GT86 Gearboxes

[Nails 18]

I did a lot of research before buying a GT86 and was fully aware of the 2nd gear stiff from cold issue when changing from 3rd to 2nd that many GT86's seem to suffer from. Mine does have this but it goes away once warmed up so no not that bothered by it, especially as it seems to be part of the car's character rather than a fault that is about to cause a failure of some kind.

However, mine also has a slight issue when changing from 2nd to 3rd at all temperatures. When changing from 2nd to 3rd at lowish revs I can feel it snatching/crunching into 3rd a little bit, you can't hear it, but you can feel it through the gear stick. I can easily stop it doing this by either by changing gear slower or changing at higher revs. If I do either of these things it doesn't do it at all. 

Anybody else have this issue? Mine is a 2016 car with 12k miles on it. I am happy to take it to Toyota and let them have a look at it, after all, it still has 3 and a half year's worth of warranty left on it.

[nerdstrike 186]

I sometimes feel a little kick when changing to third from second. Like it skips half a rotation before locking in.

[Nails 18]

Yeah that would be a good description for what I am feeling. As I said, you can't hear it but you can feel it and it is little as opposed to major. If I change more slowly it doesn't do it. I might let my local Toyota drive it just to see what they say. 

[MartinT 514]

I have the 3rd to 2nd issue, worse when cold but never completely gone and can sometimes be irritating when crawling in traffic.

2nd to 3rd doesn't cause me any problems, though.

[Ledwardio 1]

I think I get the same sensation as you from 2nd to 3rd, I did wonder if I wasn't pressing the clutch far enough but it wont go any further so its not down to my leg. Would be interested to hear what the dealer says - I'd put my money on 'they just do that'

[Nails 18]

9 minutes ago, Ledwardio said:

I think I get the same sensation as you from 2nd to 3rd, I did wonder if I wasn't pressing the clutch far enough but it wont go any further so its not down to my leg. Would be interested to hear what the dealer says - I'd put my money on 'they just do that'

Yeah I expect they will but I will let everyone know what they say. To be fair I drove 4 before I bought this one, one of them was really bad and you could visibly see the gear stick shaking a lot when driving, that one didn't like 2nd hear much either. None of the ones I drove had a gearbox I would call perfect, but then I have owned a few vtec Honda's and they were prone to similar issues. 

[Ledwardio 1]

Mine is only 3 months old so I do expect its a trait rather than a problem, next time I'm in the dealer I'll mention it too

[Nails 18]

Update: I went to my local Toyota dealer today - Motorline Toyota Gatwick. For reference, I dealt with Aaron the service adviser and Kevin the service technician. Their customer service was excellent, I would be happy to let them service my car when it is due in September. 

Anyway, Kevin let me drive first and guess what, with someone else in the car I couldn't recreate the problem. Kevin then had a go and couldn't get it to crunch either. He said it felt like other GT86 boxes and that they tend to feel better at higher revs, it was the way they were designed. Mine certainly does feel perfect at higher revs but I have certainly experienced a light crunch/snatch from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd at low revs on the odd occasion. It is possible I have just got a bit ham fisted after driving my girlfriends Yaris for the past few months. Now that I am aware I have adjusted my technique slightly and I can change every time with no snatch/crunch. 

 

On a side note, crunch might be the wrong word to describe this. A crunch to me is something someone else in the car would notice/hear, this isn't. You just feel it through the gear-stick and it is slight, not major. 

 

Kevin did notice the slightly stiff 3rd to 2nd down shift, the car was still cold and it is freezing outside. For the moment he suggests just keeping an eye on it but he doesn't feel or hear anything different to a normal GT86. He did say at the next service to maybe change the gearbox oil to help with the 3rd to 2nd downshift when cold, but this disappears after a few minutes and that seems to be a common issue anyway so I am not overly concerned by that. 

 

They had 2 ginger aero's down there, one had a turbo on it. So at least they are used to dealing with GT86's to some extent. 

 

I will just keep an eye on this for the moment, I still have 3 and a half years warranty left on it so if anything major happens, I am covered anyway. 

[Nemo 24]

Update: I went to my local Toyota dealer today - Motorline Toyota Gatwick. For reference, I dealt with Aaron the service adviser and Kevin the service technician. Their customer service was excellent, I would be happy to let them service my car when it is due in September. 
Anyway, Kevin let me drive first and guess what, with someone else in the car I couldn't recreate the problem. Kevin then had a go and couldn't get it to crunch either. He said it felt like other GT86 boxes and that they tend to feel better at higher revs, it was the way they were designed. Mine certainly does feel perfect at higher revs but I have certainly experienced a light crunch/snatch from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd at low revs on the odd occasion. It is possible I have just got a bit ham fisted after driving my girlfriends Yaris for the past few months. Now that I am aware I have adjusted my technique slightly and I can change every time with no snatch/crunch.    On a side note, crunch might be the wrong word to describe this. A crunch to me is something someone else in the car would notice/hear, this isn't. You just feel it through the gear-stick and it is slight, not major.    Kevin did notice the slightly stiff 3rd to 2nd down shift, the car was still cold and it is freezing outside. For the moment he suggests just keeping an eye on it but he doesn't feel or hear anything different to a normal GT86. He did say at the next service to maybe change the gearbox oil to help with the 3rd to 2nd downshift when cold, but this disappears after a few minutes and that seems to be a common issue anyway so I am not overly concerned by that.    They had 2 ginger aero's down there, one had a turbo on it. So at least they are used to dealing with GT86's to some extent.    I will just keep an eye on this for the moment, I still have 3 and a half years warranty left on it so if anything major happens, I am covered anyway. 

Thats my Turbo 86 there today!

Not an Aero - its the aerokit.eu bodykit (replica Vertex) and s-craft carbon rear spoiler

Sent from my SM-N950F using Tapatalk

[Nails 18]

13 minutes ago, Nemo said:

 

 

Thats my Turbo 86 there today!

Not an Aero - its the aerokit.eu bodykit (replica Vertex) and s-craft carbon rear spoiler

Sent from my SM-N950F using Tapatalk
 

 

Ah sorry, I only glanced as it as we drove past the workshop so didn't get a good look at it. Looked like an aero at first glance :-) 

[Nemo 24]

Ah sorry, I only glanced as it as we drove past the workshop so didn't get a good look at it. Looked like an aero at first glance :-) 

No worries, it gets it a lot!

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[br0wny 27]

Ive experienced this 2nd to 3rd feeling but only when cold and didnt think anything of it. I just try to change gear a bit slower whilst cold. Never had any issues once warmed up and now i have the mtec shifter springs its even more joyous 

[Nails 18]

16 minutes ago, br0wny said:

Ive experienced this 2nd to 3rd feeling but only when cold and didnt think anything of it. I just try to change gear a bit slower whilst cold. Never had any issues once warmed up and now i have the mtec shifter springs its even more joyous 

Yep, most likely me being paranoid, the car is new to me so still getting used to it. I absolutely love it though 

I may go for the shifter springs at somepoint. 

[Lauren 2259]

I would say it's just a characteristic, it improves for me when it's thoroughly warmed up though.