristo (GS) come with 5 speed with both the 2j and the 1uz when they started offering the 5 speed. I did not find the the 6 cylinder aristo in japan came with the a650e I just couldnt find anything concrete. FYI the A650E and the A340E look impressively similar on the outside but if you had a 5 speed and you put in a 4 speed it would of been a massive difference in gearing and you would really notice the difference becasue the gearing on the a650e is stacked up a lot closer to each other and the final drive is more aggressive if I remember correctly. The shifts on the see that all you complaning about is boging and just a hard shift from 3rd to 4th you probably put in the right transmission.

eefmydee

I also wanted to state a few pointers for the other people reading.

1) as gerrb stated heat is what kills automatics so spending money on very good oil coolers is a very good idea and please add fans.
2) a larger stall creates more heat so be careful to not choose a stall speed that is to high and with more heat your stall speed could become inconsistent because the fluid will start to thin out.
3) buy a converter that has a lockup function in it and use it. this will increase transmission life and your fluid will not break down as fast (because less heat) when you have it engaged cruising. there are many companys that improve the clutches on the stock converters and other parts so it can hold lockup a lot better under cruising conditions ***(there are very few people that make or have faith in the ability of these torque converter (even modified) to hold power under wot conditions and claim you will damage the torque conver. you have been warned.)***
4) I have seen a lot of guys say that increasing fluid capacity in the pan (unfortunately also increasing weight) will keep the tranny living longer and the fluid since you are not beating the crap of the same small capacity fluid. So where is the larger pan? I know for a fact that the A340F pan, A340E pan and the A650E pan are the same in bolt pattern so they will bolt up to each other but the a340f is a deeper pan than the other two. (a340e and a650e have same depth). be sure that the angle of the pipe that the dipstick goes in ( the pipe connected to the pan) is correct because i bought and a650e and the pipe is straight up but the one on the a340e that is on my car is way slanted. good thing my pan will bolt up. *** all three filters are different*** the a340e and a340f are interchangeable but the a340f has a lower pickup naturally. the a650e is different because it is the 5 speed.

Also I am still working on that large list of companies and products that support these transmissions. I also will be including other toyota transmissions in general and also the A761e(6 speed automatic) the was fitted to the 3uz engine. (this transmission will bolt up to the 1uz and 2 uz if anyone ever figures out the tune and control it) im also curious if the a761e could possibly be bolted up to the 1jz and 2jz engine blocks.

stay tuned for the list.

eefmydee

Okay so here is the list of products/companies for toyota vehicles. Some of these companis do way more than just the 5 transmissions that have been stated so far in this forum. If the company has even done one toyota product they will be stated and have a link posted for the main page on their website. Also will state trans controllers in general.

Level10 phone number: 973-827-1000
http://www.levelten.com/default.asp

IPT performance phone number: (1-866-828-7267) Or 973 406 7000
http://www.importperformancetrans.com/

FTI Transmissions phone number: 866-726-8358
http://ftiperformance.com/ Look it up under these 2 categories when looking for the Toyota stuff.SRL Series 9.5 “Billet Lock Up“

SRL-3 Series 9.5 “Triple Clutch“

ATF Speed phone: 954-916-1155
http://www.atfspeed.com/contact-us/

Induction performance Phone: (813) 443-5064
https://induction-performance.myshopify.com/

Power Dynamix phone: (469)274-0168
http://powerdynamix.com/

Oregon Performance Transmission (These sell a lot of little parts and shift kits)
http://www.oregonperformancetransmission.com/

***Sonnax*** (probably the most important one on here because they sell allf the little and maintenance part for any transmission )
phone: (800) 843-2600 or +1 (802) 463-9722
http://www.sonnax.com/

THESE ARE COMPANIES THAT MAKE TRANSMISSION CONTROL UNITS (TCU)

PowerTrain Control Solutions phone:+1 (804) 227-3023
https://www.powertraincontrolsolutions.com/

Latent Solutions (creators of the suprastick) phone: 619.320.4466
http://www.latentsolutions.com/suprastickuv.html

Spitronics email: ***Keep in mind this company has ready to go transmission tunes for these follwing transmissions** A650E, A343E, U340Enanet@spitronics.com?subject=Web%20Request%20-%20Sales http://www.spitronics.co.za/index.php (Also had wiring diagrams for different transmissions that are fully worked out)


TCI Transmissions phone: Toll Free:888-776-9824 Local:662-224-8972
http://www.tciauto.com/

MegaShift
http://www.msgpio.com/manuals/mshift/4L60e.html#


PLEASE IF ANYBODY HAS MORE COMPANIES THAT MAKES PRODUCTS THAT WOULD HELP THIS ALONG AND FOR OUR VEHICLES CONCERNING TRANSMISSIONS PLEASE DONT BE AFRAID TO ADD AND/OR COMMENT!

eefmydee

If acura put a torque converter on a DCT they might as well kept it coventional automatic. I think that **** is really dumb but I understand the purpose.

Either way sooner or later im going to embark on an adventure to try and do the same with another Lexus transmission (maybe A650E). I feel though that to come anywhere close I will have to open up the tranny and modify the valve body clutches etc.