And Now onto the next S'tivo Problem

[xoom]

Hi Guys,

Was wondering if you can give the UK TOC a look especially at the thread i have indicated below.

http://toyotaownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=20749

It details how there is this scraping noise which is evident when in 3rd/4th and at low revs and the noise is really evident when you are engine braking.

I am a victim of this problem :( :( and have been since day 1 of having the car and since then the cables have been getting the blame for this noise. Now as the cables i think have been sorted i think this 1 has nothing to do with the cable.

It doesnt sound like anything which should be coming from the engine and it is a distinctive noise which you can differentiate between it and your engine reving.

The noise can be amplified by simply pushing your clutch in slightly.

The guys OS have had various things done to fix this from new clutch to modding bits n pieces in the gear box to the tightening of the belt we have under the bonnet.

I have raised this with toyota and am now waiting a response.

Do any of you guys have this problem ?

Cheers

Bill

[dakota]

If the noise is apparent on over-run, coasting without throttle, it is usually symptomatic of a worn gearbox bearing.

Drive belt tensioners were often replaced on IZZ-FE MR2's to fix a rattly engine sound, and made a big difference, dont think local 'rollas have needed new tensioners fitted yet and of course that's not a gearbox issue.

[eddy_torrezz]

ive got a brand new 2004 sportivo and have the same problem but its barly run in i oly got it a weeke or so ago and the sound has been there sine the 3rd day.

it sounds like somthing is scrubbing out somewhere but i was sure what it was.maybe i should take it to toyota and see what they say about it.

[xoom]

Hi Eddy,

Welcome to the forum. Let me b the first to say congrats on ur purchase. Now dont b turned off by these issues as im hoping they will get fixed. Eventually i hope.

Now as for thinking hey my car is brand new well ill introduce you to my scenario.

I picked up on all these problems pretty much on the drive on the way home from the dealership when the car had less than 50km on the dial. How ? Well it sounded n drove completly different to the one i test drove.

Now that was on a Thursday i took the car back to the service dept on the following monday 4 days later and since then ive been on the wonderful roller coaster ride called the toyota experience and it is now a year later to the day almost and the ride is continuing. The first 10 months were absolutly hopeless and i came ever so close to trading the car in for something else. Its kinda better at the moment but lets c if toyota continues to behave.

Two issues nailed and now 1 more to go. At that rate we should have this one sorted in about 6 months :( :( :(

As for the description you gave that is 100% spot on as to what i can hear as well.

Cheers

Bill

[ZEEROLLA]

I also have some sort of noise but i have now learnt to just leave it until something is really broken (touchwod) because pressing the issues and complaining about something i feel is wrong with the car has taken up too much of my time. It is just a tiring process and i would rather forget it and have it fixed uder Warranty when something is really broken. Then i will put all the blame on Toyota for not manufacturing a reliable car and for not checking the car thoroughly during service. That is why i always try to service the car at Toyota dealerships so that they have less excuses. I still love the Stivo although it has quite a few niggly problems for a Toyota but the Stivo is just great value for money and i just love the satisfaction when i drive the bugger hard!!

Zee

[NIKICH]

I have the same problem. I get it when the car has been sitting there for a few hours. After about 50 metres of driving the noise goes away. I dont know if u guys have noticed that

[BlackRolla]

i've got similar noises as well. I've been getting this noise since day 1. It's a rattle or sizzling noise when accelerating. It also occurs when you down shift. I have raised this issue with Toyota but we took another Stivo for a run and that had the same noise. Now when I got my gear selector cable replaced the noise is now 5 times worst. the noise is unbearable. I have booked the car in for Thursday and see if they can find out what the problem is. I'll let u guys know what they say.

[xoom]

Its 5 times worse cause u can now hear it better because the selector cables problem has gone and that was so bad. :P :P

But do let us know how u go as i indicated i to am suffering from the scraping symptoms.

[xoom]

Hi BlackRolla,

Let us know how you went ? What happened ? What did they do ? Is it resolved ? etc etc etc ?????

I am also waiting feedback from some of the guys form Europe.

Cheers

Bill

[BlackRolla]

The car will be going in for a major check as I have had problems regarding the gear selector cable since day one and gone back numerous times. i went for a spin with the service manager as well and he f*cking couldn;t hear anything which is bullsh#t. I also went for a spin with a senior mechanic. he actually heard the sizzling and slight buzzing noise from the dash however he says there's not much he can do as they are the revised gear selector cables. I was wondering if anyone has any issues after the cables were replaced as I don;t seem to be having any luck with the new cables.

What they will be doing for me now is order new thrust bearings which I don't have a clue what that is but I hope it will fix it. Does anyone know what thrust bearings do?. I have the car booked in for next Thursday as I will have to wait for the new parts. Also getting the vibration in the glovebox fixed as well. This is the third time that they are attempting to fix the rattling glovebox.

I really want to take my car to a different service department as these guys seem to know jack sh#t. Can I actually take my car for warranty repairs at another service department or do I have to take it to the guys I bought it from?

[MR22ZZ]

You can take your car to any Toyota service centre (provided you are not under any extended warranty, service plan deal). I'd be buggered if I had to drive back to Adelaide every time something went wrong!!!!!

[ZEEROLLA]

The car will be going in for a major check as I have had problems regarding the gear selector cable since day one and gone back numerous times. i went for a spin with the service manager as well and he f*cking couldn;t hear anything which is bullsh#t. I also went for a spin with a senior mechanic. he actually heard the sizzling and slight buzzing noise from the dash however he says there's not much he can do as they are the revised gear selector cables. I was wondering if anyone has any issues after the cables were replaced as I don;t seem to be having any luck with the new cables.

