?where is the sportivo

[ZEEROLLA]

The only grind i have had is 2-3 and it was due to a lazy shift more than anything.

According to the Stivo it was about 10 degrees tonight and i tested out the 1-2 and 2-3 shift in lift and both went smoothly.... so not sure. My baby only has 2600km on her though and i was pretty gentle with her for the first 2000km.

Question for everyone though:

I have a slight rattle that i hear (different to gear selector cable) at around 100-120km/h at the front drivers side somewhere around the steering or under the dash... anyone have or know what this could be? almost sounds like a nut is loose and the washer is rattling away? Haven't had the chance to take a look yet! Its a pretty minor noise but one that i can find becoming annoying!

Tivo Matt, are you having gear selector cable rattles? Because the hard shifting could also be due to the selctor cables or anything gearbox or clutch related basically. And i don't think anyone of us stuffed the gearbox during the run-in period because you would have to be pretty brutal to damage anything. The Celica 6 speed has also been known to be a pretty strong box, definitely stronger than the WRXs' box.

Plus i am not having difficulty shifting all the time, just more difficult when the weather is cold just like when you try to shift when the car ain't warmed up yet. But there was this time i came back after a trip up to Sydney and back traveled about 200kms and off i go revving in 1st to 8100rpm, clutch in shift and CRUNCH. That was a slow slow shift and my clutch was in fully. It's weird because on that shift i was able to shift out of 1st smoothly but had trouble getting into 2nd :( plus the tranny oil should be warm enough by then. So i have come to a conclusion that the 6 speed is just underdeveloped and can be improved, just like the gear ratios and the 2ZZGE lacking torque below "Lift".

Zee

[shaohaok]

i've had that crunch with the clutch fully in from a 2-3 change for a short sprint to join a freeway. i tried that 1-2 shift today. only stuck once but not has bad as it can be coz the car wasn't too warmed up yet but the engine was. but after that it was smooth as!

now that i have the confidence, i will try and see if i can engage 2nd a couple hundred revs more. coz now i drop a split second out of lift everytime.

[xoom]

I usually leave my place reasonably early in the morning and as of late it has been pretty cold when im leaving. I have noticed that even rolling down my street i occassionaly have to really force it into gear to engage second. This happens even after ive warmed the car up for atleast 5 mins. The car is just rolling down the hill doing no more than 20-30 km/h and when it actually does engage second it feels like it clicks in.

Now after i have been driving for a while and it does warm up a bit more it loosens up and is fine and i dont suffer from any of this.

During the summer it was kinda there as well but only if i ever drove the car without warming it up :o n i hardly ever do this so i didnt experience it that much.

So I guess yes there is an impact on the gear box/tranny oil due to how cold it is. I wonder how the euro boys get around this as germany, england etc would b a lot colder than here so i wonder if they also experience this

Cheers

Bill

[Tivo Matt]

The only grind i have had is 2-3 and it was due to a lazy shift more than anything.

According to the Stivo it was about 10 degrees tonight and i tested out the 1-2 and 2-3 shift in lift and both went smoothly.... so not sure. My baby only has 2600km on her though and i was pretty gentle with her for the first 2000km.

Question for everyone though:

I have a slight rattle that i hear (different to gear selector cable) at around 100-120km/h at the front drivers side somewhere around the steering or under the dash... anyone have or know what this could be? almost sounds like a nut is loose and the washer is rattling away? Haven't had the chance to take a look yet! Its a pretty minor noise but one that i can find becoming annoying!

Tivo Matt, are you having gear selector cable rattles? Because the hard shifting could also be due to the selctor cables or anything gearbox or clutch related basically. And i don't think anyone of us stuffed the gearbox during the run-in period because you would have to be pretty brutal to damage anything. The Celica 6 speed has also been known to be a pretty strong box, definitely stronger than the WRXs' box.

Plus i am not having difficulty shifting all the time, just more difficult when the weather is cold just like when you try to shift when the car ain't warmed up yet. But there was this time i came back after a trip up to Sydney and back traveled about 200kms and off i go revving in 1st to 8100rpm, clutch in shift and CRUNCH. That was a slow slow shift and my clutch was in fully. It's weird because on that shift i was able to shift out of 1st smoothly but had trouble getting into 2nd :( plus the tranny oil should be warm enough by then. So i have come to a conclusion that the 6 speed is just underdeveloped and can be improved, just like the gear ratios and the 2ZZGE lacking torque below "Lift".

Zee

Yeah i have the gear selector rattle but its not always loud enough for me to hear. Sometimes its as quiet as anything. I mainly get the rattle in 4th from around 3500-5000 (aprox) and of course when i am giving her some stick in 2nd you can hear it in the higher rev range sometimes.

I don't think there is any major issue with the 6 speed.. (apart from the selector cables), the gear changes aren't always smooth but what can you expect when you are giving it those kind of revs. I agree it could probably be better but for what the majority of us paid and what we got its not that bad. Interested to find the outcome of the 141kw issue though and see if it really is true.

[QUICKSILVER]

yes getting it out of first gear is just as hard! it feels like yanking it out without using the clutch.

Is this also at low rpm? Although not reluctant to come out of 1 at low rpm, mine feels scratchy coming out of one until the box warms up.

