staff toyota tech......trany service ?

[Live to Ski]

Calling all current Toyota dealer techs!

Trying to decide on trany fluid change options.

1. have read here on mud that power flush = NG
2. had dealer ready to change fluid on my 120k '04LC.
3. stopped the effort due to concern with 1. above. The service rep, nor the manager could express to me how their trany fluid change machine works.

So, can you guys/gals confirm that the toyota dealer tranny fluid change machines are good/bad?

Assumption: all dealers use the same or appropriate machines.

Note: The FSM does not list any machine. Assume if a machine was disctated, it would be called out as an SST.

Yours truly.....dazed & confused

 

[TheForger]

Why do they have to use a machine? Usually a machine involves a fluid flush that can actually dislodge debris and make it settle in places it shouldn't, whereas a fluid change is simply emptying the old oil and adding new. Now, I can understand a basic pump being used since the tranny fill plug is pretty hard to reach, but they should not be using a flushing machine for that purpose. Ask if they can just dump the old and add new, that would work just fine.

 

[abuck99]

If the dealer can't explain what process they use to drain or exchange trans fluid- don't use that dealer.

I had my fluid "exchanged" at a indi Toyota shop. They use a dedicated machine made by BG (PF50) that exchanges the fluid in the system- circulates old out and new in using engine/trans power and - not adding a power flushing element to the system- it's a reasonably good process but expensive and I'm not convinced it does a significantly better job than drain & refill process discussed here. It does provide some solvents for cleaning the valves and internals before the old fluid is removed as well as seal conditioner added afterwards as a part of the BG service. Mine was done at 164k, its been a year and it runs cool and shifts correctly.

Here is a vid on the process:


I think the MUD consensus is DIY draining and refilling- 3-4qts at a time, driving for a period of time then repeating until the fluid clears up.

 

[PLROD]

I'm no tech but this is what I do with my vehicles but about twice as much as the recommended interval calls for. On the newer cars w/o access to the fill port from above it becomes more of a challenge in that there are many convoluted methods in manuals etc to get to the correct fill amount. I just measure what comes out and simply put back in the same amount. I have replaced the metal screen in a few of mine but don't think it adds much or is really required if you keep the fluid fresh. Filling from the side port requires a pump of some sort, I just use a manual cheap one like this which I keep only for that purpose. Having a lift and a helper makes it much easier to manage.

 

[feddomw]

I realize this does not answer your question, but are there many Volvo's in the US? Volvo's (especially the older models) have insane longevity and reliability here. They easily meet or exceed our beloved 100's in mileage as far as engines and transmissions go.

FWIW, I did what I would call a flush at a Volvo transmission specialist (Volvo also uses Aisin transmissions).

Not clear on definition of what is or is not a flush, but ALL my fluid was changed.

The process was as follows, bear with me as this is outside my comfort zone or tech-knowledge
- a reservoir is hooked up to what I assume is the transmission cooler, some sort or radiator below the normal radiator.
- add some sort of detergent, run engine and shift a but for about 20 minutes.
- They then allow the transmission to suck in the new ATF fluid, while the old dirty stuff is pushed into the reservoir by the transmission.
- THe exact same amount goes in as goes out, they measure it in the reservoir.

My 100 has 265K km's, I don't know all history but assume it was never done. The old ATF was pretty nasty, but the guy said he had seen much worse. The transmission seemed to shift smoother, but this can't be measured so I can't say whether this is psychological.

As far as preventive maintenance goes, I like the feeling of fresh ATF compared to the stuff that came out.

I guess it's not a "power"flush because the ATF is expelled and sucked in by the transmission itself and not forced by some sort of pump, therefore the risk of dislodging anything is not higher than when the transmission is running it's normal fluid dynamics.

This is what it looks like:


YMMV.

 

[beachbumin]

The progress to change a Volvos transmission fluid is usually a drain and fill. I use a specialty kit sold by ipd. Never heard of a Volvo getting the service you described but I agreed with the longevity. Our 2005 xc70 has 180 and still runs/looks like new. Volvo can.com does TONS of threads dedicated to trans fluids and preferred methods.