Lifetime ATF in a 2011 Corolla

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That sounds like a good plan. Post pictures of the magnet and anything else you find interesting.
 
I downloaded a Toyota Service Manual and it does not mention anything about the Toyota Transmission System to check the fluid level in the transmission. For this application, it simply says to get the ATF to operating temperature and check the dipstick for the HOT level. But thanks law3500 for the heads up. I would like to get a Tacoma one day and now I know how difficult it may be to exchange ATF's.

PS - I got the service manula here:
http://hotfile.com/dl/93026653/c22f454/5856746-Toyota_Corolla_2009-2010_Service_Repair_Manual.zip
It took a little while to download, but is a huge file that is opened up in Adobe as a PDF.
 
Found a dealer to sell the OEM Toyota WS for $6.86 per quart. Going to pick up (8) quarts tomorrow and order the WIX Filter Kit from O'Reilly's for $15.99. The complete system holds 6.9 quarts. Come to think of it, I haven't priced the Filter Kit from the dealership. I'll have to check into it tomorrow when I pick up the WS.
 
Performed the exchange today. The fluid looked just like the new that I poured in, which is no suprise, with a slight darker tone. After the pan drop, we (my brother and I) noticed the (2) magnets did have the sludgy metal on it that you would expect, even on this application with only 10,255 miles. I took pictures and will try to upload.

While cleaning the pan, we found a nice sized "chip" as my brother put it. He is a machinist and sees his share of metal chips. I didn't get a picture of its size, but put it this way, while in conversation, my uncle stopped by, I through the chip down on the cardboard we were laying on, and my brother turned around and asked was that the chip.

Would this have gone a "lifetime?" I'm sure it may have. Have I got heat for doing this change early? Yep. Will I here it some more? Probably so. However, I do agree with the point of view shared by Jim Allen and others on early ATF exchanges and 30,000 to 40,000 intervals. I ordered a Blackstone kit and was hoping to get it in time before the exchange but no such luck.
 
I say you save the money on getting the oil analyzed and consider it a job well done. Post the pics when you get a chance.
 
Originally Posted By: crinkles
poor mans flush: pump out from the return line, and feed into the return line using a funnel?


The problem is not all transmission has a cooler line now. My IS have the coolant going into the tranny instead of the ATF going to the radiator.

Originally Posted By: law3500

I tell you this story just to let you know that just because there is a fill plug it is not always as simple as drain and fill. We did this rarely as maint. at customer request and when intstalling new trans assemblies under warranty or C/P.

I know some other manufacturers have similar procedures for their lifetime ATF's but this is my experience specifically with Toyota W/S lifetime ATF systems in GX470,LX470, 4runner and sequoia trucks.

I do not know off the top of my head if yours has the same type of procedure and I am not telling you not to change your fluid I am simply telling you this as a caution to make sure it's done right. I can also tell you that on at least a half a dozen cases when a customer attempted to change lifetime fill W/S on their own or at an independant and caused transmission failure that Toyota ALWAYS denied the warranty claim.


law3500, have you done any ATF change on the 06+ IS? Is it as difficult or easier? Also what's the condition of the ATF usually when they are out? Do they look ok or do they look dark?
 
Originally Posted By: PandaBear
[The problem is not all transmission has a cooler line now. My IS have the coolant going into the tranny instead of the ATF going to the radiator.


Not doubting you. But wow, what could possibly be the benefit of doing that??
 
Originally Posted By: weebl
Originally Posted By: PandaBear
[The problem is not all transmission has a cooler line now. My IS have the coolant going into the tranny instead of the ATF going to the radiator.


Not doubting you. But wow, what could possibly be the benefit of doing that??


They use coolant to heat up the ATF in cold weather.
 
I have the same car (though a 2009) and I simply do a trans drain and refill every year which changes out 1/2 capacity. I drained measured and refilled via dipstick tube that same amount (which corresponded to the data in the owners manual) no special tricks. So Easy. I have 130K kms (over 80K miles) on mine, auto trans performs like the day I got it. I change mine every ~36K kms (20K miles) so drain/refill is like old hat to me now. After some of the used oil analysis I read back in 2009 on other Toyota WS-ATF cars (one was a a Prius IIRC) the analyzing company deemed the fluid to be spent at 30K miles it has a really weak additive pack....so the I decided on my interval to remove margins of error. The ATF is cheap, super easy to change, fast and its preventative maintenance for long life.

I do regular drain refills all my auto trans cars, never had a single hiccup, despite towing heavy loads, and well over 200K miles on some. Others I sold still working like new.
 
Originally Posted By: Smokescreen
. After some of the used oil analysis I read back in 2009 on other Toyota WS-ATF cars (one was a a Prius IIRC) the analyzing company deemed the fluid to be spent at 30K miles it has a really weak additive pack....so the I decided on my interval to remove margins of error. The ATF is cheap, super easy to change, fast and its preventative maintenance for long life.

Amen brother. Drop the pan on your next drain and fill. The WIX 58324 Transmission Kit was $17.07 out the door at O'Reilly's and had the filter and a new gasket. When comparing filters, the WIX had the very same production numbers on the underside of the filter. The Toyota filter had a few extra markings but when the production numbers correlated with one another and the overall fillter looked exactly the same, I was glad I decided to exchange the filters. The pan drop was very easy as well installation of the new filter. As you said, the most difficult aspect was making sure the same amount of ATF went in that came out. I did this Saturday and have checked the level each day I've driven it after the Cororo has warmed. I've only added a few ounces to get the level on the warm dipstick to where I like it.

On another note, I am still planning uploading those pictures. I thought I had the cord to connect my camera to my computer but I didn't have it with me today.
 
corollaATF019.jpg

corollaATF012.jpg

corollaATF011.jpg

corollaATF009.jpg

corollaATF007.jpg

corollaATF005.jpg
 
That is a bit of goo. How often do you plan on cleaning those. On a side note...I see that you have checked out TN. I use the powerful hard drive magnets on the drain plug that way I can wipe off the goo at each drain.
 
I'm thinking my next exchange will be at 40,000. The car will be out of warranty and I'm thinking of going with Amsoil ATL. I'll probably drop the pan again and check and see how things look, while changing the filter once more. After that service, if all is well, the next one will probably be a drain and fill after about 30,000 and perform pan drops every-other service. That is:
10,000 - Pan drop, filter replacement and an attempt at a full exchange by disconnecting cooler line and refill with Toyota WS
40,000 - Pan drop, filter replacement and an attempt at a full exchange by disconnecting cooler line and refill with Amsoil
70,000 - Drain and refill with Amsoil
100,000 - Pan drop, filter replacement and an attempt at a full exchange by disconnecting cooler line and refill with Amsoil

I'm gonna be checking into the Amsoil ATL a little further. If I remember correctly, I read somewhere on here that with the Amsoil, there was more wear elements in the UOA than with the Toyota WS in this application. In other applications, UOA's show the Toyota WS being somewhat "spent" at 30,000-40,000 miles, so I will at least adhere to this interval. So much for the "lifetime" fluid.
 
Interesting... thanks for the pictures. It really makes you think exactly how Toyota is able to sleep at night while suggesting customers NOT to change their tranny fluid... EVER!.
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