6G Celicas Forums

EDIT: It's a 1997 Celica GT Vert with the 5sfe engine.

The tranny won't shift into overdrive on cold days until the temp goes up to about half it's normal gauge position. Is this what everyone else experiences? I have a warranty for the entire transmission...

Also, the front struts make a squishy sound when going over speed bumps on cold mornings. Class? Anyone???

BTW.... I'M LOVIN' THIS CAR!!!! I thought I loved my '96 Jeep Grand Cherokee, but it's seen almost zero use since I bought the Celica over a month ago. The Jeep's seats are much more comfortable, however, and I would like to do something in that department. The seats need better lumbar support, and the Jeep has an adjustable bladder that has spoiled me.

This post has been edited by FrankB2: Nov 16, 2012 - 5:50 PM

Check the tranny fluid level. If nothing is amiss there, then it's something to do with the internals of the slushbox, at which point you may as well do a manual swap.

The squishy sound could be various things...the struts themselves squeaking somehow, or could also be spring-related noise...the rubber seats at the bottom of the coil likes to rot away, leaving the spring to rotate against metal. Test the integrity of the struts by pushing down on a corner of the car, and if the suspension doesn't bounce back to natural position right away then that's an indication that your struts are blown.

Oooopsss.... I didn't see the reply. The car warms up enough for the overdrive to kick in after less the 1 mile. Once it's 1/3 of the way to its normal operating temperature, it shifts into overdrive without a problem. I don't know if it's a design feature to get the engine warmed faster, but when the temp needle is about a needle's width above the bottom line, overdrive kicks in.

The squishy struts are only squishy until the car is driven over the first few speed bumps on cold days, and then the sound disappears....???

I misread the original post somehow; mine has done the same where it stays in third when cold, that is normal. For the squishy sound, may I hypothesize that your struts are at least somewhat gone? Seems to me like the fluid inside warms up to operating temperature, but beforehand (when cold) the pressure inside may be lacking.

This post has been edited by SwissFerdi: Nov 19, 2012 - 6:46 PM

This is normal for autos to do this nothing to worry about mine is the same until it warms up


This post has been edited by sweeny: Nov 19, 2012 - 8:24 PM

If you don't know how old the thermostat is it's probably time to replace it.

the over drive thing is normal. the car will do that to try to heat up quicker.

when mine was auto, it was the same as well.

Thanks for all the replies! My wife and I tooled around all day in the Celica, and even tooled over to the Miata dealer. That little car is much bigger inside than it looks! I had an MG Midget back in the late 70's, and the Miata is WAY bigger inside than that little car.

I pulled the front seats out this afternoon, mostly to vacuum the previous owner's gunk out. I found a quarter, and was able to route my satellite antenna wire under the carpet. I also tightened the seat to the seat pan, and that makes driving much more enjoyable. It was actually much cleaner than I thought it would be, but I had to pop those seats out just to make sure.