2005 Toyota Avalon Transmission Problems

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 TOYOTA AVALON. WHILE DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 4 MPH, THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO INDEPENDENTLY CHANGE GEARS AND JERK VIOLENTLY. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER FOR UNRELATED MAINTENANCE AND ADVISED THE DEALER OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED FOR THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE PERSISTED AND BECAME PROGRESSIVELY WORSE. HE CONTACTED THE DEALER AND SECURED AN APPOINTMENT FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING AND POSSIBLE REPAIRS. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 600 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 21,500.

NHTSA ID

10345375

Incident

Jul 1, 2005

Mileage

600 mi

OUR 2005 TOYOTA AVALON WAS SERVICED FOR SAFETY RECALL ON 3/1/10 AND GAS PEDAL FEEL BECAME MORE SENSITIVE IMMEDIATELY AFTERWARDS. ON 3/2/10 WHILE DRIVING IN RAIN THE ABS SYSTEM ACTIVATED SEVERAL TIMES DURING NORMAL APPLICATION OF THE BRAKES. THIS WAS ALARMING AND VERY DISCONCERTING. SUBSEQUENT DRIVING LATER THIS WEEK DID NOT EFFECT A REPEAT OF THE ABS CONCERNS. HOWEVER, THERE IS AN OCCASIONAL SLIGHT SURGE IN SPEED WHICH SEEMS TO RELATE TO THE TRANSMISSION SHIFT POINTS WHICH DID HAPPEN BEFORE THE RECALL SERVICE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10317023

Incident

Mar 2, 2010

Mileage

53,000 mi

MY 2005 TOYOTA AVALON WITH THE 2GR-FE V6 ENGINE REVS HIGH, EVEN WHEN IT'S WARMED UP. IN TRAFFIC, MANY TIMES IT REVS HIGH AND LUNGES FORWARD. SEVERAL TIMES I BRAKED HARD TO AVOID READ ENDING THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME. THIS HAS BEEN ONGOING SINCE I BOUGHT THE CAR IN 2005 AS I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER. I'VE TAKEN IT IN TO TOYOTA SERVICE AND THE MECHANICS FOUND NOTHING. ONCE I SHOWED THEM A TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN FROM TOYOTA WHICH STATED THE EXHAUST MANIFOLD, OXYGEN SENSORS NEEDED REPLACEMENT AND THE ECM NEEDED TO BE REPROGRAMMED. IT WORKED FOR A YEAR (2007) THEN BACK TO THE SAME PROBLEM, HIGH REVVING OF THE ENGINE, HARD SHIFTING AND LUNGING FORWARD OR REVERSE. THE LATEST INCIDENT WAS TODAY, 12/7/09 WHERE I ALMOST HIT A PEDESTRIAN SINCE THE CAR REVVED HIGH AND LUNGED INTO THE CROSSWALK. I HAD TO PRESS THE BRAKES HARD TO PREVENT HITTING THE PEDESTRIAN. *TR

NHTSA ID

10294859

Incident

Dec 7, 2009

Mileage

40,534 mi

I WAS PARKING MY CAR AT WORK. I PULLED INTO THE PARKING SPACE AND BACKED UP SLIGHTLY TO STRAIGHTEN MY CAR. WHEN I PUT THE CAR INTO DRIVE TO PULL FORWARD AGAIN , THE CAR RACED FORWARD WITH ENGINE REVVING STRONGLY. I COULD NOT STOP THE CAR WITH THE BRAKE. THE CAR CRASHED AND PUSHED THROUGH A THICK BRICK WALL. THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. THE CAR WOULD ONLY STOP AFTER I PUSHED THE ENGINE SHUTOFF BUTTON. THE GEARSHIFT WAS HARD TO MOVE AFTER THE INCIDENT. *TR

NHTSA ID

10252190

Incident

Dec 17, 2008

Mileage

94,600 mi

TRANSMISSION DELAY UPON EXHILARATION THAT PUT ME IN A POISON OF ACCIDENT, SINCE THE CAR DOESN'T REACT OR RESPOND ON TIME. *TR

NHTSA ID

10223042

Incident

Oct 16, 2006

Mileage

25,000 mi

SINCE PURCHASING IN DEC., 2005, TRANSMISSION HESITATES WHEN PROCEEDING FROM IDLE AT SLOW SPEEDS AND SOMETIMES BETWEEN GEARS AT HIGHWAY SPEED WHEN TRYING TO ACCELERATE. HAVE NEARLY BEEN REAR-ENDED INNUMERABLE TIMES. ORIGINAL SEVERAL COMPLAINTS TO DEALER RESULTED IN INFO THAT "NO TSB HAS BEEN ISSUED TO FIX THAT". THIS LAST TIME I COMPLAINED, I WAS TOLD THAT IT WAS NATURAL FEATURE OF DRIVE-BY-WIRE, THAT NO TSB HAD BEEN ISSUED WHICH FIXED IT, AND THAT TOYOTA WAS NOT GOING TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT THIS KNOWN PROBLEM.

