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Change transmission fluid/filter question

S

Sniper82

Lifer
I have a older Geo Prizm with the 1.6/3 speed auto and 136,000 on it. I recently had a timing belt put on it and the guy seemed honest that did it and did some brake work in the past. I asked him about having the filter/screen and fluid drained on the trans. He said it really didn't need changed unless the fluid was brownish colored. Granted it is dirty but when I wipe the transmission dip stick on a paper towel its got a reddish brown color to it. Doesn't have any burnt oder either.

Should I still change it? I've only had the car a couple months.
 
I would...and I would do any internal adjustments, like for the bands...if there are any applicable adjustments. A month of fresh oil will improve trans operation and you will know it.
 
i've changed mines when with simliar specs. honestly when its brown and burnt it is TOO LATE. I suggest doing it, because i consider it reg maintance, similiar to oil changes. which is really what it is. be very careful on picking the fluid, every car requires diffrent fluids. this prizm might be just a toyota trans, so i think you might be good with dextron 3
 
I got a repair manual on it and it says every 30,000 miles which I thought was kinda low for a fluid/filter change on any car(guess I thought wrong). I bet its never had one but could be wrong. It looks simple to do. Only problem I would have is not having a torque wrench and a lift. I would have to use jack stands or something which doesn't seem safe to me. How much does a job like this cost roughly at a shop? I really don't want to take it back to that guy because he acts as if it doesn't need done. Which is odd since I am offering him money.
 
I've seen prices from $50- 200

$50- i would expect just a drain and fill. it takes 50% or so out of the trans.
$100 area - i would expect someone to drop the pan and replace the filter and fill. another 50% of fluid
150-200$ is a complete flush, which gets about 85-100% pending on user but no filter change.


Personal 30-60k is the area where trans fluids should be replaced.

All you honestly need is a jack and jackstands to be safe, a oil drainer bucket and a socket set and ractchet.

Very general walk thru, jack up car crawl under. there will be 2 pans, one for oil and one for trans. obviously go for the trans, remove the drain and let it drain out on to the bucket. measure how much fluid comes out to match how much goes in. 4-6 quarts. probaly. tighten drain plug and refill, and check dipstick. Hand tighten drain plug and use the ratchet to make sure its tight. no need for torque wrench. it not too big of a deal.

a set of jack and jackstand = 50-100$
6 qts of ATF = ?? most bottles are 3-5$
socket set if need and oil bucket ~ 20.

you can do it all the time now and do oil changes money starts to save.
 
Originally posted by: T2urtle
I've seen prices from $50- 200

$50- i would expect just a drain and fill. it takes 50% or so out of the trans.
$100 area - i would expect someone to drop the pan and replace the filter and fill. another 50% of fluid
150-200$ is a complete flush, which gets about 85-100% pending on user but no filter change.


Personal 30-60k is the area where trans fluids should be replaced.

All you honestly need is a jack and jackstands to be safe, a oil drainer bucket and a socket set and ractchet.

Very general walk thru, jack up car crawl under. there will be 2 pans, one for oil and one for trans. obviously go for the trans, remove the drain and let it drain out on to the bucket. measure how much fluid comes out to match how much goes in. 4-6 quarts. probaly. tighten drain plug and refill, and check dipstick. Hand tighten drain plug and use the ratchet to make sure its tight. no need for torque wrench. it not too big of a deal.

a set of jack and jackstand = 50-100$
6 qts of ATF = ?? most bottles are 3-5$
socket set if need and oil bucket ~ 20.

you can do it all the time now and do oil changes money starts to save.
Click to expand...

Well that sounds simple but what about the filter change? I'd probably need a torque wrench when replacing the pan?
 
Is the trans shifting badly? If not why mess with it. Generally, if your vehicle has high mileage (> 80,000 miles) and the transmission has not been maintained, I would not recommend replacing the fluid and filter. The fluid that has been in the transmission all this time has become dirty and gritty. This gritty fluid is actually providing needed friction for the worn internal parts of the transmission. Changing the fluid and replacing the filter would remove this friction that the internal transmission parts have become dependent on. If you have not been regularly maintaining the transmission throughout the life of the car, you might actually be doing more harm than good if you replace the transmission fluid at this point. For example, putting new clean slick transmission fluid in an older high mileage vehicle could cause the transmission to slip. Just food for thought.

 
I did a transmission service almost immediately upon buying my current used car. It had 58k miles then. I've done regular maintenance (flush and refill; no filter or drain plug) since and it still shifts smoothly and the fluid always looks fine.

145k miles this week.
 
Originally posted by: Sniper82



Well that sounds simple but what about the filter change? I'd probably need a torque wrench when replacing the pan?
Click to expand...



honestly, i've done a good amount of pan drops and i've yet to torque anything down, being a former mechanic the only thing me and the guys at the shop torque down are engine internals, and airbag related items.

If you wanted spring for a cheaper $50 torque wrench.

the filter might take a little thought but should be still simple. most likely held on by a couple of bolts on a bracket

The prices seem steep at this point but i factor in the fact that you do this for the rest of your life instead of spending up to 200$ each time you do it and the savings does come in handy. Being that i do work for people in my garage i can easily buy 200$ tools if i know i can use it more then twice.
 
Originally posted by: Vetterin
Is the trans shifting badly? If not why mess with it. Generally, if your vehicle has high mileage (> 80,000 miles) and the transmission has not been maintained, I would not recommend replacing the fluid and filter. The fluid that has been in the transmission all this time has become dirty and gritty. This gritty fluid is actually providing needed friction for the worn internal parts of the transmission. Changing the fluid and replacing the filter would remove this friction that the internal transmission parts have become dependent on. If you have not been regularly maintaining the transmission throughout the life of the car, you might actually be doing more harm than good if you replace the transmission fluid at this point. For example, putting new clean slick transmission fluid in an older high mileage vehicle could cause the transmission to slip. Just food for thought.
Click to expand...

Any other thoughts on this? The transmission shifts fine.
 
I agree that if you have never changed it before then don't change it now... Another side-effect is that new fluid has detergents and the old fluid also probably has gunk that is helping keep the seals from leaking. There is a chance that if you put new fluid in it will dissolve those deposits and you will have leaks in your seals.

I had a camry that I bought with 120K when i was broke and in college. I got the timing belt replaced and the tranny filter changed and fluid swapped out. After that the transmission would "clunk" into gear when it didn't do that before. IANAM but what I would do is just drain half out and replace it with 1/2 fresh fluid and then run a few hundered miles on it and then do the same thing over again if so desired. That is me though YMMY.
 
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