Hi i just found this site after searchin hard on the net for a toyota board. i have a 1994 four runner sr5 v6 auto with nothing done to it mod wise.

Heres basic background on my truck: had the head gasket problem fixed, engine runs well i believe. my main problem is the transmission is awful there is no power and i can tell its because the tranny is slipping or the converter is bad.

is there any known problems with the auto tranny that came with my truck?

I dont know much about toyota engines other than my truck runs like a dog with its back legs shot out from under it (pitiful) and i want it to run better.

My main expertise is drag racing so i know lots about old cars and carburated engines but nothing when it comes to toyota mods.

please tell me what my options are as far as mods for the 3.0 engine, and if tranny problems are common.

how much shoudl i expect to pay to have tranny rebuilt if i pull it myself?

thanks in advance i hope i learn alot from this site and make my turd fourrunner a little better.

Last question: any superchargers for the 3.0?

thanks
rick

 

I don't know much about the auto - although I do recall test driving a couple and they were considerably slower than the 5 speed that I ended up buying. Have the tranny checked - if it is good then the only thing I can think of is regearing the differentials. BTW - if you do regear sell me your 4.88's ok? hehehe. Seriously - I haven't heard of any common problems with the AT other than they won't shift into 4th until the engine warms up.

There is no supercharger for the 3.0. As bad as the headgaskets are on these trucks Toyota would have been insane to try it.

Hopefully Corey and a couple of the guys with auto 2nd gens will chime in.

 

Welcome to the forum!

I am going to recommend that you do a search for information regarding the tranny, mods and such.

For instance, this thread has lots of info on mods for a 2nd gen 4Runner like the one you are talking about.

Number 1 Power Mods

No, there are no known superchargers for the 3.0 V6, however you can always swap in a 3.4 (I am recommending this to everyone, as I want to see the results )

Also, look in the tech section for performance mods, such as the ISR, Deckplates...

I have 130k on my auto tranny, and no problems. Clean shifts...

 

thanks for the info guys. i also have that problem with it not shiftin into overddrive until its warm i thought it wasjust my junk. glad to know its common. Im havin the tranny looked at soon, and am going to look in the tech section like recommended. cant afford to swap the 3.4 l engine becaus eall my real money goes into my camaro.

thanks
rick

 

Hey Rick welcome aboard. The tranny not shifting in OD before warm is correct. There is nothing wrong with the tranny. I thought the same thing and brought mine back to the dealer. I took a ride with the master tech and he told me that it is designed that way so the engine heats up faster. Gets it to normal operating temp quicker. So don't worry about it. It's great in the winter 'cause you get heat quick.

What's in the Camaro engine wise? Have you kept it stock or modified it?

 

well the tranny still slips awfully bad im sure of it, i am pretty mechinically knowledgable (built every aspect of my camaro from ground up) and i know it has bad clutches or the converter is bad.

as for my camaro it has a small block 406 heavily modified, but still streetable and ran a 12.90 last year but i got more mods so loooking for 12.5s this year. at sea level thatd be a low 11.

just want my four runner to get some power back

 

Camaro sounds sweet! I have a '97 30th Anniov Edition with the 5.7L, six speed. It moves pretty quick.

 

Welcome!! I left you a post about the exhaust. My 4 runner now will do a 0 to 60 time in 13.5 seconds. Of course it is modified, but thats about as fast as an automatic 3.0 will go I think. maybe take off an extra half second for intake path mods and a regear. Im geared for 28" tires but running 30".

 

Welcome to the forum Rick!

Glad you found us.
Cheers!

 

thanks for the welcome and i just hope to make my fourrunner be able to become a better performer than it already is

Im planning on doing a base testdyno on it (friend has shop with dyno) and then moddin it and dyno afterwards. ill report all my findings here when im done, so long as no one laughs hehe.

thanks
rick

 

Welcome to the forum
When I saw your sig line, it just brought back memories of my '94

 

cant tell if yours is gold or not but mine is so they even look similar hehe

 

Rick, the 2nd gen. 4-runners do have a problem with the tranny overheating, especially if they are overfull. When the tranny overheats, a yellow A/T Temp light will light up on the dash.

I live in Fort Collins too. I hear that Cottman's on 287 is pretty good, they seem to know their stuff.