How often do you guys get your ATF change/flush?

[schumionbike]

According to Toyota, the automatic transmission fluid is lifetime unless you're towing. I'm guessing that your ATF should be change/flush around every 60K but I want to know what your experiences is with the ATF.

I just had my ATF drain and filled yesterday. I'm not sure when the last time have any service to the transmission so I didn't feel comfortable flushing it. The condition of the ATF didn't look too bad though. My mechanic also did my differential fluid for me. All for 36 bucks!! Btw, I drive a 5SFE 99 Camry with 182 K.

[bigbird]

i did a drain and fill on my diff a while back but you really only need to flush/change your ATF if it starts to look bad, which would indicate that somthing is wrong with the tranny anywyas. most of us will do a flush once or twice in the car's lifetime if everything is running well.

[LynchburgCSI]

I did mine with my second timing belt and water pump change at 140k. That was the second time it was done.

[AlmightyCamry777]

According to Toyota, the automatic transmission fluid is lifetime unless you're towing.

Of course they say that. all the carmakers do. They sell many more transmission and new cars that way. Especially when they make it really difficult to change the ATF, the way the newer toyotas as set up.

I'm guessing that your ATF should be change/flush around every 60K but I want to know what your experiences is with the ATF.

60,000 is better then not changing it at all. But if your plan like a lot of us here is to keep it til the wheels fall off and drive it into the ground - try every 30,000.
I have changed the ATF like this on every car i ever owned (11 total) and i have never had to replace an automatic transmission or even had it in the shop for transmission service (i dont trust mechanics, i do everything i possibly can myself).

I just had my ATF drain and filled yesterday. I'm not sure when the last time have any service to the transmission so I didn't feel comfortable flushing it. The condition of the ATF didn't look too bad though.

No, you were right to change it when you did. Appearance and even smell often reveals nothing about the ATF condition. All the additives in the fluid could be worn out and the only way to tell would be an ATF analysis, meanwhile the fluid still looks clean. Go by mileage whether the fluid is clean or not - let it get dirty and it might be a choicce between buying fluid or buying a transmission.

My mechanic also did my differential fluid for me. All for 36 bucks!! Btw, I drive a 5SFE 99 Camry with 182 K.

I'd stick with that mechanic, that is a very reasonable price- even for just a drain and refill.

[ricamryman]

I drop the pan once a year, & clean it, & change the filter, every fall.....+ every spring I do a simple drain & fill.....I want to drive this thing till the wheels fall off!!!

[Hajoca]

I drain and fill yearly on both Camrys including differential.

On my CE, I ran a magnefine filter for a year, lots of metal filings on the magnet, and some clutch material was captured there.

[schumionbike]

Originally Posted by AlmightyCamry777

Of course they say that. all the carmakers do. They sell many more transmission and new cars that way. Especially when they make it really difficult to change the ATF, the way the newer toyotas as set up.



60,000 is better then not changing it at all. But if your plan like a lot of us here is to keep it til the wheels fall off and drive it into the ground - try every 30,000.
I have changed the ATF like this on every car i ever owned (11 total) and i have never had to replace an automatic transmission or even had it in the shop for transmission service (i dont trust mechanics, i do everything i possibly can myself).



No, you were right to change it when you did. Appearance and even smell often reveals nothing about the ATF condition. All the additives in the fluid could be worn out and the only way to tell would be an ATF analysis, meanwhile the fluid still looks clean. Go by mileage whether the fluid is clean or not - let it get dirty and it might be a choicce between buying fluid or buying a transmission.



I'd stick with that mechanic, that is a very reasonable price- even for just a drain and refill.

Thanks for such a detail answer, I definitely will be doing it it more often. I didn't even realize that it was that cheap. My dad 99 Toyota Camry have 60 K on it while my mom 02 Corolla have 43 K on it, I guess it's a good time to change both. The mechanic run A&T auto repair in Houston, highly recommend them. The did my timing belt, waterpump, and outer belts for like 330 including taxes.

[Zviator]

Originally Posted by AlmightyCamry777

Of course they say that. all the carmakers do. They sell many more transmission and new cars that way. Especially when they make it really difficult to change the ATF, the way the newer toyotas as set up.

+1

You can not change/ refill ATF at all until the tranny goes out on the newer domestics ie my sister's Saturn.

[JohnGD]

Lifetime fluid? Ha ha ha ha ha ha. That simply means the fluid is good until the transmission craps out.

The dino Dexron III doesn't last much more than 50-60K miles under "normal" driving conditions. Under severe conditions no more than 30K miles max. In general, you further cut the interval in 1/2 for safety margin, especially on a dirty transmission like the Aisin. 12-15K severe service and 24-30K normal service would be better. (Depending on if you drive 12K or 15K a year).

A gallon of D-III ATF at Walmart is about <$10. I'd use their SuperTech Mercon-V that's also D-III compatible (read the labels), especially for the differential and power steering. The Ford licensed fluid is much better, with improved shear stability at a good price ($3.77/qt). Castrol Import Multivehicle ATF is a synthetic blend, also a very good deal at about $4.5/qt.

Next time have your mechanic drop the pan and change out the strainer as well. Wipe clean the pan and magnets. I wonder if the02 Corolla is already getting the dino Mobil 3309 ATF (aka Toyota T-IV). If so the ST Mercon-V or Castrol Import will work too (again, always read the labels for recommended applications).

