2011 LX570 1st trans fluid exchange at 178k?

[m00seknuckle]

Just curious what yalls thoughts are on going ahead and freshening up the trans fluid at this higher mileage. The service records don’t state that the transmission has been touched. Should I go ahead and replace 12qts? I intend on towing our jet skis with it regularly this summer. Also do y’all have recommendations on fluids? I have seen mixed reviews on the WS. Thank you.

 

[LCtoLX]

Go for it (change the fluid) especially if it’s never been done.

 

[afgman786]

Would be a smart idea to baseline all fluids

 

[m00seknuckle]

Thanks guys. I plan to do it this weekend with the WS fluid.

 

[molanginaeda]

12 quarts of WS cost a bit more than $100. That a great insurance cost to buy more transmission life.

 

[FinallyGotOne!]

Interesting responses. I always thought the rule was not to change the fluid if it had never been changed in a high mileage tranny because the detergents would clean things out that were now best left in place - especially regarding the clutch packs.

Is that old school advice that no longer applies?

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

Some have proposed a gentler alternative of doing a series of drains and fills over time, to lessen the risk you mentioned.

But I'm not sure there is really enough scientific data to know whether it makes any difference.

 

[LCtoLX]

Interesting responses. I always thought the rule was not to change the fluid if it had never been changed in a high mileage tranny because the detergents would clean things out that were now best left in place - especially regarding the clutch packs.

Is that old school advice that no longer applies?

I didn’t bring it up in my earlier post but did think about this old school advice. The version I’d heard many, many moons ago was that the seals that were “used to” the old fluid could shrink and that leaks would appear. I think that the bottom line is whether or not the fluid “needs” changing. More on that below. For example, is the fluid red or pink or brown?

Some have proposed a gentler alternative of doing a series of drains and fills over time, to lessen the risk you mentioned.

But I'm not sure there is really enough scientific data to know whether it makes any difference.

Yeah, that’s a good way to mitigate any risk regarding a wholesale change of the fluid IMO.

Here’s my real life tranny experience and near disaster on a turbo Volvo wagon back in the early 90’s. I took my wife’s wagon to the local Volvo dealer for a major service at around 48,000 miles. Cost me $400+ and I thought it would be a good investment since the warranty had just expired IIRC. A couple of weeks later the transmission started to slip. I checked the fluid and it was dark brown and you could smell that it was burnt. WTH (what the heck)? Didn’t the dealer change the fluid since it was part of the 48k service? So I crawled underneath to see if they’d bled the brakes (fluid in the reservoir didn’t look new). Sure enough, the nipples were still covered in grease. They’d skipped that too.

I took the wagon back to the dealer (where we’d bought the vehicle, by the way) and the service manager apologized and said that the factory trained technician must have overlooked those fluid changes. Luckily, a couple of days after the transmission flush, the slipping went away and the transmission was fine from then on out.

The ‘01 LX my son was using has just had the AHC worked on. I think I’ll check the transmission fluid and order some if it isn’t pink in color. Heck, I think I’ll just have it flushed by my friend that’s a mechanic at a nearby Shell station. Good investment IMO.

 

[FinallyGotOne!]

OK, here's a story. I don't remember the details, it's just anecdotal, don't take it as advice or even a lesson learned: I bought my '00 LX470 when it had 48K miles. I think tranny fluid change was supposed to be done at 90K. Instead, I took some advice I read on 'MUD and at 90K started sucking a couple of quarts of fluid out at every oil change and replacing it with fresh. At 135K, tranny went T^ts up. Transmissions on a certain year group of '470s were known to have a bearing issue...but I will always wonder if changing out that fluid in that manner helped it meet it's maker.

 

[fullybalanced]

Interesting responses. I always thought the rule was not to change the fluid if it had never been changed in a high mileage tranny because the detergents would clean things out that were now best left in place - especially regarding the clutch packs.

Is that old school advice that no longer applies?

Coming from someone that worked for a company that remanufactured transmissions for GM Ford and Chrysler: 20 years ago - when the fluid is well past it’s life, maybe starting to smell burnt, leave it alone. You’re on borrowed time and flushing it will just move everything around and out drastically shorting the short life you have left. If everything was “ok” and it was just “past” time to change, change it. Now, fluids last longer and the same basic rules apply. But there’s a big difference between old school change it every 30 or 60k and not doing it for 100 or 120k and now schd it every 90k and letting it go to 120k.

unless it has seen hard duty (a lot of towing) your likely fine changing it now.

 

[32cls6speedmt]

Great video by Professor Kelly

 

[40Man]

One thing, is the term "flush" means different things to different people.

To me, a "flush" is a power flush, where a machine powers the fluid out of your rig and forces in the new. I'd avoid this, as it is more likely to cause issues and dislodging gunk in your tranny.

Instead, use the power of the Land Cruiser to drain and fill a quart at a time using the lines by the tranny cooler until you have clean fluid(Threads on this). Use the proper level check using Techstream (or paperclip method) and you are done.

If you want you can go an extra step and drop the pan and replace the screen/filter first before doing the full exchange.

 

[LandyAndy]

Problem is - refilling the LX570 transmission fluid is not easy. There is no dipstick like on the 100 series. Mine has 126k and I'm going to the stealership for this soon...

 

[m00seknuckle]

Ended up going ahead and doing it. Picture shows what came out and straight out of the bottle. The old fluid smelled fine and didn’t seem to be burnt. Just old. Hopefully I didn’t kill it. Wasn’t able to go drive around. I think the trans was too hot to check the level. Will update in the morning.

 

[m00seknuckle]

Seems to shift fine. Took it on the highway and it did well.

 

[LCtoLX]