Celica Forums General Discussion General 2001 Celica GTS auto transmission problems

hi everyone, well i just bought a 2001 toyota celica gts in spectra mica blue with an injen CAI and a thermal exhaust. the problem is that the transmission doesn't always seem to shift properly. i have problems putting the car in "m" mode and the m keeps blinking. i know that you shouldn't put it in m until the car has warmed up sufficiently, but even after driving for like 10 minutes, it still gives me a problem. another thing is that the car shifts in this pattern: first gear until about maybe 2500-3k on the tach, then second for a very short time and then to 3rd which then takes over as the primary gear, even on highway cruising. the weird thing is that when i got home today after like maybe 30-45 of driving, i shifted the car in neutral, then back to drive in m and it worked. could it be a faulty tranny computer? i'm thinking that it's something with the tranny ecu, but if anyone else has a better solution to it, i'd really appreciate it.

"just bought"

take it back to the dealer and make them fix it!

in first gear when it shifts around 3k to 2nd (in auto)...how fast were you accelerating?

let your car warm up, slam the gas, and if your car still shifts at about 3k..something is wrong imo.

with normal acceleration, 3k isn't odd to shift into 2nd. does seem a bit early but i wouldn't think anything of it.

just bought with injen CAI and thermal exhaust.. and it's a 2001. I doubt the dealer will cover a 2001 unless it was sold with a warranty or it has really low miles and is still covered by the original factory warranty.

BTW, Kliff, did you even buy this car from a dealer or was this a private sale?

^^ well if it was a toyota certified used car (which was bought from a dealer) then he would have the original factory warranty.

that said, i don't think it would be certified if he had the cai and thermal exhaust.

what about 5 year powertrain warranty?

Yeah, this should definitely still be covered under warranty. I agree with Diablo, just take it to the dealership and have them fix it.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I remember that I read that somewhere ... When the "M" is blinking is because the oil transmission is too hot you should put it back to the normal mode "D"...

I think it was in the owner manual...

you should go to a dealer with it !

that is correct, it says that in the manual.

If the M is blinking, it can mean a few different things.

Check your Tranny fluid, if you burnt it (overheated the fluid) you will need to flush the tranny and refill it with fresh ATF. if it's taking to long to shift, or you get excessive lag, there is also the chance that your tranny fluid level is low, inadequate fluid pressure in the valve body will cause those symptoms. Check for leaking seals while you're at it.

You may have a blown shift solenoid, or their is another fault in the system.

Take it into the shop and get it checked out, and keep it out of "M" mode until the problem is found.

Add a tranny fluid cooler to prevent this from happening to you ever again. a small expense for good reliability.

Bummer to hear, I have yet to have any problems with my transmission. Hope everything turns out okay!

thanks for all the help, i took it back to the original dealer where i bought it and they're fixing the problem for me for free because it's still under the factory warranty. yea, i bought it from a toyota dealership, east coast toyota in new jersey on rt. 17, the people there are really cool and i got an incredible deal on the car. thanks again for the help, and i'll post pics of everything that i got put into car audiowise

good luck with the fix

definately. although it sucks being without a car for awhile...you can't be 'free'