What they will be doing for me now is order new thrust bearings which I don't have a clue what that is but I hope it will fix it. Does anyone know what thrust bearings do?. I have the car booked in for next Thursday as I will have to wait for the new parts. Also getting the vibration in the glovebox fixed as well. This is the third time that they are attempting to fix the rattling glovebox.

I really want to take my car to a different service department as these guys seem to know jack sh#t. Can I actually take my car for warranty repairs at another service department or do I have to take it to the guys I bought it from?

Apparently Corollas ZZE12# models have been known to encounter thrust bearing issues, someone mentioned this before. I think someone with a Stivo has had their thrust bearing looked at or replaced. If i am not wrong it is related to the drivetrain eg. clutch, gearbox or drivshaft?

[QUICKSILVER]

Whats up all?

OK. There's 2 different issues that I can establish that concerns you...and both are not symptomatic problems.

Issue 1

When decelerating under engine compression or accererelating , particularly in lower gears under lower rpm conditions, you hear a growl / rattle coming from the transmission area entering the cabin???? All that you are hearing is transaxle activity and Toyota gearboxes are, unfortunately, notorius for this. A fieldfix has been developed for this on all Corolla models, but does not eliminate the problem completely. The transaxle cable is fitted with a damper to reduce the intrusion of this noise into the cabin. The growl, as mentioned before, is also evident under acceleration under low rpm conditions. The growl should become less noticeable as you go higher up the rev range as well as moving up to a higher gear. Its purely an NVH issue and should not concern you.

Issue 2

When the engine is idling under certain conditions, a rattling / ticking noise may make its way into the cabin. This noise is amplified, under certain conditions, when the aircon unit is turned on.

If you put in / engage your clutch, the noise goes away. If you experience this symptom, your car suffers from gear clatter. There is no cure for this and does not signify a malfunction. Many will tell you that it possibly would be a release or thrust bearing problem. This is not the case.

The increased noise levels attributable to gearbox activity is attributable to the fact that the casings are thinner to reduce weight. The problem is amplified as the underbody sealing and noise supression is poor. Hope this helps.

[BlackRolla]

Quicksilver

I undertsand that the noise when accelerating is apparently normal however this noise has increased significantly since the replacement of the gear selector cable. The noise is heard when all windows are up and you can hear a definite sizzle or rattle noise in teh engine. It never use to be this loud. You can also hear it at high revs which is a higher pitch sizzling noise. Do you think this is the thrust bearing? Because this is what Toyota will replace for me on Thursday. Could it be something else? I just wish they can get it right this time as everything they do never seems to fix anything. Even the new gear selector cable did not make the buzzing noise in the CD dash go away. Hope I can get everything fixed this time.

I think I have got the worst Stivo ever made.

[NIKICH]

Could it be that they didnt change the cables?? Maybe they pulled a shifty on ya??

[qkslvr]

Hey blackrolla, the thrust bearings are the bearings in your clutch that allow the clutch plate to spin freely while you've got your foot on the clutch pedal.

[BlackRolla]

I'm pretty sure they replaced the gear selector cable because it wouldn;t be making more noise than it did before. I also got a new gear knob as well. It is definitley louder and more noisier.

Why would they wanna change the thrust bearing when the problem has nothing to do with the clutch. It's only when accelerating that the rattle/ szzle noise occurs.

[ZEEROLLA]

I think the thrust bearing is related to the sticky shifter at high revs rather than the noise.

[QUICKSILVER]

Quicksilver

I undertsand that the noise when accelerating is apparently normal however this noise has increased significantly since the replacement of the gear selector cable. The noise is heard when all windows are up and you can hear a definite sizzle or rattle noise in teh engine. It never use to be this loud. You can also hear it at high revs which is a higher pitch sizzling noise. Do you think this is the thrust bearing? Because this is what Toyota will replace for me on Thursday. Could it be something else? I just wish they can get it right this time as everything they do never seems to fix anything. Even the new gear selector cable did not make the buzzing noise in the CD dash go away. Hope I can get everything fixed this time.

I think I have got the worst Stivo ever made.

As you can appreciate, its difficult to diagnose a problem on the net

However, to check if it is the thrust bearing, put the car in neutral and let it idle whislt your care is at a standstill. Then put your clutch in. If a noise eminates, it will be your thrust bearing. I'm noit too sure, but this diagnosis makes sense to me based on my understanding on how the thrust bearing works.

[trd_141]

i had that bearing problem

the bearing popped out and i couldnt select a gear

my service center fixed it

[ADR_rolla]

the next problem is the shifting problem(1st to 2nd) as the gear slector cable recall did not fix it all all.. well not for me...

[Ilivfor6]

In the states the guys with Celica's say the gear change issue was only fixed with new clutch & flywheel combo's (probably just clutch but they seem to do the flywheel as well as the labour tends to cost more than the parts over there.

My new TRD clutch & TOMS flywheel go in on Thursday & Friday next week so by the end of next weekend will be able to give an answer as to wether it has fixed the problem or not (and in my car it is a problem)

Will let you know!

[xoom]

Still waiting on a response from toyota regarding this as its getting worse.

Will let you know if anything comes of it

[Danthuyer]

My insider news is that they are loking at the gearbox ....but its all hush hush....as they dont like the 'racerboy' changing attitude which they think Sportivo drivers have!!!! (the ones whom are complaining of the issue that is)

[xoom]

the one problem that i have if that's their attitude is that ive had this problem with the car since day 1 and since day 1 they have all been saying this problem is a side effect of the gear selector cables

So if they are going to come back and say its the driving style then they are going to have a fight on their hands. As like i said ive had this problem from when i had less than 50km on the dial. Will wait and see how they play it out.

And if i get the whole characteristic bu115hit then i guess emails and phone calls everyday until i get some action on the matter. <_< <_< <_<

But without speculating i'll wait n c what they come back with.