[Kusjp]

Originally Posted by vishwasvr

Hi,

Does the noise occur also at idle or parked state?

If yes, then look for loose fitting parts, engine shield, fender liners etc.

If it occurs only whilst being in motion, then jack up the car and spin all the wheels one by one, with the engine off. If you hear a grinding noise then it most likely is the wheel bearing.

If it doesn't occur then check the driveshafts, silencer bushes etc.

Hope it gets resolved soon!

Have checked a wheel bearing no problem there.
Also have replaced the fender liners

[nagr22]

Originally Posted by Kusjp

Have checked a wheel bearing no problem there.
Also have replaced the fender liners

Hi Kusjp, was this issue resolved? I am interested to know the solution since I too own a Toyota with CVT and I drive in crawling Bangalore traffic frequently.

[Kusjp]

The Issue has been fixed. The transmission was at fault. I got a full transmission rebuild done by a transmission expert. Many parts such as the cones and the main Bearings were worn out completely. The noise was from the grinding Bearings. I had to order Bearings from New Zealand. Now its functioning normally.
Thank you guys for all your tips and support. Really thankful to have such a community.

[nagr22]

Originally Posted by Kusjp

I got a full transmission rebuild done by a transmission expert. Many parts such as the cones and the main Bearings were worn out completely. The noise was from the grinding Bearings. I had to order Bearings from New Zealand. Now its functioning normally.

This is very very shocking to me as I am also a Toyota car owner which has a CVT transmission! I always believed Toyotas are reliable and never thought the transmission will require a rebuild at just 40k kms

Anyways, would you mind sharing the garage where you got the work done? Also the cost of spares and labour? Thanks.

[mvadg]

Originally Posted by Kusjp

The Issue has been fixed. The transmission was at fault. I got a full transmission rebuild done by a transmission expert...

I am curious, which exact model of transmission is this? What was worn out and why? Which car model and year (I know you said Toyota) ? Did they show you the worn out parts? What do you mean by transmission experts? As far as I know, hardly anyone does automatic transmission rebuilding in India and even in the USA rebuilds are never recommended. There must be even fewer experts in CVT repair and rebuild. Hats off to these guys if they did a good job. How many years is the warranty?

[d_himan]

Originally Posted by mvadg

As far as I know, hardly anyone does automatic transmission rebuilding in India and even in the USA rebuilds are never recommended. There must be even fewer experts in CVT repair and rebuild. Hats off to these guys if they did a good job. How many years is the warranty?

Dispelling some myths - transmission rebuilds are an accepted practice across the globe. In fact, several manufacturer-led recalls specifically incentive dealers to replace parts/filters within the transmission. Transmission rebuilding business in the US is professional and massive - given 95%+ of cars have been Automatics in the past couple of decades.

That said, while the Indian scene is not as professional, there are several transmission rebuild experts in the metros. Services to refurbish Torque converter and DSGs are very easy to obtain. CVTs are in general tougher transmissions to repair and several garages are reluctant to work on them.

I got my Honda Accord's AT refurbished in Mumbai with a transmission rebuild kit from Dubai in ~ 2011 - worked absolutely perfectly for 2 more years until I sold the car.

[mvadg]

Originally Posted by d_himan

Dispelling some myths - transmission rebuilds are an accepted practice across the globe...

I got my Honda Accord's AT refurbished in Mumbai with a transmission rebuild kit from Dubai in ~ 2011 - worked absolutely perfectly for 2 more years until I sold the car.

Good to know! It would be even more helpful if you gave more specific information :

1. What was the initial issue, symptoms and diagnosis
2. Your driving pattern (bumper to bumper, self driven)
3. Maintenance of the AT - ATF changed proactively or just on the schedule recommended by the manufacturer
4. Which specific model of the AT
5. Which specific workshop - name, location, contact details
6. Your review of the workshop staff and facilities, equipment...
7. what was replaced, refurbished
8. Cost of spares, time taken to get the spares, etc
9. Cost of repairs - labor, spares, fluids, time taken
10. Warranty details
11. How others could avoid such repairs

Thanks in advance. I've never really read about anyone getting their automatic transmission repaired in India, and that too getting it done well. Your write up on your experience would be extremely helpful for all of us AT owners.

[d_himan]

Originally Posted by mvadg

Good to know! It would be even more helpful if you gave more specific information :

1. What was the initial issue, symptoms and diagnosis
2. Your driving pattern (bumper to bumper, self driven)
3. Maintenance of the AT - ATF changed proactively or just on the schedule recommended by the manufacturer
4. Which specific model of the AT
5. Which specific workshop - name, location, contact details
6. Your review of the workshop staff and facilities, equipment...
7. what was replaced, refurbished
8. Cost of spares, time taken to get the spares, etc
9. Cost of repairs - labor, spares, fluids, time taken
10. Warranty details
11. How others could avoid such repairs

Thanks in advance. I've never really read about anyone getting their automatic transmission repaired in India, and that too getting it done well. Your write up on your experience would be extremely helpful for all of us AT owners.

