Friend of mine picked up a Saturn (S-series) and Isince I'm familiar with enough of the problems that I've had, I told him I would give a hand with some of the fluid changes and maintence. Changing the ATF today, clearly it had not been touched in a long time. My question - we got about 4 qts. out of what (IIRC) is a 7 or 8 qt. capacity. How far should he drive before the next drain and fill?
ATF Change Interval for Neglected Vechicle
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Either around the block, or at the next oil change.
Either way is better than leaving the old stuff in there.
At some point in time you want to drop the pan, if possible, and sweep out all the debris. There is WAY to much stuff that falls out of the ATF than can be suspended by the fluid. The only way to get it really clean is to drop the pan and clean it out.
On the cars and trucks I've done it on it has always been easier than doing an Oil Pan gasket. Many cars now have reusable ATF gaskets specifically for this reason (and they work as advertised).
Either way is better than leaving the old stuff in there.
At some point in time you want to drop the pan, if possible, and sweep out all the debris. There is WAY to much stuff that falls out of the ATF than can be suspended by the fluid. The only way to get it really clean is to drop the pan and clean it out.
On the cars and trucks I've done it on it has always been easier than doing an Oil Pan gasket. Many cars now have reusable ATF gaskets specifically for this reason (and they work as advertised).
If you want to do a complete flush, then drain and fill 3x, waiting about a week or two in between.
What does the ATF look like on the dipstick after just the one drain and fill? If it still looks dark and/or smells burnt, then you may want to do the 3x drain described above.
However, if it looks OK, then you could probably wait 30k before another drain.
What does the ATF look like on the dipstick after just the one drain and fill? If it still looks dark and/or smells burnt, then you may want to do the 3x drain described above.
However, if it looks OK, then you could probably wait 30k before another drain.
Magnefine inline filter to catch the crud. Auto-Rx in the transmission.
Oh yeah!
+1 on the Magnefine
I have them on 2 of my vehicles, just changed one out after 20,000 miles, and did an autopsy. Nothing special to report, looks like it caught a bunch of metallic junk in the magnet and that it works as advertised. I swapped it out with a new one.
+1 on the Magnefine
I have them on 2 of my vehicles, just changed one out after 20,000 miles, and did an autopsy. Nothing special to report, looks like it caught a bunch of metallic junk in the magnet and that it works as advertised. I swapped it out with a new one.
Keep draining and filling the transmission until the ATF is clear - a light pink color that is hard to see.
Also, if the color of the fluid is darker near the bottom of the dipstick (than at the full mark), then you may also need another drain and fill.
Also, if the color of the fluid is darker near the bottom of the dipstick (than at the full mark), then you may also need another drain and fill.
I just do drain and refill at about every 5000 miles or motor oil change since I'm already under the vehicle.
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