Drain and Flush

 

If it were me, I would do a couple drain and fills at a minimum. with your mileage though a pan drop and filter change is a good idea.

 

I'd avoid a "Flush" and go with multiple Drain and Fills.

 

Why? Why are so many people shy about doing a flush? Multiple drain and fills are time consuming, don't get the crap out of the pan, and don't allow one to see what's going on inside the tranny. I wonder if people have different ideas about what constitutes a flush.

 

thanks, I ordered some tranny fluid from amazon. should be the fluid for my suv​

has anyone ordered from this seller before ?​

Toyota - World Standard Autom (00289-ATFWS)
seller name {Brand: TOYOTA }.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0799J7D5M/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

​

 

If you prefer OEM you can use Aisin ATF0WS on rockauto. $5.86/qt. Valvoline Maxlife would be an aftermarket alternative. I'd change the filter too.

And use the rockauto 5% off code, scroll to the newest post:

RockAuto Discount Code

Hey guys, I got this discount code but it will expire on October 24th and I won't be using it. I don't know if it can be used more than once so whoever uses it first might be the only one to get it. All you do is put this number "38391513162399" without the quotes in the "How did you hear...

www.toyotanation.com

 

Drain and fill, similar to doing an oil change as there is a drain plug. Just use the toyota fluid to refill with. Fluid automatically get pretty dirty and not and indication its very bad. Unless it smells burnt or varnish smelling which is is unlikely. Have it done as second time it you want to blend more fresh fluid into the mix.

 

i bought 12 atfws fluids. how long should i drive after a drain & refill
so that i can do it again ?

 

i bought 12 atfws fluids. how long should i drive after a drain & refill
so that i can do it again ?

You have the right fluid.

The idea is to mix the old and new fluid together. Ideally, you'd go a few thousand miles in between each drain and fill to get the ATF to mix. But a few hundred miles will do.

 

Flush, in a shop does not drop the pan, a pump forces fluid thru the transmission and then the trans is drained and re-filled. Ideally, IMHO, If possible drop the pan, replace the filter and fill and drain a couple more times to dilute old fluid left in the torque converter.

 

OK, we're talking about entirely different techniques here.

This is the one my shop uses:

 

i was not going to a shop. i was gonna disconnect one of the trans lines that go to the radiator and do it the same way as the video

 

I flushed mine back in 5/2019 using the return line method as documented here. Mine was never used for any towing, more of people mover, and I don't consider it was severely neglected. It's been shifting great since then, but after another 3k miles (@20k interval), I will simply do a drain-and-fill.

 

isnt there a way to reset{relearn} the transmission on techstream ?
wouldnt that take away the "shock" ?

 

isnt there a way to reset{relearn} the transmission on techstream ?
wouldnt that take away the "shock" ?

That's not what I meant by shock, although I suppose slightly different shift points before/after the fluid change could make a difference. In theory, if you have a lot of buildup/deposits inside the transmission that's just lining everything, you don't want to disturb it all. If you replace 100% of the fluid, it could start removing these deposits (which is what the fluid is supposed to do), but if there are too much deposits, it could start clogging filters and restrict internal fluid flow. I don't think this will happen with your 110K mile transmission, unless the fluid is black and already burnt, but I personally wouldn't take the chance. When you do a single drain and fill, you are only replacing 1/3 of the fluid, so you can have that clean a little bit over a few thousand miles, and change it again, removing the some of the deposits slowly with each fluid change. More hassle, I suppose.

 

Yes Toyota WS is the spec you're to use. As above even a 100km is more than enough to mix it if it longer drives which gets it up to max temperature. As above, I'd stay away from any flush as you guessing and believing the shop. Most oems do not approve flushing the fluid. You'll use approx 4L for a drain and fill.

You should check you owners manual and or dealer. These transmission by spec are lifetime fluid if you Don't tow and not severe service. I wouldn't be worried about the colour itself. I had mine done by the dealer around 90,000km, yeah it was dark as well. They all get dark naturally.

 

I have used Valvoline Max Live ATF whenever I drain and fill.

