Yaris 2007

Not a car to get immediately on a highway when it's locked in second gear unless you run the engine in high RPM. Better warm it up on the service road :) The manufacturer should warn people of this fact.

Nothing seems out of place. Holding 2nd gear instead of 3rd means that it's trying to get up to operating temperature sooner. Nothing wrong with that is there?

maybe I am wrong or misunderstanding you...

but i read that certain gears can only kick in as you get to a certain speed.. try the manual.

That is normal operation of the automatic transmission. If you were to immediately drive at higher speed, the transmission would upshift from 2nd to 3rd.

I think the order of opperation is 23 miles and then 46 miles... or something like that...

Transmission shifting has nothing to do with distance traveled. The transmission ECU determines shift points, gear, and torque converter lock based on engine coolant temperature, throttle position, engine RPM, road speed, and transmission's current gear and torque converter status.

Nope, it won't! It *stays* in 2nd for a few hundred feet. I can rev the engine to 5000RPM and it won't shift in 3rd. Once warmed up, everything is ok as expected from from an automatic.

I have noticed the same thing on my 2006 Yaris. In cold weather the auto will not shift from second into third until it has warmed up at least a little. You end up driving down the street with the revs really high because it doesn't shift. I don't know if this means that you should let the car warm up. I thought that warmups for modern cars were generally unnecessary.

cordially, as always,

rm

If it is still in warranty, take it back to the dealer.

Jeff

I have absolutely no problems with my car's shifting. Of course, I do it myself. It has a manual transmission.

Jeff

It sounds like your engine and transmission and automatic transmission are operating as designed. They are designed this way to get the engine to operate in closed loop mode more quickly to lower emissions.

When I said "immediately," I meant within a few hundred feet. If you need to accelerate from zero to over 50 MPH within the first two hundred feet of vehicle travel after a cold soak, then the smart move would be to wait at least 30 seconds before starting the acceleration run.

The ECU holds the AT back until certain engine temps are reached. If you're getting on the highway and running at highway speeds before the engine is fully warmed up, I hope you're not using cheap oil.

Wait for three minutes before leaving the driveway, drive steadily to the highway, and give the thing a chance to warm up before you start pounding it!!

Can I have the VIN, so if I ever go to buy a used Yaris, I *won't* buy yours?

Yeah, that's the best way to control how a tranny operates!

For the first few hundred feet, I rarely exceed 2,000 rpm in 3rd gear, anyway...

I try and keep the engine going slowly, all the time, especially, when it's cold. But, unless it is real cold out, I just start the car and go slowly. I figure the engine has to turn whether the car is moving or not, and I know of no reason why I should just sit there, wasting time and gas.

Jeff

I always give it at least two minutes. Let the rings get friendly with the cylinders. Very rarely do I hop in, turn the key and go unless the engine has already been run and the needle isn't flat on the gauge.

Do you have any evidence that this makes any difference? I mean, except giving more money to me, because I own a small portion of ExxonMobil?

Jeff

. I

That is because there isn't one!

And I have never used Exxon or Mobil gas ever. Perhaps yet another reason why these engines never had any smoke or low compression...

Or, perhaps, the brand of gas and the letting the cars warm up only increased your gas bill.

In other words, this is no better than superstition.

Jeff