Unfortunately, don't have the bandwidth for something like this (a consequence of moving up the ladder I suppose). You can also use the Search function - there are several posts on AT refurbishment.

Let me answer a few until then - though I'm aware we're going OT

1. Any abnormal jerks, slurring between gears. Not smooth = issue
2. City traffic - the most natural habitat for an AT
3/4. A garage near MIDC, Andheri East.
4. Parts replaced - everything in a transmission rebuild kit - Google the same
5. Downtime - around 3 weeks - most of it spend waiting for the parts to arrive; actual work on the transmission ~ 3-4 days
6. Cost - depends on the amount of work/cost of parts = minimum ~30k for a Torque converter refurbishment

What i've learnt/mechanics have told me - change your ATF ahead of the manufacturer recommendation. Heat is the enemy. Any deterioration in the ATF to dissipate heat efficiently is the first cause of ruin. High ambient temperatures/humidity/bumper to bumper driving makes it worse.

Given my high-traffic driving, I change it every 2.5-3 years for sure. Have a CVT (2.5 yrs) and a DSG (6.3 yrs) right now.

[riteshritesh]

Considering the fact that car had done 40,000 kms and not much usage, it must be 6-8 years old and thus out of warranty. Am I correct OP?

I own 3 Honda CVT's and apart from the fact that warranty can be extended till the 10th year(someone correct me if this is wrong) which keeps me sound, it would be a resourceful repository to know garages doing Transmission rebuilding jobs.

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by Kusjp

The Issue has been fixed. The transmission was at fault. I got a full transmission rebuild done by a transmission expert.
====
Really thankful to have such a community.

If you can share as much details as possible or atleast the name and contact details of the place where the work was done, that would be really useful for others in future.

[Kusjp]

All CVT transmissions are susceptible to such damages. Also in terms of reliability, Toyota has recently recalled all the new 2020 Corolla in USA having the CVT transmission.
Toyota is also known for carrying out secretive recalls for some of their CVT transmission. Also Toyota had organised a recall for some kind of update for the same model Corolla with the CVT transmission. The guy who rebuilt the transmission is a transmission expert from Dubai. Since all the communication was between him and my father I don't have all the exact details. He also showed my father the original parts and the replaced parts. I have uploaded the PDF of Toyota recalling the same Corolla CVT transmission in USA.

[deep_bang]

Originally Posted by d_himan

Dispelling some myths - transmission rebuilds are an accepted practice across the globe. In fact, several manufacturer-led recalls specifically incentive dealers to replace parts/filters within the transmission. Transmission rebuilding business in the US is professional and massive - given 95%+ of cars have been Automatics in the past couple of decades.

That said, while the Indian scene is not as professional, there are several transmission rebuild experts in the metros. Services to refurbish Torque converter and DSGs are very easy to obtain. CVTs are in general tougher transmissions to repair and several garages are reluctant to work on them.

I got my Honda Accord's AT refurbished in Mumbai with a transmission rebuild kit from Dubai in ~ 2011 - worked absolutely perfectly for 2 more years until I sold the car.

Do you know anyone who can point me to a cvt rebuild expert in Bangalore? I have a 15 year old city which might need a transmission rebuild. The other option is to sell it off, but I am trying to see if I can get it repaired as it may fetch almost nothing now.

[d_himan]

Originally Posted by deep_bang

Do you know anyone who can point me to a cvt rebuild expert in Bangalore? I have a 15 year old city which might need a transmission rebuild. The other option is to sell it off, but I am trying to see if I can get it repaired as it may fetch almost nothing now.

Unfortunately, not familiar with B'lore. The best way out would be to replace with a salvage gearbox.

Rebuilding a CVT is likely to be more expensive, and likely in multiples of a salvage gearbox.

Both the above options would most likely involve multiple follow-ups/visits to the garage/re-work etc. Please see if your time is valuable enough for allowing all this.

My suggestion - i'm not sure how much more you would get if you sell a 15 year old city with a working CVT. If it's not significant, I would say dispose it off at salvage/whatever you are able to get unless you have some sentimental value attached.

[kedar_GT]

Originally Posted by Kusjp

The Issue has been fixed. The transmission was at fault. I got a full transmission rebuild done by a transmission expert. Many parts such as the cones and the main Bearings were worn out completely. The noise was from the grinding Bearings. I had to order Bearings from New Zealand. Now its functioning normally.
Thank you guys for all your tips and support. Really thankful to have such a community.

Good to hear that the issue was fixed - can you please provide more details on diagnosis by Toyota and how you ended by taking a decision to go with an external expert to fix this? Was the Toyota quote way off? It would help the community to have these details.
PS- I have the Corolla CVT in the extended family and interested in knowing the details - thanks in advance!

Cheers!

[Kusjp]

Originally Posted by kedar_GT

Good to hear that the issue was fixed
====
Cheers!

The toyota quote was way off and no support was provided by them. Not happy with toyotas support.