[DrZeus]

FYI, the transmission in my 2018 C-HR XLE has failed and was replaced (under warranty) in February 2020 with just over 36,000 miles. First indication that something was wrong was hearing a whining noise coming from the front end. If anyone else is or has experienced this problem, please let me know. I'm getting some feedback that this might be a known flaw in this vehicle... Not happy.

 

[zx10guy]

Did the dealer say anything about what failed in the trans? The whining could be anything from the differential to the actual CVT belt.

 

[DrZeus]

Did the dealer say anything about what failed in the trans? The whining could be anything from the differential to the actual CVT belt.

They said that they didn't know what caused the failure but that Toyota may want to look at it to make a determination. I guess I should have also stated that they replaced the torque convertor.

 

[zx10guy]

So did they just replace the torque converter or the trans with the torque converter? If they replaced the torque converter with the trans, is the failure just the torque converter?

 

[DrZeus]

So did they just replace the torque converter or the trans with the torque converter? If they replaced the torque converter with the trans, is the failure just the torque converter?

Good question that I did not ask. It was originally diagnosed with a faulty transmission (which was replaced) then, a week later (as it was still in the shop), they informed me that the torque convertor needed replaced as well. I was under the impression (google search) that if one goes bad, the other needs to be replaced as well due to metal shaving contamination. I am not mechanically inclined so I guess that I didn't know the right questions to ask...

 

[John Doherty]

Same thing just happened to us with our 2018 CH-R. Luckily we bought from a dealer that has a "free" lifetime powertrain warranty. My mechanic and friend diagnosed it and told me to take it to the dealership. 64k on it and the inspector is coming tomorrow to hopefully give them the go to replace it at the dealership. Fingers crossed. I'm a Toyota fan. I've had a 2nd generation supra, Scion Tc, Xb, and two Rav 4's. Currently we have a Rav4, Tc, and the CH-R. I really want to add a gx470 but if this isn't made right I will ditch toyota all together. The pursuit of fuel efficiency is going to tarnish the brand if they can't get these CVT's right. They just recalled the new Corolla's due to the similar transmission failure. The most ridiculously reliable/affordable toyota is now seeing trouble before getting out of the gate. Can't wait to see the problems the BMW motor will have in the Supra. It's really a bummer too because I'm nearly to the point where I will be able to afford a slightly used Supra. But yeah I'm not touching it with that motor.

 

[zx10guy]

Same thing just happened to us with our 2018 CH-R. Luckily we bought from a dealer that has a "free" lifetime powertrain warranty. My mechanic and friend diagnosed it and told me to take it to the dealership. 64k on it and the inspector is coming tomorrow to hopefully give them the go to replace it at the dealership. Fingers crossed. I'm a Toyota fan. I've had a 2nd generation supra, Scion Tc, Xb, and two Rav 4's. Currently we have a Rav4, Tc, and the CH-R. I really want to add a gx470 but if this isn't made right I will ditch toyota all together. The pursuit of fuel efficiency is going to tarnish the brand if they can't get these CVT's right. They just recalled the new Corolla's due to the similar transmission failure. The most ridiculously reliable/affordable toyota is now seeing trouble before getting out of the gate. Can't wait to see the problems the BMW motor will have in the Supra. It's really a bummer too because I'm nearly to the point where I will be able to afford a slightly used Supra. But yeah I'm not touching it with that motor.

The recall for the Corolla HB's CVT trans was not related to any issue with the design of the trans itself. It was a production issue which involved the torque converter. In addition, the trans used in the Corolla HB is not the same as our trans. It has a physical first gear which they refer to as the launch gear. I wouldn't draw parallels to that recall and what is happening here.

While it's disconcerting that there are two reported issues with the CVTs used in our cars, I would want to know what exactly is the issue. Plus two out of the thousands of trans' out in the wild isn't predictive of the overall reliability of these trans'.

On the BMW motor. Barring some unique design quirks of the B58 motor, I wouldn't be so quickly dismissive of it either. I have the previous generation N55 motor in my 2013 BMW 135i. Other than the annoying smaller issues, the car has yet to have left me stranded or has had any catastrophic failures in my 6 years of ownership with 97,500 miles on the clock. I also had the factory PPK tune done about a year into owning the car and then a couple of years later had the Dinan S2 tune done. The two repairs I did which are known issues on my N55 are the oil filter housing gasket (OFHG) and the electric water pump. The OFHG failed on my engine and started pissing oil all over the front and bottom of the engine. It's an annoying issue since the design is the same across the inline 6s (naturally aspirated or turbocharged) of that generation of motor: N51, N52, N54, N55, etc. The water pump was replaced proactively as it's known to go bad eventually and does so without warning which will put the engine in limp mode. I did mine at 75k. Some have pushed their water pumps to just over 100k before failure. But the B58 resolved the water pump issue because it uses a mechanical water pump now. Oh and BMW finally got a clue and added an oil dip stick back into the motor. The B58 has been proving to be a pretty stout motor as many tuners are getting some pretty good power numbers from it. Papadakis Racing who are known for their 2JZ motor builds has been neck deep into the B58 when the new Supra came out. There are Youtube videos they have where they've built out a 1000HP B58 motor. And the ZF trans being used with the B58 also seems to be pretty reliable.

Personally, if I was in the market for another sports car, I'd seriously consider the new Supra or the M2C. The Z4 is out of the running because I don't want a convertible.

 

[Nestor Alexander Nazario]

I just got the call from my dealership today that my tranny and torque converter need to be replaced.

Brought it in 2 weeks ago for a weird humming/roaring noise coming from the front... my initial thought was CVT, but the head mechanic at my local dealership insisted it was a wheel bearing after taking it on a test drive with me. Mind you this visit was at 60,100mi, just barely out of warranty.

Fast forward to today, I take it in for oil change, tire rotation, and the wheel bearing.... currently sitting at 60,700mi. I get a call from the dealership a couple hours later stating that the tranny is going and it will need to be replaced along with the torque converter, but they are not sure if they would cover it under my freshly warranty or not.

Fast forward another hour. They call and say “good news, we got you some coverage under warranty, but we need to bring an appraiser in to take a look at things first. We will get back to you tomorrow or Friday.”

I’m a Toyota fan through and through, but I’ll likely be selling the car after they make the repair (which they better cover under warranty or I’m going to raise ****) and move onto something with a traditional auto trans. These CVTs just ain’t worth.

 

[zx10guy]

Wow. That sucks. I'd really want to know what exactly is failing on these transmissions.

As to finding a car in this class with no CVT, it's getting harder. The HR-V is a CVT. Mazda's CX3 does have a 6 speed auto.

 

[Tanveer0543]

Can anyone with the issue make a video if possible? Just to confirm the type of noise we should be looking for. I am getting around that mileage now on my 2018 and will take the car to dealership before i run out of warranty