tranny flush?

[socalisolara]

Just came back from oil change and i was told to get my tranny flushed. I guess my question is, how much is it to get it done? the guy at the shop quoted me $100. Thanks..

[Midias]

100 seems fair

[crispone]

Make sure they do a complete "rinse" as part of the "flush". There should be some CONSUMPTION of ATF to do it right. (Not just a "drain" and "fill".)

I always purchase my OWN Toyota TYPE IV ATF. (About 10 qt.) This last time, it only required 8, and I think 9 the time before that. The ATF is just under $5/qt. at Toyota, and the $99 service at my local place is done for $59 since I bring my own fluid in. For just over $100, I get it done RIGHT with the ATF of my choice.

The result is noticeable in the 2x's I've done mine this way. I did it at about 38k miles and just last week, at upper 78k miles. That and the plugs and a few other "tune-up" chores... some MMT fuel additive with a half-pint of BLENDZALL GOLD #485 formula... and my car ran UNBELIEVABLY WELL this last couple tanks of gas! I'd guess "BUTT-DYNO" results that were nearing double-digits! (Go ahead, laugh... but I'm willing to let any doubters who come to HIN in COLUMBUS take it for a whirl and make their own judgement.)

-crisp

[Jakecallun20]

Butt dyno can be deceiving. Anyways, I will need a tranny flush done in about
16-17k. Its got about 9k miles on this fluid now. Is the flush something that can be done at home without a shop?

[Dawgz]

^ no, a flush uses a pressurized machine that pushed the old fluid out while pushing the new one in.

I was talking with two members on here who i respect highly with advice ( i wont mention names) but i got mixed views on a flush.

One said not to do a flush because it might push out the "gunk" if uve never done a flush before and that has a possibility to clog something in there and lead to something really bad.

the other said its perfectly fine to go ahead with the flush.

Anyway, so i contacted the toyota dealership i trust around my area and the service attendant also suggested me not to do a flush if uve never had one done before....because he said "ive seen some cars drive a few feet and the tranny died"

But then agian, that same guy told me we dont have transmission filters in our trannys....we do though...lol

[Jakecallun20]

^ no, a flush uses a pressurized machine that pushed the old fluid out while pushing the new one in.

I was talking with two members on here who i respect highly with advice ( i wont mention names) but i got mixed views on a flush.

One said not to do a flush because it might push out the "gunk" if uve never done a flush before and that has a possibility to clog something in there and lead to something really bad.

the other said its perfectly fine to go ahead with the flush.

Anyway, so i contacted the toyota dealership i trust around my area and the service attendant also suggested me not to do a flush if uve never had one done before....because he said "ive seen some cars drive a few feet and the tranny died"

But then agian, that same guy told me we dont have transmission filters in our trannys....we do though...lol

Damn. I wish I had a manual transmission.

[Dawgz]

^ u'd still have to maintain the diff fluid...

[1gSE]

^ no, a flush uses a pressurized machine that pushed the old fluid out while pushing the new one in.

I was talking with two members on here who i respect highly with advice ( i wont mention names) but i got mixed views on a flush.

One said not to do a flush because it might push out the "gunk" if uve never done a flush before and that has a possibility to clog something in there and lead to something really bad.

the other said its perfectly fine to go ahead with the flush.

Anyway, so i contacted the toyota dealership i trust around my area and the service attendant also suggested me not to do a flush if uve never had one done before....because he said "ive seen some cars drive a few feet and the tranny died"

But then agian, that same guy told me we dont have transmission filters in our trannys....we do though...lol

A mechanic i worked with for 3 years said the same thing about not flushing it

[crispone]

RE: the "not flushing" advice...

I don't DISAGREE with this advice based on similar information I've heard over the years, but as with anything, it is "relative", or "conditional".

1) IF you have NOT flushed/maintained regularly

2) IF you have an "older" vehicle (by old, I mean even NON-SOLARA old... like big-3 cars of 'yore... etc...)

The reason for #2 is, as one mechanic put it, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". With the A/T's, you could have "conditioning" that takes place with the "older fluid" and clutch packs that "bed's in", and can be COMPROMISED if a full flush is performed, potentially HURTING the performance... Also, as mentioned, CRUD can be loosened and plug an orifice, etc...

