Automatic Transmission fluid flush

[Al Bundy]

I had my car in the shop the other day. The guy at the shop said my tranny fluid looked a little dirty and recommended a flush. I've heard bad things about it loosening sludge and causing problems, so I was wondering if this is really necessary or if a regular filter and fluid top off would be alright. Anyone know?

[Woodchuck]

What kind of car and what miles? i would speculate that if it is a "little dirty" there shouldnt be any sludge  . if there is sludge it has been too long anyway

[Buckmark]

Have them change the filter and then flush/service the system.
It removes all the fluid and replaces it with clean/fresh were a fliter only service will not do this.
Make sure thay are using a good quality fluid or the OEM fluid for replacment.
Make sure this is also a good shop and not a Quickie lube..
And no, you will not loosen slduge and damage your trans.
And no if your trans is not shifting correctly/slipping or acting unusual a service will not fix it either.
ATF flushes should be a regular service to help extend the life of the component. 30K on average is a good bench mark to stick to.

[Al Bundy]

JIMKD8
It's a Kia Rio with about 85,000 miles on it. I had a trans filter change done at about 35,000.


Buckmark
This is a shop I've been using for a while now. They know me and do good work so I trust them. It shifts fine and doesn't slip either.

[KimberRich]

Have them change the filter and then flush/service the system.
It removes all the fluid and replaces it with clean/fresh were a fliter only service will not do this.
Make sure thay are using a good quality fluid or the OEM fluid for replacment.
Make sure this is also a good shop and not a Quickie lube..
And no, you will not loosen slduge and damage your trans.
And no if your trans is not shifting correctly/slipping or acting unusual a service will not fix it either.
ATF flushes should be a regular service to help extend the life of the component. 30K on average is a good bench mark to stick to.

I agree..

Ant thoughts on Chevy Duramax Allison Transmision flushes???  I may just start a thread getting everyones opinions..

[Woodchuck]

have em do it, 50k is typically too long



on the duramax, book says 50k, i wouldnt let it go that long

[jackelope]

I can tell you from personal experience that Chrysler does not recommend transmission "flushes" or any "flushes" for that matter and the same goes for Toyota. Toyota actually put something in writing and sent it to the dealer service departments advising against it. I don't work for Toyota anymore so I don't have any access to it anymore. Personally I would not hook a transmission flush machine up to anything I owned. I'm a big fan of old school transmission services.

[WDFW-SUX]

I did it to my truck once did I ruin it?

[Al Bundy]

I can tell you from personal experience that Chrysler does not recommend transmission "flushes" or any "flushes" for that matter and the same goes for Toyota.

That's one of the things I've heard about them. They can actually void warranties with some manufacturers. Just another reason I thought I'd get some opinions about it.

[JackOfAllTrades]

Personally I would not hook a transmission flush machine up to anything I owned. I'm a big fan of old school transmission services.

Agree'd!

As an experienced shade tree mechanic....  I don't care what brand of tranny,  Drain and a filter change every 100,000 miles. Let the gunk and sludge that's collected were it is.. Stay there.


On another note..  Small shop? How well do you know this mechanic? Sales tactic?  I remember when I ran a gas station with service bays. Oh, we did tires and oil leaks and alignments and oil changes, brake jobs.. tuneups. Anything shy of pulling a tranny, diff or engine. With every oil change we had a list (that I wrote) of things to check and ask the customer if they wanted us to replace. Who really changes their antifreeze/coolant?.. Or thier air filter when they should? We'd talk the customer into another job. It was easy to look at the owners manual to see when the prescribed interval was to convince the auto owner.

-Steve

[jackelope]

I'm totally not agreeing with your 100k mile interval. Some of our vehicles are 30k like the trucks, jeeps, etc. A lot of ours are 50k and some are non-serviced.

[Buckmark]

I can tell you from personal experience that Chrysler does not recommend transmission "flushes" or any "flushes" for that matter and the same goes for Toyota. Toyota actually put something in writing and sent it to the dealer service departments advising against it. I don't work for Toyota anymore so I don't have any access to it anymore. Personally I would not hook a transmission flush machine up to anything I owned. I'm a big fan of old school transmission services.

I will add that by what i mean by a flush, is a fluid exchange only, no chemical cleaners or flush agents should ever be used.
Removing and replacing as close to the total capacity by means of the transmission cooler lines by equipment designed for this purpose.
As far a toyota is concerned they actually never recommend changing the fuild ever, they calim that under normal conditions that it never needs to be done. One of the biggest reasons for that is to lower the "cost of ownership" amount that a buyer should expect to pay during there ownership, hence making that vehicle sound like its inexpensive to operate and maintain.
Kinda like some manufactures not having a timing belt service interval on interference engines.
O'brien sure did like to push his writers on p/s flushes though?

[Buckmark]

And dont get me going on Chrysler/Dodge, the minivans should have come with a replacment transmission in the glove box when you bought the vehicle.
Almost guaranteed failure...

[jackelope]

O'brien sure did like to push his writers on p/s flushes though?

till Toyota came out with the "no flushes" letter.
 

the chrysler minivan tranny's paid my mortgage for a while man, come on!!

[Woodchuck]

I want to live in a town that has 2 kinds of cars. chrysler and vw. come on down