NHTSA ID

10202063

Incident

Jan 2, 2006

Mileage

8,500 mi

TL* - ON 9/24/06 WHILE THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING VEHICLE AT 60 MPH AND IT UNEXPECTEDLY ACCELERATED TO 75 MPH. THE CONTACT HAD TO APPLY THE BRAKE WITH BOTH FEET TO DISENGAGE THE ACCELERATION ON THE VEHICLE. ON 10/09/06, WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT 40 MPH THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED TO 75 MPH, HAD TO HOLD BOTH FEET ON THE BRAKE AND PULL THE VEHICLE OFF TO SIDE OF THE ROAD. AT THAT POINT THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALERSHIP,) AND THE DEALER STATED THAT THE GAS PEDAL WAS MOST LIKELY GETTING CAUGHT UNDER THE CARPET. THE DEALER COULDN'T FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. WHILE DRIVING ON 12/23/06 AT 35 MPH THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED TO 75 MPH, AFTER A QUARTER OF A MILE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO STOP THE VEHICLE BY OUTING BOTH FEET ON BRAKE. ALL THE BRAKES WERE SMOKING AND THERE WAS TRANSMISSION FLUID LEAKING. AT THAT POINT, CONTACT HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO ROSENER TOYOTA. *AK UPDATED 01/29/07. *JB

NHTSA ID

10177888

Incident

Sep 24, 2006

Mileage

45,000 mi

I OWN A 2005 AVALON THAT HAS A TRANSMISSION/THROTTLE PROBLEM. SLOWING FROM SPEEDS IN EXCESS OF 30 MPH, THEN ACCELERATING MODERATELY, THE ENGINE WILL INCREASE RPM TO 2500-3000 RPM AND THE TRANSMISSION WILL SHIFT INTO NEUTRAL UNTIL THE ELECTRONIC CONTROL DECIDES TO SHIFT TO A LOWER GEAR. AT THE SHIFT POINT THE CAR WILL SURGE FORWARD RAPIDLY. THIS SURGE OCCURS EVEN ON THIS VEHICLE WITH TRACTION CONTROL. THIS "SURGE" HAS RESULTED IN MULTIPLE NEAR END COLLISIONS IN CITY TRAFFIC. THE NEUTRAL SHIFT PROBLEM HAS ALSO BEEN ENCOUNTERED ON OCCASION WHEN ENTERING HIGH SPEED INTERSTATE TRAFFIC. 18 WHEELERS BEARING DOWN ON YOU AT SPEED WHILE YOUR CAR IS TURNING 4000 PLUS RPMS IN NEUTRAL IS FRIGHTENING. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN TO THREE SEPARATE DEALERS AND A COMPLAINT WAS REGISTERED WITH TOYOTA MANUFACTURER. TOYOTA RESPONDED, SAYING THE TRANSMISSION WAS OPERATING AS DESIGNED. HOPEFULLY SOMEONE WILL CORRECT THIS PROBLEM BEFORE I, AND OTHERS, BECOME A STATISTIC IN A CLASS ACTION SUIT AS AN INJURY OR DEATH NUMBERS. MANY COMPLAINTS ON THIS PROBLEM CAN BE FOUND ON SEVERAL OTHER WEB SITES. I'VE BEEN A TOYOTA OWNER FOR OVER 25 YEARS AND THIS LACK OF RESPONSE BY THE MANUFACTURER ON THIS HIGH END OF THE BRAND ENDS THAT . AND TOYOTA DOES NOT CARE IF THEY LOST A LONG TERM CUSTOMER, SO STATED BY TOYOTA OF AMERICA. *NM

