Re: Black Transmission Fluid - - Any Hope???

Just have the automatic transmission fluid drained and re-filled by someone other than the one who told you not to change the fluid. Do not get it flushed, or you can run into problems from sediment getting lodged in small passages.

DON'T FLUSH IT!!! Unless, of course, you just want to install a new tranny!

Drain and fill. Good enough.

I burned the transmission fluid in my 91 Camry very badly. Severl mechinics told me the same story ... buy a new car ... the trainsmission is going to fail soon ... waste of money ... etc.

I went to a transmisison shop and they dropped the pan on the transmission (150K miles) and found no dirt, no metal particles, it was totally cleaned. I flushed it 4 times to get it totally clean and now the car has 230K on it with no problems. I never changed the oil before. The car runs perfectly.

I checked with several junk yards and they told me Toyota transmissions never fail.

I hope this helps

Mel

Well, I have personal knowledge of two that failed - 84 Cressida and

Ed

I hope you drop $1 and light a candle in the church you attend. Someone is watching over you!

I'm surprised...that the Cressida wasn't the leaky one. At least in '88 the Supra and the Cressida were about the same mechanically, and my tranny leaks like a sieve!

Having a 19 year old transmission leak is no big surprise (especially if it sits a lot). But the Camry was only about 8 years old, but it was high mileage. The d$%& Cressida transmission didn't leak, it just shifted weird and started slipping. It was neither old nor high mileage when it went bad.

Ed

I can't find the other post with the similar situation, and somebody suggested to drain and fill twice to instead of a flush. The first drain is get out the fluid then refil and use the car and drain again after a couple of days. Makes sense to me and that will save some money, as Michael would say ATF is cheap and a new transmission is not.

By the way which is better? a flush or a dropping the pan?

Do not flush the transmission!!!

It is not necessary to drop the pan. Just drain and re-fill.

I wouldnt flush. If the tranny has a filter, I would (and do) drop the pan, clean out any 'dregs', change the filter, and top up with new fluid.

I wouldn't flush it. For every success story, there's five horror stories!

Drop the pan, change the filter, and refill. If it gets real black again real fast, do it again! (don't change the filter the second time unless it's filled with gunk...)

The only horror stories are here....deep inside "old wives tales" country!

Ian

I have heard the candle suggestion before, including from the guys at the transmission shop that dropped the pan. The mechanic and I checked things out and it was perfectly clean. Even the screen was totally clean. Maybe the three (exchange) flushes (oil was still black) I did earlier cleaned it out. The transmission has never leaked.

The mechanics I know also told me about how new oil would clean the seals and cause leaks, the transmission would start slipping, etc.

I was so concerned that the Toyota would die at any moment that I bought a new car ... which we hardly use. I just ordred a tow hitch and transmission cooler.

Maybe I have just been lucky? Or maybe driving it 80 mph (100 miles R/T) to work every day helped? I bought this car new so I know its history.

The neat thing about newsgroups is you get input from a lot of people.

So far so good.

Mel

Now, we sent two Escorts (Mazda trannies) to the flush shop. The first one went 120 miles, the second 12.

Granted, these were Mazda trannies, but we never flushed another one again.

The problem is, what's turning the tranny fluid black is the friction material from the clutches. If it's really black, chances are they've burned right off. Basically, what's moving the car is the friction material suspended in the tranny fluid. Flush that away and there may not be enough material left in the tranny to move the car.

I'm sweating bullets on my Supra. I have two choices: drop the pan, change the shift solenoids, replace the screen, refill it and *HOPE*, or swap to a 5-speed (what I would rather do, but far more labor and parts intensive!)

if it was mostly 80mph there was no slipping in the trans an dit should be just fine. I did the drain and fill a few times and the first time I dropped the pan and replaced the filter. After that just drain and fill. Fluid now looks like new and the car still shifts like a new car.

I tend to agree with Ian. This is another case where there are a lot of stories, but I have never seen documented proof.

I dont like, or use, the flush because I feel it is a bit of overkill, that it is not normally what a manufacturer recommends as regular maintenance, and because it costs a lot more. I have suspected that it was developed to help garages up their revenues on the basis it was a high technology 'must do' procedure.

I have been wrong a lot before, and this may be another case of it.

Seen it with me own eyes...

Had to go rescue the victims of two Flush 'n Fills myself...

Of course you have! Have you ever performed a transmission "flush"?

Ian

... and you would have had to do the same a couple months down the road anyhow.