Transmission Fluid Question......

[illicitx]

Hey whats up guys, i got an 03 camry with 72,000 miles on it.

I haven't had to change the transmission fluid until now.

But im confused on which service to get? Transmission Flush or the drain and fill?

Which one should i get?

[todds21]

I would flush it. The drain and fill is only going to get a couple quarts out of the pan.

[94camryxle]

I do a drain and refill every 30K miles. But I guess a flush would be good since you already have 72K miles.

[ultimate328]

I would only "service it" meaning drop pan, change fluid, filter and gasket. If it des not have a pan on it then drain it fill it and redrain it. This will save your transmiossion due to the fact that when you "flush" the transmission it might cause havic. The simple reason is there are settlements of clutch material that lives in corners of the transmission. When you flush it that will break up those elements and might get them caught in the valve body or governon springs (governor if you have an older vehiclefor the new ones are all valves and electronics) and cause no upshifts.
Sam

[marc780]

Either one would probably be ok at this stage IMO, you could just do a couple of fluid changes in a row. One important thing, I use only the fluid Toyota recomends, no subsitutions - on my 2002 V6 they say use only their Toyota TIV fluid. And i believe them, so i got 4 qts of it at the dealer. $4 a qt but you only have to do it every 30k. If you plan to flush i'd get a case, which wouldn't be cheap - but your alternative is to have it done and i'd bet you money that the shop will not be using TIV fluid to flush your trans.

[solidg]

i do flushes every 60k

[Kep]

I have a 1990 Camry with 348,000. I don't know if the 2003 is similar but when I remove the transmission drain pan plug I only get two quarts that drain out (there are 12 quarts total). I like the idea of flushing all of the oil out but I am concerned about all of the potential problems so I came up with a comprimise. Now, whenever I do an oil change (OK, almost always), I try to drain out the two quarts of ATF and refill. This way (in my mind) I am replacing all of the transmission fluid about every 18,000 to 24,000 miles. Overkill, but what the hey.

Kep

[94camryxle]

I agree, use only Toyota ATF fluid. I tried using synthetic ATF and shifting got a little jerky and engine began to get slightly louder. I don't know if it was related. Since then I traded in my 1994 for a 2007.

Originally Posted by marc780

Either one would probably be ok at this stage IMO, you could just do a couple of fluid changes in a row. One important thing, I use only the fluid Toyota recomends, no subsitutions - on my 2002 V6 they say use only their Toyota TIV fluid. And i believe them, so i got 4 qts of it at the dealer. $4 a qt but you only have to do it every 30k. If you plan to flush i'd get a case, which wouldn't be cheap - but your alternative is to have it done and i'd bet you money that the shop will not be using TIV fluid to flush your trans.

[ultimate328]

That is the best way of doing it. Drain it every oil change. You will get more than 2 quarts out. More like 4-5 quarts per change. Believe me I do this stuff for a living. The transmission capacity is around 8-10 quarts.

[Ken4]

Drain & refill is good enuf. Use Toyota Type T-IV. About 1 gallon per drain & refill. No need to drop the pan to clean the screen or magnets. Chances are you will develop leaks if you do. Oil pan threads also very easy to strip if you overtighten. Drain & refill 3 times and you can get 90% fresh fluid in there. Drive around the block after each drain & refill to get a good mix. Toyota Type T-IV costs S$24 per gallon tin here. Or around ~US$15. Cheap!

[JMSinMD]

I do complete flushes every 30,000 miles. Thats 2-3 years for me so what the heck do I care about spending a bit more than just a drain and fill.