NHTSA ID

10174686

Incident

Nov 28, 2006

NOTICING HESITATION AT LOW SPEED GEAR SHIFTING . RESULTS IN NO ACCELERATION IN SPITE OF PRESSING THE ACCELERATOR AND AFTER A LAG CAR SUDDENLY RESPONDS. HAD TROUBLE WHILE MERGING FROM THE RAMP ON TO THE HIGHWAY NOW SEVERAL TIMES, BUT NOT DAILY. CONCERNED THAT THIS MAY RESULT IN AN ACCIDENT SPECIALLY WHILE MERGING OR DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS IN HEAVY TRAFFIC. THIS PROBLEM HAS CAUSED ME TO BUMP INTO A TRUCK RESULTING IN DAMAGE TO MY RIGHT FRONT FENDER. *NM

NHTSA ID

10171778

Incident

Aug 24, 2006

Mileage

21,340 mi

2005 TOYOTA AVALON TOURING MODEL TAKEN IN 5000 MILE SERVICE WITH COMPLAINTS ABOUT A NOISE COMING FROM REAR END OR TRANSMISSION. TOYOTA COULD NOT HEAR IT UNTIL I INSISTED MECHANIC TAKE RIDE ME. MECHANIC ACKNOWLEDGED NOISE AND SAID MAYBE COMING FROM COMPUTERIZED ABS BRAKE INITIATING AT 5 MPH. WIFE PARKED AT WORK JUST COUPLE WEEKS AFTER MAINTENANCE. PULLED INTO PARKING AT WORK, STOPPED, PUT IN PARK AND IN SECONDS THE CAR LUNGED FORWARD WITH ENGINE REVVING AT HIGH SPEED; WIFE STOMPED ON PARKING BRAKE BUT BY THAT TIME CAR JUMPED OVER 10 OR 12 FOOT CURB , A FOUR FOOT SIDEWALK AND INTO A WALL JUST STOPPING AS IT HIT THE WALL. TIRE MARKS. CALL TO ELMORE TOYOTA GARDEN GROVE (ALAN/SERVICE) WHO SAID THEY HAD NO BODY SHOP AND DID NOT WANT TO SEE CAR OR NEED TO CHECK AND WORK ON IT BEFORE BODY WORK. SAID IF NO LIGHTS WERE ON THE DASH THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG. JUST LIKE THEIR ATTITUDE ABOUT THE RATCHETING NOISE SUPPOSED FROM THE ABS BRAKE SYSTEM. WIFE INSISTS SHE DID NOT THE GAS PEDAL ACCIDENTALLY . WHEN ENGINE REVELATION AFTER HITTING WALL WENT BACK TO NORMAL, CAR PUT IN REVERSE TO BACK OFF SIDE WALK. STATE FARM TOLD US NOT TO DRIVE THE CAR TO BODY SHOP. HOW DO WE FORCE TOYOTA TO FIND THE PROBLEM WITH THIS CAR.

NHTSA ID

10156569

Incident

May 1, 2006

TRANSMISSION LAGS THEN JUMPS FORWARD, TRANSMISSION SLIPS AT LOW SPEEDS NEVER SEEMS TO FIND A GEAR. STEERING AT SPEEDS BELOW 40 WILL JERK LEFT OR RIGHT DEPENDING ON THE ROAD.(SCARES YOU TO DEATH) BRAKES HAVE GRABBED AND JERKED THE CAR FROM DAY ONE THE DEALERSHIP GROUND THE ROTORS TO FIX THIS BUT IT HAS NOT RESOLVED THE PROBLEM. THE CAR HAS HAD THE POWER STEERING HOSE REPLACED BECAUSE IT LEAKED AND IT STILL DOES. THE CD PLAYER SKIP WHILE YOUR PARKED, THE STEERING WHEEL NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. WE HAVE HAD THIS CAR IN TO THE DEALER 5 TIMES WITH NONE OF THE PROBLEMS TO THE BRAKES, TRANSMISSION, OR STEERING RESOLVED. *NM

