2000 Corolla CE - 4spd auto - Transmission slightly jerks?

I have a 2000 Corolla CE I bought recently that had 45K miles on it (it has a 4spd auto with O/D).

When accelerating from a stop, I usually take it very slow and I notice that there is a slight jerk most of the time…it’s sort of like I can feel the gears engage. This doesn’t happen all the time and it doesn’t seem to happen if I accelerate fast.

I did a transmission drain & fill with Royal Purple MaxATF (the drain & fill was only once).

  1. Is this normal for this transmission? Also, is there a “pan drop” for this transmission? The mechanic only removed the drain bolt…he did not do the pan drop.

  2. During my work commute, I’m in a lot of rush hour traffic where it moves for short distances at 5-10mph. It will shift from 1st to 2nd a lot of times…is better to just put the car in 1st (L) gear? My mechanic said no because it will heat up the transmission faster.

Did the jerking start before or after the drain and fill?

It was already there when I bought the car.

There’s probabably a filter under the pan. A proper xmission service usually involves dropping the pan, cleaning/replacing the filter, and re-filling with a Toyota approved transmission fluid. A proper service is where I’d start.

If that doesn’t fix the problem, it could still be that there is just somethinig that needs to be tweaked, or a selenoid needs to be replaced. A good inde xmisison shop could give you a diagnostic.

If none of the above do the trick, save up, as – if you can’t live with this – you are looking at a total xmission rebuild.

I think the filter on this transmission is a metal screen that shouldn’t need service at just 45k miles.
I would drain and refill a couple of times with the proper Toyota fluid (T-IV?).
Get that aftermarket stuff out of there.

Check with your Owners Manual in the fluid specifications section to determine which fluid to use in your transmission. Oops, I just researched that your transmission uses dextron II or III

There is a replaceable filter screen under the pan. The pan should also be cleaned as sludge does collect on the bottom. Also the magnet(s) should be cleaned to get any magnetic debris out of the sump.

Hope this helps.

Toyota loves to call their filters by a different name

They call them “screen” and claim they don’t need to be replaced

BS in my book

When you drop the pan, you realize they’re just regular trans filters

I have to agree with @db4690. I looked up the transmission filter for your Corolla and it looks like this. The filter could be the problem. Just replacing fluid won’t fix anything so scratch the mechanic that did the job off your list.

I thought of something else that could cause the jerking but I had to check a reference source before I commented. Your transmission still has an adjustable throttle valve cable to the transmission valve body. That cable varys the line pressure to soften or harden the shift feel. If you don’t feel like fiddling with that take the Corolla to dealer service or an independent transmission shop and have them check the adjustment.

If you feel up to it, do the following. With the engine ‘off’ open the throttle valve all the way. You should see the ferrule on the throttle valve cable at or just beyond the dust boot. You adjust the cable housing to get the correct extension.

Hope this is it.

Respectfully ma’am, did u pruchase from a Toyota dealership? If not, I would implore u to go online to NTSB for technical service bulletins on your Toyota car. Secondly, I would implore to u to go to a Toyota dealership to see if there are any new Toyota computer download fixes to your transmission. Further, your purple fluid exchange for your Toyota transmission was completely in error. I would 100% suggest that u have a BG-ATC transmission flush service performed with Toyota vehicle specific transmission fluid from Toyota. Your approach to this problem thus far, in my opinion, is completly off the mark & wrong. Therefore, I can only provide u with this procedure to correctly(and hopefully) repair this problem, if no further damage has been caused from what has been done to this point. Good luck, hope this a help.

While I am generally against trans flushes, in this case it might be a good idea to flush out that incorrect ATF . . .

Maybe this problem is related to an engine performance issue rather than the transmission.
Just some food for thought anyway.