No reverse

Tiny
ERICARAE
  • MEMBER
  • 1995 TOYOTA CAMRY
  • AUTOMATIC
I have a 1995 Toyota Camry that has been sitting in my driveway for three months since I went away to college. I came back to visit, put in a new battery and drove it about 250 miles. It drove perfectly fine, and reversed out of my driveway, but when I parked after my long drive, it will no longer go into reverse, though it will go into drive fine. I’m thinking that it might have something to do with the transmission, but even so, would it be safe to drive back the 250 miles?
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Wednesday, March 30th, 2011 AT 4:57 PM

46 Replies

Tiny
SATURNTECH9
  • MECHANIC
  • 30,870 POSTS
Hello,

I have seen the solenoid pack go bad causing the problem you are describing. Here is a diagram to help you see what you need to replace. Check out the diagrams (Below). Please let us know what happens.
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Wednesday, March 30th, 2011 AT 6:28 PM
Tiny
SHANNON_PRIV
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
I had to get a new solicood pack to make my car go into reverse. Cost me $134.00
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:02 PM
Tiny
JOSH_CHAM03
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
  • 1995 TOYOTA CAMRY
  • 6 CYL
  • FWD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 67,000 MILES
Hello. Im having a problem with the reverse. When I put the shifter into reverse, the car wont move. But not all the time. I have the fluids and filter change already, still the problem persist. Pls help.
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:02 PM (Merged)
Tiny
MMPRINCE4000
  • MECHANIC
  • 8,549 POSTS
Open the hood and have a friend move the shifter through the range. Look at where the shift cable connects to the transmission, for a loose bolt that connects to the shift lever.
It could also be the shift cable in the car has worked loose from its connection.
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:02 PM (Merged)
Tiny
LARRY MO
  • MEMBER
  • 2 POSTS
  • 1993 TOYOTA CAMRY
  • 4 CYL
  • FWD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 180,000 MILES
I have a Haynes manual #92006 for this car, but can't find enough info to determine problem. All forward gears / speeds good with NO slipping, AT fluid levels were down slightly & were re-filled.
Since the on-set of problem was sudden, I suspected reverse solenoid in transmission is defective or not getting a signal to acctuate-- anyway to test?
Car has a tach & I read the tach speed @ 1200 rpm running- cold- that dropped to 1000 when (D) drive was engaged-- but tach does the same thing-- 1200 drops to 1000 when (R) reverse is engaged.
Is this a result of the reverse solenoid engaging or is the ECM or CPU reducing the rpm?
Is the park / neutral switch in the electrical circuit for the reverse solenoid? Car was towed with-in the last 60 days, ignition coil, & the wrecker operator was "rough" when he manually tripped the shift lock - I witnessed, but the car didn't show any immediate effects. Could this have an effect? The shift / lock control switch is still operating, car will start in park & neutral only.
ANY IDEAS FROM ANYONE? LARRY MO
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:02 PM (Merged)
Tiny
MIKE H R
  • MECHANIC
  • 3,094 POSTS
With 180000 miles on it when was the last time the transmission had been serviced fluid changed and the filter changed. Was this doing this since it was towed or had this happened even a little before it was towed? How does the transmission fluid smell. Does it smell with a burnt smell? If so then I would have the fluid changed and filter. This might not stop the problem if the transmission hasd internal problems but I would start with the fluid changed.
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:02 PM (Merged)
Tiny
LARRY MO
  • MEMBER
  • 2 POSTS
I do basic repairs & maintenance on my cars, family & friends, including oil w/ filter, ATF & filter, gas filter, fuel pump, brakes etc anything top or bottom that doesn't require pulling heads or dropping bottom (oil) pan & I have replaced a transmission solenoid. This is my wife's car & unfortunently she doesn't keep up with the info I give her concerning the mileage & work done @ the time of repair--- she will sometimes take car elsewhere for maintenance without telling me but thanks for the response & I will replace the ATF & filter to see what difference, if any, this will make. Any other thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated. LARRY MO
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:02 PM (Merged)
Tiny
MIKE H R
  • MECHANIC
  • 3,094 POSTS
When you put it in reverse can you feel anything. Even the slightest trying to move back or a burnt smell on the dipstick. If it does then I would think about the changing of the fluid. Check the shift linkage. With it being towed a linkage could be off.
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:02 PM (Merged)
Tiny
MURETO
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
  • 1991 TOYOTA CAMRY
Initially car had no forward driving. I bought the master kit and replaced all discs, plates, seals, gaskets, band and filter. The discs on forward clutch were total bad. The other clutches discs were okay. After finish the job I ended up with okay forward driving on d, 2 and l but no reverse or neutral. Beside this problem if shut the engine on neutral, the wheels don't move at all. I reopened the pan and checked manual valve and pawl lock lever and springs and they are okay. May guess is the piston on the reverse clutch is not moving or is stocked. I need some help to fix this and I appreciated any input help.

Michael
new jersey
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:02 PM (Merged)
Tiny
MHPAUTOS
  • MECHANIC
  • 31,938 POSTS
Hi there,

There is no way of knowing what has gone wrong here, the only thing to do ids pull it out and strip it back down, and check your work with the manual step by step, it may just be a bit of grime fouling a valve, transmissions must be spotless, I wont even attempt to do transmissions in my work shop, I leave them to the experts in this field.