NHTSA ID

10154548

Incident

Mar 28, 2005

Mileage

200 mi

I HAVE FILED A COMPLAINT WITH TOYOTA REGARDING THE HESITATION AND ERRATIC SHIFTING OF OUR 2005 AVALON. I WAS TOLD THAT IT WAS DUE TO THE WAY THE COMPUTER CONTROLS THE NEW 5 SPEED TRANSMISSION IN CONJUNCTION WITH THEIR ELECTRONIC FUEL INJECTION CONTROL. IN RESEARCHING THIS PROBLEM,I HAVE READ WHERE MANY OTHER AVALON OWNERS HAVE ALSO EXPERIENCED THIS. ON SUN.,03/12/06,I HAD JUST EXITED ROUTE 80 EASTBOUND (EXIT 27) IN N.J. AND PROCEEDED TO MERGE WITH TRAFFIC ON ROUTE 206 AND HAD TO IMMEDIATELY MAKE A LEFT TURN. AS I PRESSED ON ACCELERATOR,THE VEHICLE SIMPLY DID NOT RESPOND (HESITATION) AND, WHEN IT DID ENGAGE AFTER A SECOND OR TWO,LUNGED FORWARD. THIS STARTLED ALL IN THE CAR (MYSELF AND 2 PASSENGERS) AND WAS A VERY UNSAFE OCCURRENCE AS TRAFFIC WAS HEAVY AND MOVING FAST. THE VEHICLE HAS APPROX. 7500 MILES ON IT AND WILL BE A YEAR OLD IN JUNE,2006. I HAVE AN APPOINTMENT FOR SERVICE WITH MY DEALERSHIP ON TUES.,03/21. THEY ARE TO GO OVER THE CAR AND CHECK TO SEE IF THERE ARE ANY TECH. SERVICE BULLETINS. I HAVE BEEN CHECKING ON EXISTENCE OF TSB SINCE SHORTLY AFTER BUYING THE VEHICLE. I AM NOT OPTIMISTIC. THIS IS A SERIOUS PROBLEM AND TOYOTA SHOULD BE DOING SOMETHING ABOUT IT! THANK YOU. *NM

NHTSA ID

10152701

Incident

Mar 12, 2006

Mileage

7,300 mi

SINCE PURCHASING THE AVALON IN EARLY JUNE, I HAVE BEEN FRUSTRATED WITH HOW THE CAR OPERATES BETWEEN 20 AND 40 MILES PER HOUR. THE CAR DOES NOT ALWAYS KNOW WHAT GEAR IT NEEDS TO SHIFT INTO. IT WILL FREQUENTLY RACE 1000 RPM AHEAD WITHOUT ANY CHANGE IN SPEED. THEN SUDDENLY IT WILL ACCELERATE AND THE RPM'S WILL DROP BACK TO NORMAL RPM. IT SEEMS TO HAPPEN MOST OFTEN IN RUSH TRAFFIC WHEN TRYING TO CHANGE LANES. THE HESITATION IN ACCELERATION WILL CAUSE ME TO LOSE MOST OF MY MARGIN OF SAFETY IN THE PROCESS OF CHANGING LANES. IN THIS REGARD, THE CAR IS NOT SAFE. THERE IS NO WAY TO PREDICT WHEN THE PROBLEM WILL OCCUR, AND THEREIN, LIES THE SAFETY HAZARD. IT WOULD SEEM THAT THE LAST EFFORT BY THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT TO UPDATE MY COMPUTER PROGRAMMING FAILED TO ACHIEVE ANY LEVEL OF IMPROVEMENT TO MY SATISFACTION WITH ONE EXCEPTION. SINCE THE FIRST COMPUTER UPGRADE, I HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED THE COMPLETE LOSS OF GEAR AT HIGH SPEEDS. IS THIS A PROBLEM IN ALL 2005 AVALONS? IS TOYOTA AWARE OF THE PROBLEM AND DO THEY HAVE PLANS TO RESOLVE IT? SERVICED ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 21. TOYOTA RESET THE COMPUTER LEARNING BACK TO FACTORY DEFAULT. TECHNICAL SUPPORT IN CA EXPLAINED THAT THERE ARE NO CURRENT PLANS TO ADDRESS THE ISSUE. ONCE THE LEARNING PROCESS DEVELOPS A BAD PATTERN, IT MUST BE RESET BACK TO FACTORY DEFAULT AND THE RELEARNING STARTED OVER. THE PROBLEM STARTED ALL OVER AGAIN AND THERE IS NO "UNLEARNING" THE PROBLEM. *JB

NHTSA ID

10144371

Incident

Jun 6, 2005

Mileage

18 mi

DT: THE CONSUMER COMPLAINED ABOUT AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION PROBLEM. WHEN APPLYING PRESSURE TO THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL THE GEAR WOULD NOT ENGAGE. THE VEHICLE DID NOT SHIFT GEARS SMOOTHLY. THE CONSUMER SUSPECTED THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL. THE CONSUMER LOST CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE WHEN ANOTHER VEHICLE PASSED. THE DEALERSHIP INFORMED THE CONSUMER THAT THEY COULD NOT DO ANYTHING BECAUSE THE VEHICLE WAS COMPUTER CONTROLLED. *AK (12/01/05) *SC

