2011 Camry, No Transmission Dipstick?

[ydopen]

I looked everywhere, is this some kind of a joke? Do they want this to tear up so you will spend more money with them?

[Tech1984]

What kind of talk is this? Toyota is a pretty smart car company. Don't you think they did this for a reason? No, not to spend more money with them.
Drive your SE, with confidence.

[leakyseals]

Originally Posted by ydopen

I looked everywhere, is this some kind of a joke? Do they want this to tear up so you will spend more money with them?

They get too many complaints and bad reports caused by lack of maintenance. So they self-maintain now.

[srkovarik]

I read an article about a year ago about new high-end cars removing *oil dipsticks* from my POV to "incentivize" consumers to utilize dealer service.

Demise of the dipstick.

[ydopen]

How often do i change the fluid? any special tools needed? Anyone have a write up with picks for the 2011 Change? How often do you change it?

Im just one that likes to play with my cars myself and not have to take it to the dealer or a shop, so this is a concern to me.

[Paul3637]

Originally Posted by ydopen

How often do i change the fluid? any special tools needed? Anyone have a write up with picks for the 2011 Change? How often do you change it?

Im just one that likes to play with my cars myself and not have to take it to the dealer or a shop, so this is a concern to me.

This came up yesterday so I will repost TSB language about 100,000 miles before you should even think about the subject:

09 camry v6 transmission


Direct copy and paste from TSB - TC010-07 (dated 6-28-07):

World Standard (WS) Automatic Transmission Fluid (ATF) was introduced to reduce maintenance costs and increase the mileage between scheduled maintenance checks. Here are some important tips when working with ATF-WS in Toyota vehicles requiring

its use.

100,000 Maintenance Interval — Inspection only; ATF-WS does NOT require any
flushing or changing during the life of the vehicle.

��

The use of Genuine Toyota ATF-WS is recommended.

��

The use of additives or aftermarket fluids that are considered compatible
or substitutes may result in shift concerns and damage to the internal
transmission components.

��

ATF-WS is NOT compatible with T-IV or Dexron ATF.

��

Containers storing Toyota ATF-WS should always be sealed — If exposed to the
atmosphere, ATF-WS may absorb moisture and potentially cause shift concerns if
used in operation.

��

One time use only.

��

When performing repairs on ATF-WS equipped transaxles, it is important to use
only new, clean ATF–WS when refilling the ATM.

��

ATF-WS equipped ATMs may use the overflow type procedure — Any fluid
drained from the overflow plug should be discarded following proper local
regulations and never reused. Failure to do so could result in shift concerns and

damage to the internal transmission components.

[Sevn86]

No joke, you just dont have to worry about the trans fluid anymore. I think its great.

[2011SECAMRY]

Toyota did this not only to keep people from putting the wrong fluid in and ruining their transmissions but to also prolong intervals.

[ydopen]

Sweet so just change it every 100k, no need to check it

[scamry]

it says you dont need to change it.

[arabianobsession]

it is lifetime fluid, but I have seen people still change it at 100k miles. It's not cheap, close to $200 to get it done because of the WS fluid

[JohnGD]

If the car is a keeper maybe 20-30K miles drain/refill with a filter change (~$20 kit with gasket) every other time; otherwise hey it's lifetime fill and never needs to be changed . But getting to the ATF filter can be a pain for some people, with a few bolts under the subframe.

You can check out the discussions on BITOG (Bob is the Oil Guy forums), some suggest the fluid is worn out by 20K miles. But not everybody is comfortable using boutique ATFs (Amsoil, Redline) or other fluids like Walmart's SuperTech Mercon-V/Dexron-VI, or Valvoline MaxLife claimed suitable for WS in place of the OEM fluid.

http://www.valvoline.com/pdf/maxlife_atf.pdf

To refill it the transmission has to be level, the engine running after the initial topoff, gears shifted through and the fluid temperature at about 40 deg C in most cases.

The old way sure was a lot easier but this manual transmission style drain/refill has been used by Europeans for ages.

Originally Posted by ydopen

How often do i change the fluid? any special tools needed? Anyone have a write up with picks for the 2011 Change? How often do you change it?

Im just one that likes to play with my cars myself and not have to take it to the dealer or a shop, so this is a concern to me.