Mark (mhpautos)
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:02 PM (Merged)
Tiny
LANGE17
  • MEMBER
  • 9 POSTS
  • 1992 TOYOTA CAMRY
  • 4 CYL
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 210,000 MILES
I drive a '92 Camry, automatic, with 210,000 miles. I backed out of the driveway normally today. When I got to my destination, I put the car in reverse to back into a parking spot, but the engine revved and the car drifted as though it were in neutral. I tried turning the car off and back on, and tried shifting into different gears, with no success.

Other factors:
- Last week I had a brake fluid leak that I got fixed. I don't see what that would affect, but I'm mentioning it just in case.

- Last year I had an odd problem where the car intermittently wouldn't start. After several trips and payments to a mechanic, I ended up with a replaced starter, a replaced steering column and new ignition switch, and then a second replaced starter. Then I came to your website, and you told me about a couple possibilities involving a switch or sensor or something that was telling the car it was not in park (so it wouldn't start). I worked around the problem by moving the gear shift between neutral and park while turning the key until it would start. After a few months of using this approach on occasions when the car wouldn't start, the problem stopped occurring, and hasn't occurred since. I wonder if it could have something to do with the current situation- i.E, maybe the car "doesn't know" its in reverse? Or maybe that's wishful thinking, and I really have a bad transmission or something.

Anyway, I just wanted to get a heads up before signing my life away at the mechanic. Thanks!
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:03 PM (Merged)
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,005 POSTS
If you only lost reverse, and it happened all at once, chances are you have a broken reverse band in the transmission. Do all the drive gears work?
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:03 PM (Merged)
Tiny
LANGE17
  • MEMBER
  • 9 POSTS
It did happen all at once (somewhere between backing out of my driveway normally and arriving at my friend's house 15 minutes away). I just went for a drive around the block, and all gears except for reverse work normally and feel normal. So- does that mean a broken reverse band in the transmission? If so, how hard is that to fix?
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:03 PM (Merged)
Tiny
KHLOW2008
  • MECHANIC
  • 41,815 POSTS
Most likely you need to rebuild the transmission.
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:03 PM (Merged)
Tiny
LANGE17
  • MEMBER
  • 9 POSTS
I feared as much. Can I at least drive it for a few weeks while I look for a new car? (There's no way its worth paying for a new transmission considering the physical condition of the car.)
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:03 PM (Merged)
Tiny
KHLOW2008
  • MECHANIC
  • 41,815 POSTS
Vehicle can still be driven but there is a possibility the trans can fail anytime so it is best not to travel too far and without any reverse, how you park your vehicle determines if you can get home.

Btw did you try moving the lever a little forward to P and rearwards to N to test if reverse catches?
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:03 PM (Merged)
Tiny
LANGE17
  • MEMBER
  • 9 POSTS
I did try moving the lever around a bit- it didn't catch.
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:03 PM (Merged)
Tiny
KHLOW2008
  • MECHANIC
  • 41,815 POSTS
That would rule out a linkage fault and only thing left is a bad transmisison.
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:03 PM (Merged)
Tiny
DAVIDDLW1
  • MEMBER
  • 23 POSTS
  • 1993 TOYOTA CAMRY
  • 4 CYL
  • FWD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 185,000 MILES
Hello,
I wanted to know about a transmission that I purchased at a junk yard, now I know that I am taking a chance when u buy a used part from a junk yard but the savings is so good. I put a used tranny in my 1993 camry and then when all finished the car will shift perfect to all gears except the reverse. The tranny I put in came out of a 1996 model not a 1993 will this make a difference to the car. I thought that 1992 through 1996 parts would interchange in the toyota camry as long as it was a automatic. Is this true? Or did I put a wrong year tranny in. On the 1993 tranny there was a wire that hooked up at the side opposite where the gear shifter is and on the 1996 tranny there was no hook up for this wire so it was left unconnected to anything. And also the piece where the gear shifter on the tranny is there is a wire that connects to it. I had to change out that piece because the hook up connector from the car was smaller than the connector on the gear shifter piece on the tranny. Does this piece make a difference to the function of the tranny? And can I switch out the connector on the tranny that fits over the gear shifter to solve my problem? Or is the tranny bad or non interchangable? Like I said the car shifts perfect when driving but no revers. When I put the car in reverse and push in on the gas pedal the engine will not rotate very fast it will turn slower that it is suppose to. The car was at one time go foward in reverse. Can you tell me my problem with this car and tranny. Oh yea the over drive light will flash on and off when I push the over drive button on, but does not when I push it off.
Shifter?
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:03 PM (Merged)
Tiny
KHLOW2008
  • MECHANIC
  • 41,815 POSTS
Hi daviddlw1,

Thank you for the donation.

94 and 96 uses identical transmission and the wiring circuits are similar.

You mentioned an additional wire that is not available with the replacement transmission and that means it is a different model.

Did you check if all other wiring connectors are similar.

Try disconnecting all wire harness connector from the trans and try driving with manuall shifting from each individual gear. If all gears including the reverse works, then it is a fault with the controls and not the transmission itself. If the trans does not move in R as well, then the trans is bad.
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Friday, January 25th, 2019 AT 3:03 PM (Merged)

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