NHTSA ID

10141745

Incident

Aug 21, 2005

2005 TOYOTA AVALON - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - CONTROL MODULE I JUST PURCHASED 2005 TOYOTA AVALON LIMITED. I EXPERIENCE TERRIBLE TRANSMISSION HESITATION/SLIPPAGE. IT IS GETTING DANGEROUS WHEN I HAVE TO ENTER HIGHWAY RAMP BECAUSE OF TRANSMISSION HESITATION. WHEN I COAST AT LOW SPEED, FOR EXAMPLE, I NOTICE A RED TRAFFIC LIGHT AHEAD AND TAKE MY FOOT OFF THE GAS, THE CAR THEN CONTINUES FORWARD AS IF IN GEAR AND AFTER A PERIOD OF TIME IT FEELS AS IF THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTS TO NEUTRAL, THE RPMS DROP TO BELOW 1,000. THEN THE TRAFFIC LIGHT CHANGES WHEN MY SPEED IS ABOUT 5 - 10 MPH AND I SLOWLY DEPRESS THE ACCELERATOR. THE ENGINE RPMS INCREASE ABOUT 300 - 500 RPMS BUT THERE IS NO ACCELERATION. THEN THE TRANSMISSION GETS THE MESSAGE AND WE START TO ACCELERATE. *JB

NHTSA ID

10140951

Incident

Jul 29, 2005

Mileage

300 mi

I HAVE A 2005 TOYOTA AVALON PURCHASED NEW IN APRIL,2005.I ALSO HAVE AN EARLIER COMPLAINT,ODI#10119869,REGARDING HAVING TO RE SAUDER RADIO SPEAKER WIRES,REPLACING THE BUSHINGS AND LOWER SUB FRAME,AS WELL AS AIR CONDITONING,STEERING,AND RADIO PROBLEMS ALL OCCURRING IN THE FIRST 33 MILES OF OWNING THE NEW CAR.I ACCIDENTALLY FILED IT UNDER A TOYOTA SCION FOR TOYOTA CORP. PLEASE SEE THAT COMPLIANT ALSO.. THIS COMPLAINT IS ABOUT THE TRANSMISSION. IT SEEMS TO NOT WANT TO GET OUT OF FIRST GEAR.GETTING ONTO THE THE FREEWAY IS TERRIBLE,AS WELL AS DRIVING IN SLOW TRAFFIC. I HAVE TAKEN IT INTO THE DUBLIN TOYOTA DEALERSHIP AND THEY SAID THERE IS NOTHING WRONG,IT'S JUST THAT THE SENSORY COMPUTER IN THE CAR KNOWS HOW I DRIVE AND THE GEARS FOLLOW MY DRIVING HABITS. THEY SAID THEY RESET IT,THAT MAYBE WHEN THE CAR WAS TEST DRIVEN,IT SET ITSELF TO ANOTHER DRIVER. THEY SAID TO DRIVE IT EASY FOR THE FIRST 50 MILES,THEN NORMALLY AFTER THAT. WELL, BEFORE I EVEN DROVE OFF THIER LOT,IT STUCK AGAIN-BUT I HAD TO GO TO WORK SO I CALLED THEM AS SOON AS I GOT TO WORK AND HAVE TO TAKE IT BACK IN AGAIN. THE REAL SAFETY ISSUE OCCURRED YESTERDAY,WHEN I WAS THE FIRST CAR WAITING AT A TRAIN CROSSING FOR ABOUT 3 MINUTES WHILE THE TRAIN WAS PASSING. AFETR IT PASSED,AS I WAS CROSSING THE TRACKS,IT TOOK ABOUT 15 SECONDS FOR THE CAR TO MOVE ,AGAIN STUCK AND REVING IN LOW GEAR!I HAVE ALMOST BEEN REAR ENDED ON FREEWAY ENTRANCES,RED LIGHTS TURNING TO GREEN,ANDND NUMEROURS OTHER TIMES,AND NOW ON TRAIN TRACKS!!!!SOMETHING HAS TO BE DONE- I ALSO HAVE COMPLIINED TO THE DEALERSHIP ABOUT NOISES WHEN STEERING AND THEY SAID IT IS JUST THE RELEASE OF THE BRAKES.SINCE I CANNNOT DUPLICATE IT,THEY SAY THERE IS NOTHING I CAN DO- IT IS NOT THE BRAKES BECAUSE IT HAPPENS WHEN I AM MAKING SHARP TURNS.

