Delayed shift to 4th when cold

[BWC]

We have had cold weather here for the last 10 days with overnight temps down to -22C. When starting the RAV4 to go to work and driving off within a minute of start up I notice the transmission with hang up in 3rd and the engine will rev to 3000 rpm at 80 kmh (50 mph) until I get about 3 km (1.8 miles) from home. It will then shift to 4th. Is this "normal"? I don't like the idea of revving a very cold engine to 3000 rpm just to get up to speed limit plus not good for fuel consumption. It does it every morning after sitting out all night and does it every evening coming home. It does not do it when the temps are warmer like -5C. Any thoughts? Still working with the dealer on the "stumbling" issue when accelerating hard as in kick down but nothing yet. Are these two things related?

Brian

[RTexasF]

No that is not normal at all. The dealer should be informed of this, the two could be related.

[friendly_jacek]

My previous car (subaru) had that feature when very cold ATF. I would not be surprised if RAV4 has the same thing. Canada owners need to chime in on this. RTexas is clearly not qualified on this. You have to warm up the car some before driving hwy speeds; same with flooring gas, duh!

[cutthroat22]

I think it's normal.

[vanib]

I think mine does the same too on really cold mornings (e.g. -25C). I don't think it does this when it is around -15C.

[WJBertrand]

Toyota has done this on many models as a means to more quickly warm the engine and reduce cold start emissions. On our old '98 3-speed Sienna it was really obvious holding 2nd gear until a certain amount of engine warming is achieved. Our Rav4, with it's 4-speed transmission, may be doing this (holding 3rd instead of 2nd) but as we have a bit of in-town driving speeds before reaching the highway, it's evidently not as obvious.

[dozer]

my 2012 sport 4cyl did the same thing this weekend -25c i think it's normal

[BWC]

Thanks guys. I spoke with the service manager who confirmed it is normal for the RAV4 to do this in colder temps. I tried idling the vehicle 5 minutes last night before driving off (-16C) and it shifted as per normal. Either let it idle and have normal shifts or drive off and have engine rev to 3000+ rpm in cold temps. Not a big fan of the latter.

Brian

[RTexasF]

Originally Posted by friendly_jacek

My previous car (subaru) had that future when very cold ATF. I would not be surprised if RAV4 has the same thing. Canada owners need to chime in on this. RTexas is clearly not qualified on this. You have to warm up the car some before driving hwy speeds; same with flooring gas, duh!

You are indeed correct and I was a dumbass to answer that. I didn't even consider the temperatures involved as I sit here with the air conditioner on in January. My apologies to all for engaging fingers prior to engaging brain.

[kevcules]

Originally Posted by BWC

We have had cold weather here for the last 10 days with overnight temps down to -22C. When starting the RAV4 to go to work and driving off within a minute of start up I notice the transmission with hang up in 3rd and the engine will rev to 3000 rpm at 80 kmh (50 mph) until I get about 3 km (1.8 miles) from home. It will then shift to 4th. Is this "normal"? I don't like the idea of revving a very cold engine to 3000 rpm just to get up to speed limit plus not good for fuel consumption. It does it every morning after sitting out all night and does it every evening coming home. It does not do it when the temps are warmer like -5C. Any thoughts? Still working with the dealer on the "stumbling" issue when accelerating hard as in kick down but nothing yet. Are these two things related?

Brian

My 08 limited does the same thing when really cold. I noticed it the last few days even with 10 minute idle time. (the tranny gears aren't turning or warming up in park ,unless you put it in neutral) I don't like it but figured it was normal for Toyota......not sure yet.
I also have that "stumbling" issue sometimes when I press a lot on the gas pedal to get into traffic quickly. It seems to have more pick up if you only press on it a little????