6Th Gear Struggling & Trembling

[koppatroppa2002]

Hi guys just a month old member and I have this problem when driving around 75 and stick in to 6gear the car seems powerless trembling and accelerate only if I really put my foot deep ! Any help?

[blackcts]

Thats just the gearing!!! I dont know what lexus were thinking - mine only seems happy and pulls in 6th after 80odds. You can put most modern diesels in 6th at 40mph and pull cleanly!

[IHgs300]

as above.

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

If it's a 220d then yeah it's normal.

Silly gear ratios on that car..... What were Toyota/Lexus thinking? Silly silly Toyota!!

[IHgs300]

Sometimes wonder if the drivetrain on the 220 was developed on a friday afternoon just before quitting time.

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

Sometimes wonder if the drivetrain on the 220 was developed on a friday afternoon just before quitting time.

Haha that would explain a lot

[LexIS200Sport]

Minor hijack but out of curiosity, what gear do most 220d owners use when doing 70-75mph on the motorway?

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

5th Ganesh.... I drove one from Swansea to Heathrow once, never used 6th lol

[LexIS200Sport]

fair enough :)

[noby76]

not sure why most IS220d drivers feel the need to use 6th gear?? this is an overdrove gear which I believe has a ratio to pull or cruise at a specific speed range which I believe is maybe 80mph and above so if 5th gear happily cruises without any strain on the engine with regards to revs then why try to use 6th gear if 5th does the job by comfortably cruising and picking up speed when needed around 60-70mph?

[LexIS200Sport]

Chris, do you recall at what RPM did the engine sit on when you were in 5th gear @ 70mph?

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

No not really Ganesh, I just remember it struggled at 65-70 in 6th.

And Noby if you buy a car with 6 gears you expect to be able to use 6 gears. Nowhere does it mention 6th being any kind of "special gear" or "overdrive" gear. It's just poor gear ratio design from Lexus/Toyota

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

And if what you say is true Noby why design top gear for illegal road speeds. The RHD model of this car was made for the UK market so they really messed up in my opinion.

[noby76]

I understand what you saying Chris and its not a special gear but it is an over drive gear it is intended for cruising once speed has been built up. the IS220d has 5 direct gears to assist in acceleration and 1 overdrive(cruising) gear. this is the same principal as the 6 speed you have in the IS200. an overdrive is mainly for cruising and extracting as much mpg out of a vehicle and not intended for accelerating but this is debatable depending on final drive ratio , engine characteristics and power band. this is why Catalin can not accelerate his car instantly in 6th gear until he 'floors' it. though a car can accelerate gradually in an overdrive gear its not intended for flooring but direct gears will.

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

I get what you're saying Noby but my IS will go into 6th and pull at as low as 35-40mph... I still think it's a poor gear ratio design :)

[koppatroppa2002]

No not really Ganesh, I just remember it struggled at 65-70 in 6th.

And Noby if you buy a car with 6 gears you expect to be able to use 6 gears. Nowhere does it mention 6th being any kind of "special gear" or "overdrive" gear. It's just poor gear ratio design from Lexus/Toyota

Finally a proper answer I'll say !! Cheers m8

[koppatroppa2002]

I understand what you saying Chris and its not a special gear but it is an over drive gear it is intended for cruising once speed has been built up. the IS220d has 5 direct gears to assist in acceleration and 1 overdrive(cruising) gear. this is the same principal as the 6 speed you have in the IS200. an overdrive is mainly for cruising and extracting as much mpg out of a vehicle and not intended for accelerating but this is debatable depending on final drive ratio , engine characteristics and power band. this is why Catalin can not accelerate his car instantly in 6th gear until he 'floors' it. though a car can accelerate gradually in an overdrive gear its not intended for flooring but direct gears will.

Good explanation but my really worries was why its trembling like, fir a new Lexus driver, 1st thought was I have a problem somewhere !! Bad reaction from a car to be honest! Plus never floor it just doesn't pull but very graduate and slowly, but pulls. Again my concern was the trembling think...well I'm better now when I see thar .."its normal" ...lol

Cheers guys

[blackcts]

As much as I like the 220d and it certainly isn't a slow car, any German diesel I've driven with a 6 speed box has far better ratios.

[LexIS200Sport]

Now I'm curious as to how the gear ratios are on other Toyota diesels. Was the 220d just a fluke or are they all like that?

[normski2]

I had a 220d. Have to say I only ever used 6th driving on the continent.

At 70 mph or a little over I always stuck to 5th for the superior sounding/feeling drive. If it ain't right to use 6th...then don't...least that's how I approached it. The revs were not high in 5th doing 75mph.

[noby76]

Any car pulls harder from its torque peak RPM and since I have not driven the IS220d I am not sure which RPM the engine sits when cruising at 75 and shift up to 6^th gear. IS220d’s peak torque (pulling power) comes in at 2000RPM and if 6^th gear causes the engine RPM to fall below 2000rpm at a cruising speed of 75mph then the car has fallen below its ‘power band’ in other words the RPM which the car can accelerate with ease and the struggling & trembling you experience is a result of this as the engine is now being laboured. But drop it to 4^th or even 5^th for the RPM needle to rise up to around 2000RPM and floor the throttle and you will feel that 400NM of tourque pin you down the seat for about a second or two. 2008 BMW 320d which has the same BHP as the IS is also a 6 speed but the difference between the 2 cars in terms of performance is the torque delivery. The 320d’s torque comes in at 1750RPM so if this car is cruising at 75MPH in 6^th gear with RPM sitting at a lazy 1750rpm it will take off once the throttle is floored in this gear and will not experience the struggling & trembling due to being in its ‘power band’ or torque peak RPM and also lighter in weight compared to the IS. If this answers why the similar BMW pulls instantly in 6^th at lower RPM’s and gear ratio and final drive ratio also contributes to this. And as Normski confirmed the revs are quite low at 5^th anyway so Lexus might have got the ratios right that 6^th was a redundant gear but thought they throw it in anyway as they know what European car journalists are like.