Is changing the ATF often bad for a tranny?
- Thread starter Chris B.
- Start date
- Status
Originally Posted By: pbm
Changing ATF (D&R) every 30 to 50K (40K is a happy medium) can only help your transmissions longevity.
¨
+1 with this. I would also add that a pan drop and filter change if the transmission is designed that way it also a great thing to do every other drain and fill.
Changing ATF (D&R) every 30 to 50K (40K is a happy medium) can only help your transmissions longevity.
¨
+1 with this. I would also add that a pan drop and filter change if the transmission is designed that way it also a great thing to do every other drain and fill.
Ford delivery vans here in South Florida would last 900,000 miles. And go through 4 transmissions in that time.
Nate (my friend with the vans) discovered that frequent transmission fluid changes significantly improves transmission life.
Mobil 1, 10w30 And Mobil 1 ATF.
I followed his advice and put a drain plug on my F150, changed a pan full every other oil change. 300,000 miles later, the transmission is still working properly.
I'd say that fresh transmission fluid contains fewer wear metals and therefore reduces the wear rate.
Nate (my friend with the vans) discovered that frequent transmission fluid changes significantly improves transmission life.
Mobil 1, 10w30 And Mobil 1 ATF.
I followed his advice and put a drain plug on my F150, changed a pan full every other oil change. 300,000 miles later, the transmission is still working properly.
I'd say that fresh transmission fluid contains fewer wear metals and therefore reduces the wear rate.
I just follow the manufacture's recommendation and don't worry about it. Never had an A/T failure.
Originally Posted By: HM12460
I just follow the manufacture's recommendation and don't worry about it. Never had an A/T failure.
Do not always trust them. My Scion says it is a lifetime fill and every....single...UOA of Type IV fluid shows its pretty much spent at 30 to 40k. And look at all those Chrysler 2.7 and Toyota 3.0 engines that died early deaths when they sludged up even when the owners went by the owners manual on fluid swaps.
Do what the car needs, not what the maker says it needs. Spending a few bucks here and there and being conservative is so much cheaper than buying a new engine, trans, or a new car.
I just follow the manufacture's recommendation and don't worry about it. Never had an A/T failure.
Do not always trust them. My Scion says it is a lifetime fill and every....single...UOA of Type IV fluid shows its pretty much spent at 30 to 40k. And look at all those Chrysler 2.7 and Toyota 3.0 engines that died early deaths when they sludged up even when the owners went by the owners manual on fluid swaps.
Do what the car needs, not what the maker says it needs. Spending a few bucks here and there and being conservative is so much cheaper than buying a new engine, trans, or a new car.
Since new my wife's 2005 Explorer with now about 172,000 miles has had pan drops, filter replacements with full ATF exchanges every 25-30,000 miles since new. The last service about 30,000 miles ago the mechanic said the fluid, pan and filter were so clean that he just replaced the filter and new ATF in the pan. He didn't do a full ATF exchange. It shifts the same as brand new. If you're going to keep a vehicle long term it's worth it to keep it maintained, less expensive in the long run.
Whimsey
Whimsey
Last edited:
It will only harm your wallet. Synthetic ATF lasts a long time.
Originally Posted By: edwardh1
my uneducated opinion is that any power flush could be bad, and even a normal filter change could be bad if dirt or a piece of gasket gets loose.
Im in the drain and fill camp
I had mine flushed after 100k and 10 years. Old fluid was grey from all the metal. Transmission still works fine.
Originally Posted By: HM12460
I just follow the manufacture's recommendation and don't worry about it. Never had an A/T failure.
Sometimes they are wrong. IE any "lifetime" fluid.
Originally Posted By: edwardh1
my uneducated opinion is that any power flush could be bad, and even a normal filter change could be bad if dirt or a piece of gasket gets loose.
Im in the drain and fill camp
I had mine flushed after 100k and 10 years. Old fluid was grey from all the metal. Transmission still works fine.
Originally Posted By: HM12460
I just follow the manufacture's recommendation and don't worry about it. Never had an A/T failure.
Sometimes they are wrong. IE any "lifetime" fluid.
Maybe, but if a Specialized transmission place wont change the oil, who will.
My only options were to do it myself, or destroy the transmission and keep running it, or trade it in.
There was no reason to trade it in, if I could get the oil changed.
As it turned out, I chose the right direction, and changed the oil myself, oil was discolored, but no debri, I didn't even have to wipe out the measuring drain pan as it was clean, that I dropped the old oil in.
I had no system issues, I just wanted the oil changed, that its.
They said the oil was full of fiber material, and if they changed the oil it would probably start slipping.
As it turned out, they didn't know what they were talking about.
My only options were to do it myself, or destroy the transmission and keep running it, or trade it in.
There was no reason to trade it in, if I could get the oil changed.
As it turned out, I chose the right direction, and changed the oil myself, oil was discolored, but no debri, I didn't even have to wipe out the measuring drain pan as it was clean, that I dropped the old oil in.
I had no system issues, I just wanted the oil changed, that its.
They said the oil was full of fiber material, and if they changed the oil it would probably start slipping.
As it turned out, they didn't know what they were talking about.
Originally Posted By: Chris B.
After reading on here for years I thought that it is best to flush the transmission often to help it last longer. On another forum I was just told by 2 different people that changing the transmission fluid often is actually bad and it will shorten the life of the transmission. The transmissions in the discussion were a 2012 Honda 5 speed automatic mated to a V6 and a 4L60E in a GM half ton truck but I think this applies to all automatic transmissions.
I always thought that changing early on a new car(15,000) miles was a good thing to do for it and every 30,000 miles was also a good practice. So what is the latest thought about this on BITOG? Can changing the ATF early and often do harm to the transmission or is that [censored]? Thanks!
I change all the fluid out every 50k on my Toyotas with sealed units. One the ones with a dipstick they get a drain fill through the dipstick tube once a year (3-4 quarts). That seems to suffice.
After reading on here for years I thought that it is best to flush the transmission often to help it last longer. On another forum I was just told by 2 different people that changing the transmission fluid often is actually bad and it will shorten the life of the transmission. The transmissions in the discussion were a 2012 Honda 5 speed automatic mated to a V6 and a 4L60E in a GM half ton truck but I think this applies to all automatic transmissions.
I always thought that changing early on a new car(15,000) miles was a good thing to do for it and every 30,000 miles was also a good practice. So what is the latest thought about this on BITOG? Can changing the ATF early and often do harm to the transmission or is that [censored]? Thanks!
I change all the fluid out every 50k on my Toyotas with sealed units. One the ones with a dipstick they get a drain fill through the dipstick tube once a year (3-4 quarts). That seems to suffice.
Simple drain and refill with Dexron-VI or Mercon V (depending on application) every tire rotation (3k miles) and drop the pan to replace the filter every 25k miles. Excessive? Maybe, given ambient temperature is usually over 120 F. Never had a problem.
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Mackelroy said:
- Status
Similar threads
- Locked