4 GEARS May 2014

The Mystery of the Rotating Bearing!

There are days when you spend lots of time investigating prob-lems only to come up short or

the trail runs dry. Today we’re dealing with U660E issues that, until now, were a mystery.

The U660E appeared in the Lexus ES350 and the Toyota Camry in 2007 and were followed by five additional

models in the U.S. over the next four years:

• RX350 2010-13• Avalon 2008-12• Highlander 2008-12• Sienna 2010-13• Venza 2009-13About six months ago we started

seeing Toyotas with multiple com-

plaints: harsh or erratic shifts, engage-ment problems, and converter clutch issues. All of the transmissions were torn down for repair. The only prob-lems found were sticking valves and a fine metal in the pan.

Not one component appeared to be damaged, but the valve body bores and solenoids were clogged with a fine

Figure 1

STREET SMART

by Mike Brownmembers.atra.com

The Mystery of the Rotating Bearing! Toyota U660E shift problems traced

back to case wear and damage; the fix requires replacing the case.

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6 GEARS May 2014

The Mystery of the Rotating Bearing!

aluminum. As the investigation went from days, to weeks, to months, shops were being inundated with this prob-lem.

As with any investigation you need the facts. Here are the facts of this situ-ation:• We have metal throughout the

transmission; fine metal.• We have sticking valves and worn

bores caused by this metal.• We have torque converter slip and

ratio codes associated with it.

I made sure that the next time a U660E failure occurred I would be there. Then it happened: We got a trans-mission in with the exact conditions we were hearing about. It was time to interrogate the subject!

During the unit teardown I found a very interesting issue with the coun-terdrive gear double ball bearing in the case (figure 1). It moved! It rotated in the case, freely, without resistance. But, when I attempted to remove the bear-ing, it felt like something was holding it in place.

Turns out the bearing is installed in the case and has a snap ring to secure it (figure 2). It’s supposed to be a non-removable bearing, but Toyota sells a replacement.

So the bearing was spinning in the case, which created the fine metal, which, in turn, caused the shifting issues and torque converter slip. But we hadn’t discovered why the bearing was spinning in the case. It was time to dig a little deeper!

Then we noticed something even more interesting: Nothing was dam-aged except the case where the center bearing rides. A closer examination revealed the front of the case was close to specification but the rear was way off (Figure 3).

Figure 2

Figure 3

Turns out the bearing is installed

in the case and has a snap ring to

secure it.

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8 GEARS May 2014

The Mystery of the Rotating Bearing!

So what was happening was sim-ply a torque issue. The unit is pretty beefy for a front wheel drive: The ring gear and carrier weigh 45 lbs. and the two transfer gears are fairly stout (Figure 4). That’s all at the front of the transmission. It’s the back half that’s having the issue.

From the center of the case the planetary is connected to the transfer gear by splines and a lock nut. The planetary is then splined to the sun gear, direct ring gear, and finally to the end clutch (Figures 5 & 6). The sheer torque of the unit, especially those mated to

Figure 5

Figure 4

The ring gear and carrier weigh 45 lbs. and the two

transfer gears are fairly stout. That’s all at the front of the transmission. It’s the back half that’s having the

issue.

Case Support Point

Case Support Point

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10 GEARS May 2014

The Mystery of the Rotating Bearing!

3.5L and 3.7L V6 engines, is what’s causing the issue. It’s literally flexing the case where the bearing contacts it.

As it stands right now there’s no aftermarket fix for this condition. It’s a costly repair, requiring you to replace the case. And there’s nothing to stop it from happening again.

For now you can get a used case for about $175. Make sure the bearing is tight; if the bearing moves, that case is bad, too.

If a good used case isn’t available, you’ll need a new case from the dealer, part #35141-07011, at a cost of nearly $1,200. You’ll also need a bearing for about $110, part #90369-72001, and a new snap ring for another $2.43; part #90520-99110.

The Toyota service manual says you can press the bearing out and replace it with a one. You can’t! We tried to cut it out with die grinders but that didn’t work. So we used a cutting

torch to cut it out, just to check the case, measure it, and report the information to the industry.

When the bearing starts to rotate, it sends metal throughout the unit, solenoids, valve body bores, planets — everywhere you look, it’s there. That’s followed by a flare on the shift because the solenoid is clogged with metal from the planet.

Book ’em Dan-O! We found the answer to our mystery… well the cause at least. I’m sure it won’t be long before the aftermarket comes up with sleeves or boring tools with a new sleeve and bearing, but, until then, be aware of this issue. If you miss it, it’ll cost you a comeback.

Case closed!

Figure 6

As it stands right now there’s no aftermarket fix

for this condition. It’s a costly repair,

requiring you to replace the

case. And there’s nothing to stop it from happening

again.

Center

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