clicking into first gear

[tekmoe]

hey guys. i just bought my yaris a few days ago. it's the 5spd version. i've put 140 miles on it so far. one thing i have noticed is it's not as easy to put into first gear as my corolla. i never force it into 1st gear though. if it won't engage, i disengage and rengage the clutch and try again. i plan on throwing some redline mt90 gear oil in the tranny soon so maybe that will help resolve the issue. that or the tranny just need some more time to be broken in? i've only had one incident where i could not get it into first gear and i had to pump the clutch once to get 1st gear to engage. if i am rolling to a stop sign and put it into first right before i come to a stop, it goes in smooth as butter. i am thinking maybe the syncro still needs to be broken in but i am not a car guy so that is only a guess.

thx,
tekmoe

[tekmoe]

i opened my big mouth too soon. for this morning's drive to work, first gear worked perfect. there might have been a couple of stop lights where it was a little notchy getting into first gear but 98% of the time getting into first was a breeze. guess i am getting ahead of myself!

[07WYarisRS]

A transmission will ALWAY shift smoother while the car is rolling and once oil temps are up a bit.
The redline oil is still a great idea.
A 75w-90 synthetic gear lube will help improve cold and hot shifting as well as increase your mileage and HP.

[tekmoe]

Originally Posted by 07WYarisRS

A transmission will ALWAY shift smoother while the car is rolling and once oil temps are up a bit.
The redline oil is still a great idea.
A 75w-90 synthetic gear lube will help improve cold and hot shifting as well as increase your mileage and HP.

very true. yes, redline is good schit. i was running redline in the tranny in my 02 corolla (still am actually because i haven't sold the car yet!) redline does make a noticable difference. after the 1,000 mile mark i am going to switch the engine and tranny over to synthetic. thinking about running amsoil in the engine based on what i have read from your posts. i know you know your stuff because redline is also near the very top of the top with regards to oil quality which is what you have stated in your previous posts. i think amsoil is cheaper than redline though, am i right?

[Katana]

This issue with the 1st gear is common with the Yaris.

[07WYarisRS]

Depends where you buy it. Retail prices are pretty much the same.

With Amsoil you can sign up for a prefered customer program or even a registered dealer and get even larger discounts. ie Wholsale costs, and that can save you even more $$$ in the long run.

I've run both in my race engines with awesome results but overall I prefer Amsoil due to their wider range of products. products better suited for their application. Both are pretty much the same lubricant with small differences. Any groups of test I have seen between the two Amsoil is best for some, and Redline is best for the others.

With group IV and V gear lubricants you add then and pretty much leave then there. If you do want to change it, change it every 100,000 to 150,000 miles.
If you want you can drain them filter them though a coffee filter and re-use it. A coffee filter will remove any harmful dirt and dust as well as water. Because this is a TRUE synthetic water will not mix with it, instead is soaked up by the paper filter.

For engine oil I prefer Amsoil 2000 series 0w-30, it makes a noticable difference in cold start ups, and helps reduce start up engine wear. It's just the best all round oil, Especially for Canadian and mid~north US states for spring/winter and fall colder weather..
In warmer climates 5w-30 is fine. the Redline 5w-30 and Amsoil5w-30 oils are pretty much the same.


Here's an extreme cold start story for ya
A few winters ago we were up in northern Ontario for our family's large Christmas gathering and overnight we got hit with 4 feet of snow and then the temps dropped down below -40. I don't know exactly how cold it was because -40 was a low as the thermometers out side went. So cold infact my windshield washer anti-freeze had frozen solid even the 1/2 bottle in my car was frozen. I checked the coolant and even it has started to solidify.
I was supposed to leave that morning but were we completly snowed in and I needed to shovel out about 10 other cars in the driveway before I could move mine, including a NEW Grand prix, and new chevy p/u, and a fairly newer cars like PT cruiser, Impalla SS, crown vic. 1/2 could get thier cars started to move them. They were turning over so low they killed the battery's in a minute.

The only cars that stated right up were my laser, and my mother's Buick. Both run Amsoil 0w-30. Some of the others that were running 5w-30 like my sisters crown vic and the p/u started as well but it took a lot longer for the engine to crank over and fire up.
Not only did my car and my mother start right away they turned over easily just like a warm spring morning. As for the rest of the cars we had to get out the propane blow torch and extension cords to plug in the cars with block heaters and battery chargers, the rest had the oil pans warmed up with the torch using stove pipe to direct the heat to the oil pan.
It took an entire day to clear the driveway and most of the next day to get all the cars started.
Needless to say I had convinced several people that weekend that switching to Amsoil was the way to go.

I later found out many of my neighbours had paid CAA to come and boost their cars to get them going @ $100 a pop.
But that's what you get when you live out in the middle of nowhere.
BTW the lump at the bottom of the second pic is a station wagon.

[ECHOKnight2000]

^^^just looking at those pictures makes me cold!

[tekmoe]

Originally Posted by Katana

This issue with the 1st gear is common with the Yaris.

i did a search throughout the forum for this issue but did not find anything?

[Katana]

Well in Greece it is a very common issue, I don't know why.

I would give you some links, but they are in Greek!

[AlexK]

My Yaris MT sometimes would not go into first gear while stopped. After a few 1000 miles it has gotten much better, only happened once over the past 2 months. When it happans do this: shift to 2nd and then it will go right into 1st (keep clutch in). Takes about .5 seconds.

I tried the Redline MT in my Tacoma and liked it at first, but now it seems like I can feel just a bit of notchiness to the shifting (10,000 miles later). Still shifts quicker than with regular oil but just wondering about the wear protection. It's supposed to be good stuff so I'm leaving it in there.