Valvoline Maxlife vs. Toyota Type IV

[dwcopple]

Originally Posted By: Kestas
Originally Posted By: firefighter0629
Did you ask for that price? Or is that just what they gave you? I had to ask for $5 a quart! I believe my dealership wanted $6 something per quart! What dealership in Michigan?

I too am asking which dealer? I can only get it for $5 per quart.
Labadie on Euclid. Ask and ye shall recieve. And it is NOT purple, I don't know where that came from???

 

[lexus114]

Originally Posted By: firefighter0629
It is for my wife's 2006 Toyota Sienna LE 3.3L V6 which has 65,750 miles on it! I do not care about how it shifts, how it feels, all I care about is will the transmission last to 200,000 miles? Keep in mind she travels 10 miles round trip a day. Average speed is probably 30 mph. I do not care about cost as I am willing to put the very best in it since my wife treats it really good and she loves it!



It will last 200,000 miles on the Toyota fluid, as long as it`s changed every 30,000 miles or so.

 

[zerosoma]

Originally Posted By: bepperb
Superior in what way? Longevity? Shift Feel? Certainly not warranty compliance.

IMO they both perform pretty well in older Aisin trannys but the Maxlife is superior because it's easy to find and costs less. I certainly wouldn't extend the change interval way out or expect a noticeable improvement.


yeah, in my Hyundai I use MaxLife but on Toyotas i dont mess around. i get mine done at the dealer for $85, every 50k is my plan. they use Type IV fluid, drop the pan, clean it.

 

[[RT] ProjUltraZ]

it looked purple when it came out of my wifes toyota after just 30K. must have been burnt. replaced w/ maxlife

 

[firefighter0629]

I dropped the pan on my Toyota Sienna and everything looked amazing! The magnets had nothing on them, the pan had nearly nothing on it, I could have eaten off of it (just kidding). I did put a new strainer and new OEM gasket on! Then, I tapped into the transmission cooler line and 12 quarts later ... it looked amazing! To be honest with you after 65,000 miles or so the new fluid looked identical to the old fluid.
I talked to a transmission shop who I trust and they do all my other maintenance I am unable to do. His recommendation is to do a drain and fill ever 20,000 miles. And for me that is about $20 using either OEM fluid or Valvoline Maxlife ATF. He actually recommends Valvoline Maxlife for a lot of models. Furthermore, he stated that most of the time it is neglect or a bad transmission (lemon) and NOT the transmission fluid that causes a rebuilt transmission! Also, he did recommend Lubeguard products! Hope this helps!

 

[lexus114]

Originally Posted By: firefighter0629
I dropped the pan on my Toyota Sienna and everything looked amazing! The magnets had nothing on them, the pan had nearly nothing on it, I could have eaten off of it (just kidding). I did put a new strainer and new OEM gasket on! Then, I tapped into the transmission cooler line and 12 quarts later ... it looked amazing! To be honest with you after 65,000 miles or so the new fluid looked identical to the old fluid.
I talked to a transmission shop who I trust and they do all my other maintenance I am unable to do. His recommendation is to do a drain and fill ever 20,000 miles. And for me that is about $20 using either OEM fluid or Valvoline Maxlife ATF. He actually recommends Valvoline Maxlife for a lot of models. Furthermore, he stated that most of the time it is neglect or a bad transmission (lemon) and NOT the transmission fluid that causes a rebuilt transmission! Also, he did recommend Lubeguard products! Hope this helps!



I dont like the way Lube Guard makes my transmission shift. So I stopped using it.

 

[Zako2]

I would disagree with Maxlife recommendation. The Toyota OEM T-IV is highly regarded, and its made by Mobil. The same fluid (under a different label) is recommended by a number of other OEMs. Under normal conditions (not severe duty), this type of fluid can serve up to 150,000 miles (that's Ford recommendation for its tranny in Ford 500 that use this fluid). Maxlife may be synthetic, but I really don't like its "one size fits all" nature. If you have a Toyota, you're better off with OEM fluid IMHO.

 

[dwcopple]

Originally Posted By: Zako2
The Toyota OEM T-IV is highly regarded
around here it's not, not sure where you hear this...

 

[LeakySeals]

The Camry in my sig uses T-IV. All is well so I'm not changing a thing. Drain and fill approx 4qts every 30k. Goes in red, comes out red with a hint of gray. Pan came off once at 200k for a look. No varnish. Nothing in the screen filter. Small amount of gray goo on the magnets. Put it all back. I pay $6 a qt in tax free NH.

 

[bourne]

I really find it hilarious that M1 0w40 is touted as an excellent high quality oil on this forum. One of reasons for that is it meets a HUGE list of OEM specs.

Same forum turns around and shuns Maxlife ATF ( which btw has worked EXCELLENT in every single application we have used it in, where recommended ) BECAUSE it meets the requirements for so many OEM specs.

 

[Bgallagher]

Originally Posted By: bepperb
Superior in what way? Longevity? Shift Feel? Certainly not warranty compliance.

IMO they both perform pretty well in older Aisin trannys but the Maxlife is superior because it's easy to find and costs less. I certainly wouldn't extend the change interval way out or expect a noticeable improvement.


My Equinox has an Aisin warner and works fantastic with maxlife and LGR.

 

[wiswind]

Interestingly, my 2003 Sienna specifies Dexron III for the transmission.
I have been using Red Line D4 and am very happy with it.
It is interesting (but accurate) that Toyota went to T-IV in the Camry sooner, as they are both built on the same platform.
As for the T-IV fluid....I wonder what the viscosity specifications are over the Dexron III.
Maybe tighter as far as "shearing down"? over the life of the fill?
Maybe someone with more knowledge than I (doesn't take much) can fill us in.

One would want to stick with the viscosity characteristics that the transmission was designed for........including viscosity change over a wide temperature range (there IS a transmission fluid temperature sensor that the computer monitors).

I know that Dexron VI is a "thinner" viscosity vs Dexron III.
I had read that the specification for the viscosity variance over the fill life of the fluid is MUCH tighter than for the Dexron III specification.

Again, my Toyota vehicle has a pretty bland specification of Dexron III, so I have a different situation.

 

[dwcopple]

Originally Posted By: wiswind
Interestingly, my 2003 Sienna specifies Dexron III for the transmission.
does it have an Aisin trans?

 

[wiswind]

Yes.