In my case, my fluids and maintenance are clean and thorough (for the most part) and I HAVE noticed an improvement in shifting. Both smoother and more "positive" on hard runs through the gears.

Regarding the "butt-dyno" accuracy... I would agree... but have many years of tuning motorcycles through ROAD TUNING, and developed a pretty good sense for when I am "up" or "down" at any given rpm in varying conditions. I have found that some of my street tuned bikes dyno stoichiometric, and actually perform BETTER on the road at speed than DYNO tuned bikes that may net slightly higher PEAK horsepower on a drum. Issue here is, not all bikes perform as well with STATIC or FAN blown air as they do with PRESSURIZED air through the intake... which can change the air/fuel ratio on the street compared to on a dyno.

(Lotta gab to defend my BUTT! HA!)


Best bet, come and drive my 'lara, then decide.


-crisp

[Solarizona]

I've personally experienced a failed tranny after a flush. When I was 17, I had a '92 camaro Z28 that drove just fine until the service guy talked me into getting a flush instead of the simple fluid change. It was probably less than 200 miles before the tranny failed. $1500 later she drove great again . If you're over 40k miles and haven't done one yet, I wouldn't chance it.

[Solorange]

You guys peaked my interest so I had to look into my records because I couldn't remember what I had done to my tranny in the past. I bought my car with 60k on it with no records of the car. At 70k I took it to the dealership and paid $66 to have my tranny fluid changed or flushed. However my receipt says "perform trans service". I have no clue what that means and I was probably naive at the time to really specify what I wanted them to do. So I would image that they just did a drain and fill thing. Im going to call them tomorrow and confirm with them what does a "perform trans service" mean. If it was a full transmission flush would you guys recommend getting my car flushed at 130k? (I sort of dropped the ball on this maintence thing, but I kept up on everything else!) If it was just a drain and fill, is the best way to continue to maintain the trans fluid by continuing having them do the drain and fill?

And Crisp it would be hard for anybody to tell the difference if they drove your car because they wouldn't know what it felt like before you did your work. So I guess everyone will have to take your butt's advise

[Dawgz]

You guys peaked my interest so I had to look into my records because I couldn't remember what I had done to my tranny in the past. I bought my car with 60k on it with no records of the car. At 70k I took it to the dealership and paid $66 to have my tranny fluid changed or flushed. However my receipt says "perform trans service". I have no clue what that means and I was probably naive at the time to really specify what I wanted them to do. So I would image that they just did a drain and fill thing. Im going to call them tomorrow and confirm with them what does a "perform trans service" mean. If it was a full transmission flush would you guys recommend getting my car flushed at 130k? (I sort of dropped the ball on this maintence thing, but I kept up on everything else!) If it was just a drain and fill, is the best way to continue to maintain the trans fluid by continuing having them do the drain and fill?

And Crisp it would be hard for anybody to tell the difference if they drove your car because they wouldn't know what it felt like before you did your work. So I guess everyone will have to take your butt's advise

@66 bux, thats most likely a drain / fill.


and yes, with that many miles, just do a drain / fill, possibly filter/gasket change too!

if u really want all the old stuff out, or most of it, do a drain and fill urself every month for 4 months.

The total liquid capacity is around 14 quarts, but the drain and fill takes 4 quarts.

so if u drain and fill 4-5 times over a span of that many months, it should be diluted enough have just a little of the old stuff left.

[Solorange]

Is it a pain to do it yourself? Thats why I took it to the dealership in the first place. I just didn't feel like messing with it.

[Jakecallun20]

Is it a pain to do it yourself? Thats why I took it to the dealership in the first place. I just didn't feel like messing with it.

Yeah, I'd like to know too. Is it just a simple drain it all out for an hour then fill it up on the dipstick? (For just the basic drain and fill, flush would be done by a shop)

[Camry Racing]

Personally I flushed my tranny after changing my transmision oil pump that failed and the tranny fell slugish for like 2 days and miss shifted and then magically started to work well and know it works well I dont recomend the flush it takes time to your transmision get used to the new oil and guys if you only filled up 10 quarts let me tell you thats wasnt a flush the tranny takes 11 to 12 quarts if is entirely empty like mine was when it was repaired