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Should I change my transmission fluid? 95 Camry LE v6 2 door
Hello
I have been debating about changing out my transmission fluid ever since I created this thread about my car taking a few minutes to have any power to move in very cold weather:
As I stated in that thread, the car runs just great otherwise, and unless it is extremely cold outside, I can turn the key and just go.
The last time (until recently) that I took a look at the transmission dipstick was back on January 16th of this year. Picture is as follows:
It had an orangish-reddish appearance back then, and was up to the appropriate level on the dipstick. I noticed the air bubbles on the stick and was concerned, however I looked this up on the forum and it said it could either be from too much, or too little fluid.
I had driven it for a few days prior to finding that out, and when I rechecked, it had warmed up some outside and there were no longer bubbles on the dipstick. It's driven fine ever since.
Last week, I thought I would start looking into all that is required of a transmission fluid change on my A541E transmission. From my understanding, I would need the following:
Features & Benefits
Maxlife dex/merc atf contains a blend of superior base oils and a unique additive package to help extend the life of transmissions with over 75,000 miles. Maxlife dex/merc is formulated to fight the 4 major caues of transmission breakdown including leaks, slippage, shudder and gear wear.
Seal conditioners help reduce leaks
Synthetic base oils better resist cluthc plate glazing and slippage
Advanced anti-wear technology to better prevent wear
Recommended for use where Dexron, Dexron II, III and VI; Mercon®, Mercon® SP and LV; Toyota/Lexus Type T, T-II, T-IV, WS; Nissan Matic-D, Matic-J and Matic-K; Honda Z-1 (except CVT); mercedes nag-1; mitsubishi diamond SP-II and SP-III; and many others
Now, printed on the dipstick, it says that it takes Dexron II, but my understanding is that Dexron II is no longer manufactured and has been superseded by Dexron III. As such, the Dexron III fluid by valvoline I mentioned is acceptable.
I made a few videos of how the car drives, if anyone would like to see. This is with regular oil+filter changes, but no transmission fluid changes in the time I've owned the car (about 60k miles now).
I don't experience any harsh shifting or anything of that sort, but I thought I would put the videos up and see if maybe I'm not seeing something right in front of me.
The purpose of this thread is as follows:
1. I'm wondering if I should drain and refill my transmission fluid, after changing out the pan+gasket, or just leave it as is and see how things go. It's worth noting that I can either buy the gasket/filter kit I linked above, or I can buy the fluid. I can't get both at the same time, I'd have to get one this week and the other 2 weeks from now.
2. If I were to change the fluid, doing a drain+refill every 100 miles or so, what is the procedure? I've looked on the forum and I see mention of the process for the transmission accompanying the 5s-fe engine, but nothing for my A541E/1MZ-FE combination. There is no mention at all of how to even add fluid in the owner's manual. I should also note that I drive 100 miles every 2 days, is this a long enough interval between drains and refills?
3. After I checked into what I would be needing, I took a look at the dipstick yesterday after getting home from a 300 mile trip. I had just shut the car off about 15 minutes before checking, but the fluid was down to the "COLD" marking on the dipstick. I checked again this morning after the car sat all night, and now the fluid is up to the "HOT" marking. Is there too much fluid in it right now? Not enough?
I should also note that due to my financial situation I can hardly afford to spend money on the filter kit+fluid, let alone extra tools to get the job done (I have a small toolkit and the jack that came with the car; no jackstands or anything like that. I can get underneath the car just fine, however.) I absolutely must have this car functioning in order to make a living, and the longer I can do that, the better.
1.If you have a Walmart nearby, you can get their Supertech ATF for around $2.60/qt. You will need 4 quarts. If the pan gasket isn't leaking, I wouldn't bother with changing the pan gasket/filter, the filter is just a screen.
2.You will need a 10mm hex socket and a ratchet for the drain bolt. Drain the fluid and re-install the drain bolt. You fill the transmission through the dipstick. What I do is put in 3 qts. drive around until the car is warmed then add until the fluid is between the HOT marks.
3. Did you park on an incline? That probably messed up the readings.
Harbor Freight sells tools really cheap if you need them.
Well I read this thread and the older one you posted a link to. It can be difficult to diagnose an automatic transmission, but if I were in your shoes I would flush the transmission and drop the pan. Then proceed from there. Also, I had a transmission shifting problem in cold weather a few years back that was caused by a bad thermostat. The trans fluid, which is passed through the bottom of the radiator, wasn't warming up as fast as it should have, therefore giving me issues in cold weather.
Lastly, I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but if the fluid has never been changed at that mileage, you might have to brace yourself for some expensive repairs in the near future. Keep us posted.
1.If you have a Walmart nearby, you can get their Supertech ATF for around $2.60/qt. You will need 4 quarts. If the pan gasket isn't leaking, I wouldn't bother with changing the pan gasket/filter, the filter is just a screen.
2.You will need a 10mm hex socket and a ratchet for the drain bolt. Drain the fluid and re-install the drain bolt. You fill the transmission through the dipstick. What I do is put in 3 qts. drive around until the car is warmed then add until the fluid is between the HOT marks.
3. Did you park on an incline? That probably messed up the readings.
Harbor Freight sells tools really cheap if you need them.
Great! I have those tools already, and I should be good to go in that regard. I have been using Valvoline's MaxLife oil and I feel it has served me well, so I might stick with the fluid I mentioned.