Originally Posted by schumionbike

According to Toyota, the automatic transmission fluid is lifetime unless you're towing.

[JohnGD]

3 drains/refills in short intervals (a day or a week apart for example) is usually sufficient. If you know how to change oil you can do it yourself. Fluid type and level accuracy are important with transmissions.

So in your daily drives, check the ATF level on a few different occasions -- with the engine running at operating temp, shift through all gears and back into P. Apply parking brakes and check the fluid level on level ground. It should be within Hot marks.

After draining, measure the amount drained and add that amount of new fluid back.

Originally Posted by schumionbike

I just had my ATF drain and filled yesterday. I'm not sure when the last time have any service to the transmission so I didn't feel comfortable flushing it. The condition of the ATF didn't look too bad though. My mechanic also did my differential fluid for me. All for 36 bucks!! Btw, I drive a 5SFE 99 Camry with 182 K.

[JohnGD]

Magnefine absolutely! The black sludge is steel plate wear. Very abrasive to the aluminum valve body.

Some even use Magnefine on power steering lines too. As I said, Aisins don't have decent filtration systems. Periodic changes of an external filter like Magnefine and frequent fluid drains/refills will help prolong the life of the transmission.

Magnefine results:
http://www.v6performance.net/forums/...ad.php?t=60257

Originally Posted by Hajoca

On my CE, I ran a magnefine filter for a year, lots of metal filings on the magnet, and some clutch material was captured there.

[schumionbike]

Yeah, I will do it myself in the future. I do my own oil change stuff but I didn't realize the Toyota have a drain plug for the transmission fluid which make thing easier. Just have to find sometime. Probably the next time I change my oil. My mechanic did also changed my differential fluid for me which seem to be a bit of a pain to do. Oh, I have the hardest time reading the ATF dip stick, the upper two mark is the hot mark I assume? It's hard to see where the level it on the stick unlike the the oil dip stick. For some reason, no one mention about changing ATF when they talk about car, just how they just change the oil every 3K. It just seem that most people don't change it or really heard about it. Myself included until recently.

[JohnGD]

Try reading the back side of the dipstick. Insert and pull it out quickly may help too. You may have too much fluid in there if the dipstick comes out all smeared. That's why it helps to make sure it's in range and then always measure and add back that amount each time. It's just easier.

For the Aisin A series Toyota does recommend 15K mile change intervals for severe service. I'd drain/refill 9K-10K miles if you do your own oil changes. Cheap enough if you use Walmart's D-III at <$10/gal.

I would use the same interval (12-15K) for the T-IV fluid as well. It's a dino fluid, nothing special. But some T-IV applications use a felt filter, not a strainer! This should be changed 15K-30K miles.

However, I'd recommend the Ford licensed SuperTech Mercon-V that's D-III suitable, or use Castrol Import ATF that's a synthetic blend. Both are superior to dino D-III.

The differential isn't bad. You may be able to reach it from the top, on the the driver side. Use a plastic tubing (~10-20 cents/foot) and a funnel, used to be on sale often for $0.99:

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...Itemnumber=744

Originally Posted by schumionbike

Yeah, I will do it myself in the future. I do my own oil change stuff but I didn't realize the Toyota have a drain plug for the transmission fluid which make thing easier. Just have to find sometime. Probably the next time I change my oil. My mechanic did also changed my differential fluid for me which seem to be a bit of a pain to do. Oh, I have the hardest time reading the ATF dip stick, the upper two mark is the hot mark I assume? It's hard to see where the level it on the stick unlike the the oil dip stick. For some reason, no one mention about changing ATF when they talk about car, just how they just change the oil every 3K. It just seem that most people don't change it or really heard about it. Myself included until recently.

[Judge2]

Originally Posted by JohnGD

3 drains/refills in short intervals (a day or a week apart for example) is usually sufficient. If you know how to change oil you can do it yourself. Fluid type and level accuracy are important with transmissions.

So in your daily drives, check the ATF level on a few different occasions -- with the engine running at operating temp, shift through all gears and back into P. Apply parking brakes and check the fluid level on level ground. It should be within Hot marks.

After draining, measure the amount drained and add that amount of new fluid back.

How much are you guys having drain out on a simple drain and fill? (as in no dropping the strainer or doing the differential)? I was surprised that only a little more than a quart of dirty fluid came out.

My plan is to do a simple drain and fill each time I change the oil for about a year.

[JohnGD]

Was the fluid between HOT marks at operating temp? If so you should get about the spec amount out, even with minor variations in how you jack up the car. You should get about 2.5- qt out and another 1.5+ qt from the diff. Try pulling the transmission dipstick out an inch or so to let air in.

Have you ever dropped the pan and changed the strainer?

Do the diff on the first drain and then once or twice more in the year. For the diff I'd put Walmart's SuperTech Mercon-V (D-III suitable) $3.77/qt, synthetic blend Castrol Import Multivehicle ATF $4.44/qt, or Mobil-1 Fully Synthetic ATF ~$12-14/qt (?), even if you use plain SuperTech dino D-III for the transmission ~$2.25 in gallon bottle.

Originally Posted by Judge2

How much are you guys having drain out on a simple drain and fill? (as in no dropping the strainer or doing the differential)? I was surprised that only a little more than a quart of dirty fluid came out.

My plan is to do a simple drain and fill each time I change the oil for about a year.