Maxlife atf ok 98 lesabre?flush or no?

Maxlife atf?flush?

  • Don't know

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Not sure

    Votes: 3 100.0%

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    3
Joined
Aug 8, 2005
Messages
2,082
Location
stamford, CT
Hi all! 98 lesabre. As 139,200 miles on it.got it,and condition,111,400 miles.done lots of work on it. When shifting reverse,it's kinda hard,to shift,but goes.theirs an audible clunk,then shifts. Car rides fine..otherwise.parked car.9 hours pass,checked atf dipstick. It's not really red anymore,more clear grey.
.had a 98 corolla,98,000 miles on it,till 4 years ago. Pulled return line,flushed.quart came out,turned off,New quart in. Old fluid,was black,grey,looked like water too! Drive within a week,it died.jerked violently street,floored has pedal,wouldnt move.bands went,so I was toId, learned...
Want to do filter,and pan drop. Thinking flushing not a good idea at all,with lesabre.
It's supposed too use, dexron 3. Can I use,maxlife atf? Some said dexron 5.
I've like too use maxlife,if you all,think it will work.a Buick forum member said,never flush,ever! And use dexron 3 only.wanna use maxlife..but thought use ask the pros here
 
When it comes to changing the fluid, some people perpetuate the myth that changing it will cause it to die, but it's usually more that the fluid has been so neglected that it was on it's last leg and when they finally changed the fluid it died soon after because the transmission was already on it's way out.
 
I have used Maxlife in four cars with the 3800 and 4t65e trans over the past 20 ish years. Good results on all of them, and 200,000 miles plus on two of them.
I would do a couple of drain and fills and a filter on the second one. A line flush is a bad idea for your car.
 
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Don't Know and Not Sure are the only choices? :D :unsure: :oops:

Maxlife will be fine, and you should be able to find an aftermarket pan that has a drain plug, so you won't have to drop the pan again :)
 
Try a pan drop and filter change. If that doesn't fix it, run it till it finally quits. A 98 Lesabre is not worth doing an overhaul on a 4T60E transmission.
 
I've like too use maxlife,if you all,think it will work.
If you want to have issues with that transmission, use Low Viscosity fluid (like MaxLife), because some dude on Internet said "it will work".
Use Castrol TRANSMAX™ HIGH MILEAGE or TRANSMAX™ IMPORT MULTI-VEHICLE.
 
Thanks all! Yeah,flush not good idea.Car book says, dexron 3 is approved for use in le sabre transmission,by GM. Severe duty,drop pan,dangerous and filter,every 50,000 miles.towing,heat greater than 90 degrees F,stop n go traffic. I got lots in trunk,weight,so all apply.
I'm debating,napa Dexron 3, or maxlife. Gonna get a carquest filter.but but a new gasket.napa/atp. The rubber one,carquest,reviews..someone said it started leaking.not too use the rubber gasket.
 
Thanks all! Yeah,flush not good idea.Car book says, dexron 3 is approved for use in le sabre transmission,by GM. Severe duty,drop pan,dangerous and filter,every 50,000 miles.towing,heat greater than 90 degrees F,stop n go traffic. I got lots in trunk,weight,so all apply.
I'm debating,napa Dexron 3, or maxlife. Gonna get a carquest filter.but but a new gasket.napa/atp. The rubber one,carquest,reviews..someone said it started leaking.not too use the rubber gasket.
I'd just use the maxlife, it's probably a better fluid than generic DEX3, maxlife is a low viscosity fluid like Mercon LV or DEX VI, but GM now recommends using DEX VI in pretty much every transmission application that previously called for DEX III.
 
Maxlife, Dex III, or Dex VI will all work fine in the 4T65E, though it sounds like a fluid change may be a waste of $$ in your case. New fluid can't fix worn out parts or catastrophic failure.
 
GM says Dexron VI is backwards-compatible to all GM automatic transmissions that used an earlier Dexron, such as III
I'm debating,napa Dexron 3, or maxlife.

When the transmission fails because use of Low Viscosity fluid in a tired, high-mileage transmission, they are happy to sell you a new car.
The manufacturers have ZERO liability for mechanical problems on older transmissions, raised from that recommendation.
That recommendation is based only on the desire to raise their the fuel mileage - Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) - and "look good" in eyes of regulators.

I kept my Ford transmissions working to 200k miles, using Castrol ATF (non-LV). Other issues totaled those cars (rust and an accident).
 
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When the transmission fails because use of Low Viscosity fluid in a tired, high-mileage transmission, they are happy to sell you a new car.
The manufacturers have ZERO liability for mechanical problems on older transmission, raised from that recommendation. That recommendation is based only on the desire to raise their the fuel mileage - Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE).
The 4T65E was already a troublesome transmission, even with DEXIII. If you don't know what you're talking about, it's okay to not say anything at all.

OP: Maxlife will work fine. I ran it in my 4T65E for quite some time with great results (as good of results as you could hope for with a transmission that was displaying all the terrible qualities of a failing 4T65E). The most important thing is keeping the fluid fresh. I bought a Dorman trans pan with a drain plug for annual drain and fills. I don't know if I can recommend the Dorman pan even though mine was great and didn't leak, I've read tons of posts saying that their Dorman pans leaked.

If I were in your shoes:
  • Perform drain and fill. Take the pan off, replace the filter and install a Trans-Go Shift Kit LINK.
  • Install new magnets per TSB 08-07-30-040C.
  • Plan on annual trans services. You don't need to replace the filter every year, but if you keep the OE pan and have to remove it anyways, might as well.
 
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Dex 6 didn't work well for my 97 Lesabre. It shifted harshly when it got hot. Drained and put in Dex3 and my transmission shifted perfectly. I know GM stated DEX 6 was the current replacement but I don't think it worked well with the older transmissions due to its viscosity. As others suggested, Max Life seems like a good option.
 
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