How to drive an Auto?

[Johnnyboxer]

Well, after 35 years of solely driving manuals and never driven an Auto................I have now purchased an Auto

So...............how do you drive them?

It's a new 3.0 Hilux Invincible, so not that sophisticated with Tiptronic/Steptronic/DSG and all that malarkey

It's a 5 speed box, as pictured below

Naturally it has D for Drive and R for Reverse and P for Park

Yep, yep all that is fairly simple

But it also has numbers ~ 2/3/4 and a L for Low (presumably 1st)

What do these numbers mean?

I find that in town in 20's/30's/40' it's very easy to be in too high a gear in D mode and for it to 'run-on' - so you tend to exceed the posted speed limits in built up areas

Can I go from D to 4 to 3, by knocking the lever into those positions whilst in town and then back up to D (via 3>4>D), once back out on the open NSL roads or Dual Carriageways

If I do that, will it damage the autobox to switch between D and the numbers?

Or is it ok to do that?

Only talking about 2000rpm, as the motor has bags of torque around town

Yours in hope................. for an Auto numpty

[Rigger]

The numbers are exactly what they say, L-1st gear, 2-2nd etc. Knocking the lever down to 3 means the auto box will only shift up to 3rd gear. You can shift down while driving, just don't shift down to 2nd while doing 100km/h obviously. In town shift down manualy until your revs/speed ratio is correct then you won't have that low revs gear hunting.

Hope this helps. And enjoy getting to know your new ride

[Family_Dog]

In simple terms, it's all very well explained here - a short you-tube clip of the BMW AT transmission but perfectly applicable to your AT.

Professor Simpson explains:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3S3mzAzOl6o


-F_D

[Dirka]

mmm
This is very interesting!
I never knew that TOYOTA actually has the 5spd A750 series transmission behind the 3.0 D4D in other world markets.
Here in SA the pre-Gen Hiluxes is equipped with the 4 spd A340 series transmission for the 3.0 d4d.
Depending on 2x4 or 4x4 it will have the 'E' or 'F' extension.
The new Revo has the 6spd A760 series auto boxes and I think it's the same tranny now for both the petrol and diesels...which is good news. (keeping less parts stock, readily availability, lower production costs, etc)
My qustion is now this...Isn't Toyota then supposed to standarize on models globally or is this now a TOY SA thing where they always have to be different from the global markets?
...was just wondering..

[Lorry]

D you can use as per normal and the gearbox will select the best gear for the speed and throttle position that you are doing, like if you are in a manual, however if you are in town and you are cruising along say at 60, the box will be in a high gear say 4th gear, you put your foot down to overtake or shoot in front of a car, the box will then select a gear that best suits the rpm and speed. The response is slow but then it sorts itself out. if you lock the box into 3rd gear the box want change up to 4th and 5th. so when you put your foot down you are already in the correct gear. Personally one gets used to the box and how it works and your driving style will change to suit it. When towing however ,mainly up a hill using 4th gear helps and stops the box from hunting, you will see this when you drive at 100 kmh and the box is in 5th , you accelerate slowly and nothing happens then you push the pedal more more and more and then it gears down and off you go, you release the pedal and it then jumps back up into 5th gear and you start all over again. by locking it in 4th if you are planning to overtake or going up a hill , the same as if you are in a manual and you know you will need to gear down you can do the same. I would advise you drive around in D for now until you get used to the way the box works and then you go and play with it. Little bit of advice for off road. if you used low range in your manual , do the same in the auto otherwise you will overheat the oil in the box.soft sand is the worse. Don't let the drive system strain. Remember to lock the box in a gear when you are going down a steep decent so as to use the engine as a brake, otherwise the box will change into a high gear and you will go for a fast ride down the hill. Enjoy the rock climbing. Left foot on the brake

[JohanW]

One very very important note. The A340 auto has no torque converter lockup in 1st. If you are pulling a load up a really steep hill and unable to maintain enough speed in 2nd and above 2000-2200rpm (torque converter lockup velocity, also known as stall speed) you will rapidly heat the ATF due to torque converter slip. Its advisable to shift to low range earlier in a auto to prevent this from happening. Due to the gear ratios on the hilux d4d auto this means anywhere below 40kp/h you are in the danger zone.

The d4d hilux vigo has the A340 gearbox, which only has 4 gears. 1st sits between 1st and 2nd on a manual gear ratio wise.

With regards to hunting, its not a issue on these D4ds. Mine never hunts. I haven't had a single instance of it hunting between gears. None, zero. What it does often do is to select 4th too early for my liking. Then I simply tap the gear lever to 3rd (4th for you manual brained folks) and continue.

The manual selection of gears on the auto only limits the highest available gear the box can select. It also keeps it in that gear (read engine breaking) for as long as possible. It will select a lower gear if it can maintain rpm in that gear. You can ovveride this with the shift lock button (yes you can put it on a dyno due to this feature without killing people if the box shifts down).

The d4d auto has a bigger radiator compared to the manual. This is to accommodate the ATF cooler in the bottom half.

Lots of the guys in the US and AUS have installed auxiliary oil coolers for the AT. This is to prevent the ATF from overheating in the above described scenario. I have had the ATF warning light appear once in the above scenario.

The AT is absolutely fantastic offroad. It really makes things a lot easier and safer + more controlled. Rocks and big steps are a joy and allows you to traverse them smoothly. Sand is a joy too since the auto doesn't dig holes as quickly. I will buy a auto again

[Johnnyboxer]

The numbers are exactly what they say, L-1st gear, 2-2nd etc. Knocking the lever down to 3 means the auto box will only shift up to 3rd gear. You can shift down while driving, just don't shift down to 2nd while doing 100km/h obviously. In town shift down manualy until your revs/speed ratio is correct then you won't have that low revs gear hunting.

Hope this helps. And enjoy getting to know your new ride

Many thanks, very helpful

The Toyota Owner's manual is a bit light on detail

My first Hilux and I like it

[Johnnyboxer]

mmm
This is very interesting!
I never knew that TOYOTA actually has the 5spd A750 series transmission behind the 3.0 D4D in other world markets.
Here in SA the pre-Gen Hiluxes is equipped with the 4 spd A340 series transmission for the 3.0 d4d.
Depending on 2x4 or 4x4 it will have the 'E' or 'F' extension.
The new Revo has the 6spd A760 series auto boxes and I think it's the same tranny now for both the petrol and diesels...which is good news. (keeping less parts stock, readily availability, lower production costs, etc)
My qustion is now this...Isn't Toyota then supposed to standarize on models globally or is this now a TOY SA thing where they always have to be different from the global markets?
...was just wondering..

Hi Dirka

In UK we have had the 5speed Auto on the 3.0 Invincible DC, since about 2012-2013 I think

Our Hiluxs are built in SA too

People say the 5speed Autobox is better

[JohanW]

The numbers are exactly what they say, L-1st gear, 2-2nd etc. Knocking the lever down to 3 means the auto box will only shift up to 3rd gear. You can shift down while driving, just don't shift down to 2nd while doing 100km/h obviously. In town shift down manualy until your revs/speed ratio is correct then you won't have that low revs gear hunting.

Hope this helps. And enjoy getting to know your new ride

Many thanks, very helpful

The Toyota Owner's manual is a bit light on detail

My first Hilux and I like it

From your picture and location (UK) it appears you have the A750 gearbox. With 5 gears. Lucky bugger. Enjoy. You most probably won't have the torque converter lockup issue I described.