 

If changing dirty transmission fluid "causes" a problem not long afterwards, your transmission was already screwed. Complete exchange of fluid via proper transmission flush is what I'd do. There were rare cases (a few earlier Hondas) where flushing caused some problems. Most vehicles don't have that problem and will benefit hugely from doing it. Draining doesn't remove enough old fluid. Flush it properly.

Greg

 

Flushing with a high pressure backflow machine WILL likely cause issues. I know a really good trans guy in my area. He is across from a quick lube place that does these flushes. He loves being there because people get their trans flushed at the quick lube and he gets the business from that fallout.
I just do timely drain and fill and never have an issue with them. And use factory fluid. MaxLife may be fine but since I quit crawling around under my (or anyone's) vehicles anymore my own simply go to the dealer.

 

without getting de-raild.

just drop the pan, replace filter and gasket, clean the pan and the magnet, and reinstall. Refill with fluid and drive.

next oil change, drain and refill the trans.

you can do it another time if youd like.

Or

You can go the rout above with disconnecting the trans cooler line. Youd only need to do that once but youd still need to drop the pan, replace the filter and gasket, clean the pan and magnet, and refill.

 

I've been using the procedure shown in the video for regular flushes the past twenty years with my family vehicles...Toyotas and Hondas (including a notoriously weak tranny from 02). The only argument against flushes that I've heard that makes any sense posits that in a neglected tranny, the force of a power flush can cause large particles of sludge (or some other form of gunk) to break loose and block passages.

My trannys have never been neglected. And I'd say that OP, who is 110k into what is officially "lifetime" fluid, has not neglected his tranny. The dark fluid sounds like normal clutch wear showing up.

BTW, since Aisin is largely owned by Toyota, and actually manufactures most of Toyota's trannys, I am quite confident buying their WS fluid. Just had 16 qts. delivered on Monday.

 

This is generally not an issue with Aisin transmissions as a whole. I just did a complete flush (three drain and refills) + filter on mine with 215k. Filter was definitely original, maybe fluid was done at some point but not recently from the looks of it.

 

just do a drain and refill. I do mine every 3rd oil change. Its easy and inexpensive. The dealers around here recommend the drain / refill every once in a while if you are towing or drive in extreme conditions. Only use Toyota fluid (WS). Toyota transmissions are known for going well over 200K miles with little to no maintenance, so don't worry too much about it.....

 

Since you insist. From Merriam-Webster:

Definition of shock:

(a) a disturbance in the equilibrium or permanence of something
(b) something that causes such disturbance

You are potentially disturbing the deposits and sludge that might be settled, "in equilibrium", inside the transmission. We don't know how much of that is in OP's transmission. Probably not much, as 110K isn't particularly high mileage and these are robust transmissions. But we don't know.

 

Drain, refill, then drive around say 5 to 10 miles. Then repeat.

Repeat until the fluid on the dipstick is the same color as new WS fluid.

 

Also have a 2013. Relearn by disconnecting the battery. I leave it off for about 30 minutes.

 

i finally got around to flushing my trans fluid [radiator return line method]. i got paranoid that amazon might have sent me
counterfeit fluid and my local dealers were charging over 12 bucks a quart .so i returned it and bought some aisin from rockauto. OH MY GOD, so smooth now. i only bought 12 quarts and i noticed the drivers side return line went to a small radiator located around the fog light area. not sure i had a tow prep package or if ts standard.
i was so impressed that now i want to do it to my 2014 rav4.
i definitely recommend this

 

i finally got around to flushing my trans fluid [radiator return line method]. i got paranoid that amazon might have sent me
counterfeit fluid and my local dealers were charging over 12 bucks a quart .so i returned it and bought some aisin from rockauto. OH MY GOD, so smooth now.

Ain't life grand! I had to use the Toyota WS fluid in my Camry, but I'll use the Aisin in my sweetie's Prius. Thanks for the tip.

 

^ good to hear!!

Another proof that there's no such thing as a "lifetime transmission fluid".