FJ62 transmission fluid confusion (1 Viewer)

[Nick0615]

So when I got the truck a year ago I changed all fluids as we all do. I dropped the pan and replaced the transmission filter and drained as much fluid as possible but as we know its impossible to drain it all. I replenished the level with lucasoil multi vehicle tranny fluid which says its formulated for older trucks and should work for this truck.


Was fine for a while but then started to not want to shift out of first gear when accelerating from a stop. Just would hang out in 1st for an annoying amount of time before finally upshifting.

Dipstick said it was a bit overfilled so drained some. Big mistake. Stick said when measured while cool that it was good but then would sometimes outright refuse to go into gear. I'd put it in drive and sit there for a few seconds before it would grab. Would continue to do this until the tranny was warmed up. So, I added more fluid until it was pretty well overfilled again. Added lucasoil stabilizer and stop slip to the fluid because I figured maybe the mixture of old residual fluid and newer fluid was throwing it for a loop plus maybe some clogged valves,, etc. Seems to have done the trick for now. But im still confused.


Why does the tranny seem to always want to be way overfilled according to the dipstick?

Why does it not want to shift out of first gear even when the other issues are gone?

What can I do to ensure proper function and health of the tranny? Its the stock A440F.

 

[EscapeWagon62]

Fun stuff for sure.
I’ll share my journey and hope it helps you. I’ve been futsing around with it for a couple years and have it just about nailed now.
1. I have found that the trans works best when showing slightly overfilled when measured hot. My belief is that this is due to slightly clogged pressure lines i ternal to the tranny after 30 years.
2. If you havent done the party trick yet, do it. Get the rig up north of 50mph and throw it into park for a few seconds. All you will hear is buzzing from the parking lock powl trying to engage. While its possible that your valves are valves are sticking in your throttle body, its more likely that the filter inside the rear of the tranny (cant remember its name right now) is clogged a bit. The party trick reverses fluid flow snd will blow that out
3. Even if you’ve adjusted it before, readjust your kickdown cable. If its too tight or has a fray, it will be most noticeable when cold going from first to second grad.
4. I have 230k on mine. It likes to warm up for 10 min before I start driving. If I don’t, I experience a delay shifting from 2-3. It waits until 3k RPM under light to medium throttle. Just a nuance to live with.
5. Nothing you e described sounds fatal. If it were slipping, yes.

 

[BlackCat]

So when I got the truck a year ago I changed all fluids as we all do. I dropped the pan and replaced the transmission filter and drained as much fluid as possible but as we know its impossible to drain it all. I replenished the level with lucasoil multi vehicle tranny fluid which says its formulated for older trucks and should work for this truck.


Was fine for a while but then started to not want to shift out of first gear when accelerating from a stop. Just would hang out in 1st for an annoying amount of time before finally upshifting.

Dipstick said it was a bit overfilled so drained some. Big mistake. Stick said when measured while cool that it was good but then would sometimes outright refuse to go into gear. I'd put it in drive and sit there for a few seconds before it would grab. Would continue to do this until the tranny was warmed up. So, I added more fluid until it was pretty well overfilled again. Added lucasoil stabilizer and stop slip to the fluid because I figured maybe the mixture of old residual fluid and newer fluid was throwing it for a loop plus maybe some clogged valves,, etc. Seems to have done the trick for now. But im still confused.


Why does the tranny seem to always want to be way overfilled according to the dipstick?

Why does it not want to shift out of first gear even when the other issues are gone?

What can I do to ensure proper function and health of the tranny? Its the stock A440F.

You’re checking it with the engine running, right? And you’re also shifting it thru the gears and then back to neutral or park before checking the level, right?

 

[Nick0615]

Fun stuff for sure.
I’ll share my journey and hope it helps you. I’ve been futsing around with it for a couple years and have it just about nailed now.
1. I have found that the trans works best when showing slightly overfilled when measured hot. My belief is that this is due to slightly clogged pressure lines i ternal to the tranny after 30 years.
2. If you havent done the party trick yet, do it. Get the rig up north of 50mph and throw it into park for a few seconds. All you will hear is buzzing from the parking lock powl trying to engage. While its possible that your valves are valves are sticking in your throttle body, its more likely that the filter inside the rear of the tranny (cant remember its name right now) is clogged a bit. The party trick reverses fluid flow snd will blow that out
3. Even if you’ve adjusted it before, readjust your kickdown cable. If its too tight or has a fray, it will be most noticeable when cold going from first to second grad.
4. I have 230k on mine. It likes to warm up for 10 min before I start driving. If I don’t, I experience a delay shifting from 2-3. It waits until 3k RPM under light to medium throttle. Just a nuance to live with.
5. Nothing you e described sounds fatal. If it were slipping, yes.

Awesome ill have to give it a try. Thank you so much for your in depth reply. Its not slipping just acting finicky so I'm sure its just something small I need to do. I'll report back once I've tried what you've said.