BTW, based on the posts that I've seen on this thread, you may appreciuate the following info:

The transmission takes a longet time to warm up compared to the engine

the harder you drive the car, the more precise the box becomes, though you do require more shoulder and wrist effort to shift. It is a lot less notchy though

The car is geared to drop to around 5400 rpm in your 1st to second shift. If you get it above that, its a achievement. I normally get it to 5800 - 5900 rpm, but I know a few guys who get it to 6200+ rpm - that can't be good for the drivetrain

It seems that temperature does make a huge difference to the notchiness experienced on the box

PLEASE respond the the question "Is this also at low rpm? Although not reluctant to come out of 1 at low rpm, mine feels scratchy coming out of one until the box warms up." Do you guys have the same sensation

Also, based on discussions with one of the technical guys at TSA, the reluctance in coming out of one that you experience at high rpm is attributable to "windup". This is not an indication of malfunction.

[shaohaok]

what's windup?!? my car does run off stored kinetic energy, does it? :S

:P

yeah the shift feels very scratchy like u said at lower rpms. more so when cold. gets better when the car is very very warmed up. also 2-3 feels like that when cold. sometimes u can feel on the 2-3 shift that u are brushing past something very solid, most likely metal.

[QUICKSILVER]

what's windup?!? my car does run off stored kinetic energy, does it? :S

:P

yeah the shift feels very scratchy like u said at lower rpms. more so when cold. gets better when the car is very very warmed up. also 2-3 feels like that when cold. sometimes u can feel on the 2-3 shift that u are brushing past something very solid, most likely metal.

Windup is .... actually its difficult for me to explain. I'll try and get a formal explanation

On the 2-3 shift you described (brushing past something metallic), I have exactly the same sensation

Still, I need to know, the scratch feeling you refer to in "yeah the shift feels very scratchy like u said at lower rpms."; is that also when coming out of 1st gear?

[shaohaok]

yeah out of first there is that scratchy feeling, too. like somewhere along the way there is no lube all of a sudden. only when cold.

[QUICKSILVER]

yeah out of first there is that scratchy feeling, too. like somewhere along the way there is no lube all of a sudden. only when cold.

Good stuff. :D Thanks mate!

[ZEEROLLA]

I sent a casual email to Toyota Australia to get some info and this is their reply:

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thank you for your recent email regarding the performance of the

Corolla

Sportivo.

We would like at this moment in time to acknowledge receipt of this

email

and to advise that the issue at hand is not safety related, nor is a

vehicle reliability or normal operation compromised. The issue is

being

reviewed with Japanese departments and regulatory bodies.

Details will be released to the public once the action plan for

resolution

has been clarified, and yes we agree that rectification should pose no

impost on the customer.

Our apologies for any inconvenience that this concern has created and

please be assured of our best intentions at all times.

Regards,

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[8400rpm]

Good work ZEEROLLA ;)

Toyota seem to acknowledge that there is an issue to be addressed but don't mention anything about what the issue is. Did your email talk specifically about one or more issues or was it just general. To put it another way what specific problem do do think the 'action plan for resolution' is going to address?

[stauff]

I sent a casual email to Toyota Australia to get some info and this is their reply:

...

Nice one. Since they agree there's a problem and say there's a solution in the works, I'd be favouring just hanging for a little while... I'm happy enough with my car as-is (especially in that dense winter air) :)

- Matthew

[Mee?]

I'm sure you all are aware these coporate bodies will do nothing if there isnt a lawsuit at bay.. Simple.. Why spend money rectifying a problem when you can just keep holding out as long as you can?

Obviously thats not the right thing to do.. but I'm very skeptical they'll really do anything about it in the next 6 months.

[ADR_rolla]

Well Toyota is known by the public to be a reliable and fair car manufacture compared to others. So there name is very important to them, and such a small thing like problems with the sportivo (1200 total sold in Australia) is a small thing. On that note, its better to fix the problem, then to get a bad name which they so proudly hold.

[Sport1vo]

<POST REMOVED>

Edited May 8, 2005 by sport1vo

[ADR_rolla]

well its around that... give or take....

[Mee?]

Thats a pretty small number.. really small.. :(

[ZEEROLLA]

I went down to my dealer today with a couple of friends wanting to purchase a Corolla and it was the first time i saw the facelifted Rolla in the flesh. The front end looks really nice when i saw a kitted Black Rolla in the showroom. The rear end doesn't look any different.

However, that was also an opportunity for me to ask the salespeople about the Sportivo and 2 sales person stated different reasons for ceasing sales on the Stivo. One said it was due to emission levels and the other said it was due to noise levels from the muffler. They did say there was a possibility the Corolla Sportivo would be sold again, maybe next year.

[peekay]

Those guys don't have a clue what they are talking about

[ADR_rolla]

Rememeber these guys only sell the car, they dont have a clue, there is no point asking a dealer. They r in the dark with it as much as we r.

[ZEEROLLA]

GUYS READ THE OTHER POST ON ANOTHER EMAIL I RECEIVED FROM TOYOTA AUSTRALIA. WE ARE IN FOR SOME POWER BOOST

[QUICKSILVER]

Rememeber these guys only sell the car, they dont have a clue, there is no point asking a dealer. They r in the dark with it as much as we r.

Actually, for the first time a dealer seems to have got it right. The dealer who said that the supply of the car has to be held back because of noise pollution is partly correct. In terms of Australian standards, cars considered to produce less than 140kW need to have noise emission tests, as part of the homologation process, tested in 2 gears. Since initial claims were more than 140kW, the car never went through this process. As a result of the information relating to the power output coming to light, the car needs to undergo these tests again. :)