Tranny failure averted, should I change my fluid?

[bdai]

My Trans Sport went way overdue for its ATF. It started doing 'bump stops' and experienced some delayed engagement when taking off from stop signs. I was hoping it was just some gunk interfering with a check ball or something like that, so I immediately dropped the pan and replaced the fluid. It now shifts fine after two weeks, but I'm wondering if I should change the fluid again. If my original hypothesis was right, then there might be a lot of contaminants cycling with the fluid.

 

[ConfederateTyrant]

If it was that overdue, another drain and fill won't cause any harm. You will dilute the contaminants each time.

 

[sky jumper]

out of curiosity, how much crud was in the pan? coating the magnets? how many miles?

in any case, continue with more changes. if you don't have a drain plug, pump it out the cooler return line or get a top side extractor.

 

[bdai]

There was quite a bit of crud in the pan. Needed to use some solvents to get the shiny pan back. I wanted to see how much stuff was stuck to the magnets, so I test cleaned one with my finger. Took ~8 wipes just to get the grey colour off the magnet. The old fluid had been in there for 250,000 km.

The car's 10 years old, so I'm weary of messing with the hoses, especially trying to back it off a barb connector. Am I being overly cautious here? Would it be possible to drill and tap a drain plug into the pan?

 

[sky jumper]

wow. I would've loved to see a used oil analysis on that ATF. that would've been a good benchmark to judge the practical limits of ATF drains before the transmission implodes.

If I were you I'd drop the pan again and install a drain plug. yes you can get them. there are several models. i want to say B&M makes one.

anyway, if you do another pan drop I'm guessing you'll find more crud and the magnets coated again. so yes, drop the pan again.

does this car have a replaceable filter media? or just a strainer screen? heck, even the strainer might be clogged...

 

[XB70]

Quote:

---

Would it be possible to drill and tap a drain plug into the pan?

---

...and...

Quote:

---

I want to say B&M makes one.

---

Yes, on both counts. It's easy to do and you'll thank yourself the next time you do a fluid change. I think the B&M piece runs about $5.00.

Do an Auto-Rx treatment with the current fluid, then when you change it you can do the drain plug. As you progress through the treatment, look for changes in the appearance of the ATF to see if any cleaning is taking place. Given what you've said, I think you'll notice a difference when you inspect the dipstick.

If it has a replaceable filter, change it.

Also, consider an aftermarket transmission cooler.

 

[bdai]

I changed the filter the last time I dropped the pan. I don't know if it has a screen mesh filter or the felt kind; it's whatever transmission was mated to the LA1 3400 (4T60E?). I'll probably drop the pan once more, install a drain plug, then do drain-and-fills every 20,000 km until it reaches 320,000 km.

It's my dad's 'commuter' truck, so he doesn't want me to spend much time and money on it. He drives the MDX around town, and only uses the van for trips to Toronto once a week. I've been trying to convince him to keep it running well though, since it's the only thing in the family I can use to haul around wood and sheet metal without worrying about scratches. And I can park it anywhere and not worry about dents in the plastic body panels. If this car dies I'll have to go buy a pickup.