One reading was taken in my driveway, the other in my garage. I'd have to check both in the garage or the driveway to get an accurate reading, I guess.
Does the car seem to drive fine to you? I do realize it seems like it shakes really badly, but it's actually very minor when you're in the car. The camera seems to exaggerate it.
One (dumb) question: where is the drain bolt located? I ask this not having looked first, so if it's obvious, then please forgive my asking.
Well I read this thread and the older one you posted a link to. It can be difficult to diagnose an automatic transmission, but if I were in your shoes I would flush the transmission and drop the pan. Then proceed from there. Also, I had a transmission shifting problem in cold weather a few years back that was caused by a bad thermostat. The trans fluid, which is passed through the bottom of the radiator, wasn't warming up as fast as it should have, therefore giving me issues in cold weather.
Lastly, I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but if the fluid has never been changed at that mileage, you might have to brace yourself for some expensive repairs in the near future. Keep us posted.
My understanding is that when people do have problems after changing the fluid, it's after flushing the transmission, rather than doing drains+refills. I've read that here and on other camry forums, and given my car's high mileage, I would really rather not do that.
Great! I have those tools already, and I should be good to go in that regard. I have been using Valvoline's MaxLife oil and I feel it has served me well, so I might stick with the fluid I mentioned.
One reading was taken in my driveway, the other in my garage. I'd have to check both in the garage or the driveway to get an accurate reading, I guess.
Does the car seem to drive fine to you? I do realize it seems like it shakes really badly, but it's actually very minor when you're in the car. The camera seems to exaggerate it.
One (dumb) question: where is the drain bolt located? I ask this not having looked first, so if it's obvious, then please forgive my asking.
I use Maxlife too, but I thought you wanted to save money so I suggested that fluid.
The car seems fine, looks like the transmission shifts smoothly.
The drain plug closest to you is the differential, the drain plug with the 10mm socket is the transmission drain plug.
As a matter of fact I just did it. Plus I added a bottle of Lucus Transmission fix because I was having a slight difficulty shifting to reverse. All seems well now. While all the ATF is replaced by this procedure, it is not technically a flush because the fluid is not being forced through the transmission by some outside force. Is is just being pumped by the normal engine pumping action.
BTW My car is a 95 V6 1Mz-fe engine and A541E transmission.
I just went to autozone and bought a jug of the Valvoline MaxLife transmission fluid. I did some other errands and checked the transmission dipstick again, and it was still down at the "COOL" marking after driving for about an hour.
I added about 1 qt of fluid and checked again, and this time it seemed to be up at the "HOT" marking. I will check again tomorrow, and do the first drain+fill wednesday.
I should only have to do it 4 times, for about 3 quarts each time, if I understand it correctly?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mister_Perkins
Print this out, and see how your car compares:
I will have to do that, although I do know that it always shifts at the same speeds in the same situations.
Now that I added about a quart of new fluid, am I thinking of it correctly in that the new fluid mixing with the old stuff will clean up any major crud that's built up in there? I added the new fluid and then parked it in the garage, I didn't drive it at all.
I'll have to take a picture of the old stuff once I drain it out. I bet it's as black as coffee.
[EDIT: Mister Perkins, did you get a chance to view my videos? They all show the car shifting, (I believe, as it should), as I speed up to 55mph and set the cruise control. I believe everything matches up with the table you posted, but if you have the time, I'd appreciate your input.]
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Last edited by psilence; 06-19-2011 at 07:32 PM.
Reason: q
I use Maxlife too, but I thought you wanted to save money so I suggested that fluid.
The car seems fine, looks like the transmission shifts smoothly.
The drain plug closest to you is the differential, the drain plug with the 10mm socket is the transmission drain plug.
Thank you for all your help, pmesfun
I should only have to repeat the unplug drain plug->let drain->replug drain plug->dump in 3 quarts of fluid through dipstick process 4 times, correct? Or do I just keep going until there's both enough fluid on the dipstick, and it's of the correct color?
I should only have to repeat the unplug drain plug->let drain->replug drain plug->dump in 3 quarts of fluid through dipstick process 4 times, correct? Or do I just keep going until there's both enough fluid on the dipstick, and it's of the correct color?
Thanks again.
I would do it only just once and see how the transmission feels/reacts. That's what I did when I was iffy about changing the fluid on my car, it was 80k miles old. Do that and if its all good, repeat the process a week later and change the fluid as many times as you like, haha.
Had another question possibly worth asking: Do I need to drain the the differential as well, if I'm filling fluid through the dipstick, since they share the dipstick as a common fillpoint? If I drain fluid out of the transmission pan but not out of the differential, do I have to worry about "overfilling" the differential? Or does the car handle that and spread the fluid out between them?
The car has 209k miles on it at this point, and I haven't changed the trans fluid since I've owned it.
Quote:
I should be doing the first drain+fill tonight. I will keep you guys posted.
You will not get as good results with several changes as you will with a complete one time drain/flush/refill. Each addition of new fluid will be contaminated with very old fluid. I'd also recommend dropping the pan first and cleaning the pan and filter screen with that many miles on it and no fluid maintenance.
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1995 Camry Wagon LE. 2.2 4cyl, 5S-FE, Auto, 187K
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1999 Toyota Avalon
I use Maxlife too, but I thought you wanted to save money so I suggested that fluid.
95 Camry
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