NHTSA ID

10128356

Incident

Jul 11, 2005

Mileage

33 mi

I RECENTLY PURCHASED A 2005 TOYOTA LIMITED. THE TRANSMISSION POSES SAFETY PROBLEMS BECAUSE IT IS VERY UNEVEN AND UNPREDICTABLE, SHIFTING WHEN YOU DON'T EXPECT SHIFTING, AT LOWER AND HIGHER SPEEDS AND IN CRUISE CONTROL. (SEE THE ON-LINE DISCUSSION FORUM AT EDMUNDS WEBSITE REGARDING THIS PROBLEM WHICH MANY OWNERS ARE EXPERIENCING.

NHTSA ID

10122087

Incident

May 19, 2005

I JUST PURCHASED 2005 TOYOTA AVALON LIMITED. I EXPERIENCE TERRIBLE TRANSMISSION HESITATION/SLIPPAGE. IT IS GETTING DANGEROUS WHEN I HAVE TO ENTER HIGHWAY RAMP BECAUSE OF TRANSMISSION HESITATION.WHEN I COAST AT LOW SPEED, FOR EXAMPLE, I NOTICE A RED TRAFFIC LIGHT AHEAD AND TAKE MY FOOT OFF THE GAS, THE CAR THEN CONTINUES FORWARD AS IF IN GEAR AND AFTER A PERIOD OF TIME IT FEELS AS IF THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTS TO NEUTRAL, THE RPMS DROP TO BELOW 1,000. THEN THE TRAFFIC LIGHT CHANGES WHEN MY SPEED IS ABOUT 5 - 10 MPH AND I SLOWLY DEPRESS THE ACCELERATOR. THE ENGINE RPMS INCREASE ABOUT 300 - 500 RPMS BUT THERE IS NO ACCELERATION. THEN THE TRANSMISSION GETS THE MESSAGE AND WE START TO ACCELERATE.

NHTSA ID

10121398

Incident

May 18, 2005

Mileage

15 mi

I HAVE HAD REPEATED PROBLEMS WITH THE AUTOMATIC ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION IN MY TOYOTA AVALON 2005 LIMITED OVER THE PAST MONTH. I HAVE HAD THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP TO HAVE DIAGNOSTICS DONE. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH MY CAR AND I WOULD HAVE TO "TRAIN" MY CAR COMPUTER TO DRIVE. I HAVE OVER 1500 MILES ON THE CAR AND I CONTINUE TO HAVE THE SAME PROBLEMS. I DRIVE THE CAR AND MAKE STARTS AND STOPS SEVERAL TIMES WITHOUT ISSUE, THEN AT THE NEXT STOP I START OUT AND THE CAR SEEMS TO SHIFT IMMEDIATELY TO A HIGHER GEAR AND I HAVE TO HIT THE BRAKES TO AVOID HITTING OTHER CARS. OTHER TIMES, I WILL PRESS THE GAS PEDAL AND HAVE NO RESPONSE FOR SEVERAL SECONDS BEFORE THE CAR TAKES OFF. IT MAKES IT VERY DIFFICULT TO MERGE INTO TRAFFIC AS I NEVER KNOW WHEN THE CAR WILL GO OR NOT GO. THERE ARE YET OTHER TIMES THAT IT WILL START OFF NORMALLY AND THEN SEEM TO GET STUCK IN WHAT SEEMS LIKE SECOND GEAR AND REV FOR SEVERAL SECONDS BEFORE SHIFTING. PREVIOUSLY, I HAVE PRESSED THE GAS PEDAL AND ENDED UP LURCHING FORWARD WHEN THE SHIFT FINALLY OCCURRED. NOW I LET IT REV UNTIL IT SHIFTS ITSELF WITH NO ADDITIONAL GAS PEDAL DEPRESSION. WHILE THIS HAS STOPPED THE LURCHING, IT HAS LEFT ME VENERABLE IN THAT I CAN NOT DEPEND ON WHEN THE CAR WILL ACCELERATE SO I CAN AVOID ACCIDENTS WITH OTHER VEHICLES, PEOPLE, AND OBJECTS. THIS HAS BEEN QUITE FRUSTRATING. I CONSIDER IT A MATTER OF MY LIFE AND DEATH BECAUSE I TAKE COUMADIN AND IF I AM IN AN ACCIDENT, IT COULD AND QUITE POSSIBLE WOULD COST ME MY LIFE. PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT CAN BE DONE TO ENCOURAGE TOYOTA TO DEAL WITH THIS PROBLEM.

NHTSA ID

10120329

Incident

May 9, 2005

Mileage

60 mi