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01-24-2011, 02:05 AM | #1 |
Drives: 07 Yaris Hatch Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Jacksonville, FL
Posts: 10
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Changing auto trans fluid
My girlfriends 07 Yaris has about 87k miles and in talking the ohter day I asked if she ever had the tranny fluid changed. Apparently it hasnt so I was planning on getting it done. I did go out and have a look in the engine bay and for the life of me couldnt even find the dipstick for it. So basically what all Im asking is...
1. How often does this need to be done. and 2. Where is the damn dipstick? I know in my dads old Chevy we did the tranny fluid about every 50k miles. |
01-24-2011, 07:03 AM | #2 |
I believe it's good to 100K. Then I wouldn't unless it smells burned or is not the cherry red color. To me, alot depends on how the car is driven and under what conditions. The dipstick is there under the airbox if the car hasn't been modded. Ck the owners manual if after a careful look see you still can't find it.
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01-24-2011, 07:45 AM | #3 |
Drives: 2009 Base Hatch 2 Dr Auto Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: nj
Posts: 4,790
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Look in your owners manual but I believe there is no official requirement. My 1978 Chevy C10 I gave my brother in law had 350k miles on it with the same transmission and that oil was NEVER ahanged!
Now with the internet all kinds of experts say to change it. Swear on their mothers graves too. |
01-29-2011, 12:21 AM | #4 |
Drives: NOTHING Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: NOWHERE
Posts: 95
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Read this TSB from Toyota
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01-29-2011, 12:59 AM | #5 |
Drives: 2008 yaris, stripped, red Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: SE Texas
Posts: 977
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yeah.....again, everyone's got an opinion
all i can say AGAIN....is do what you feel comfortable with. if your'e concerned with the color/life of your fluid, then change it. it's not hard, it's not expensive and it will help with the life of your trans. HOWEVER...if you dont do it right you can kill your trans. so, if it's dark, change it. you can drop the pan, top off and run and do it again. or, you can pull the cooler line and run it until it starts sputtering...shut off the car and top-off until it's full-OR-pull both lines and put the push into a dump tank and put the pull line into a fresh tank and run until it comes out red instead of black... any way, whatever you do will be up to you. i say change it at 40k miles....BEFORE YOU EVER HAVE ANY PROBLEMS...and change it every 40k miles and be done with it. fluid is only 8 bux a quart...that's like 60 bux every 40k miles. wow. i'll take 60 up the A$$ to save my car. but i'm a mechanic and i can fix my car when it breaks. just sayin. |
01-29-2011, 02:06 PM | #6 |
Drives: 2007 Toyota Yaris LB Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Bay Area, CA
Posts: 76
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Just drain and refill 2-3 times.
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01-29-2011, 08:42 PM | #7 |
Drives: 08 Yaris sedan auto / Fit auto Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: northeast
Posts: 2,897
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Makes you think that the WS is a synthetic . Wonder how we could find that out ? . I still think you'd want to have it serviced ( drain , refill , filter ) at 100,000 , especially if you live in hilly terrain ( like us ) , slow moving traffic , extreme high temps , etc.. Seen a U.O.A. for the W.S. from a TOYOTA and the results weren't all that impressive . Will try to find it again .
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01-29-2011, 11:09 PM | #8 |
Drives: 2008 HB, A/T, Power W/L/M Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: LI, New Yawk
Posts: 2,063
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Is'nt there a drain plug so you don't need to drop the pan?
How much fluid does the tranny hold? What a bout the filter? My old Saturn had a spin on tranny filter with a doughnut shaped magnet to catch debris too... So easy to change.
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Never take eyes off opponent - Bruce Lee |
01-30-2011, 07:58 AM | #9 |
Crazy Oil Sniffer
Drives: MM 09 Yaris 5 Dr LB "Click" Join Date: May 2009
Location: ME
Posts: 498
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Trans holds 7 qts. You get about 2.5 out by draining from the plug, I am told.
When I dropped the pan to replace the filter it took 3 qts, 20 oz of fluid to fill it back up so I replaced almost exactly half of the fluid volume. There are also two small magnets on the bottom of the pan which I cleaned. I probably won't drop the pan to replace the filter again for a long time, I'll just do drain and fills via the plug every 15k. As severous1 states it is cheap and easy to do so I'll give it the TLC. |
01-30-2011, 08:40 PM | #10 |
Drives: 2008 yaris, stripped, red Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: SE Texas
Posts: 977
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if you unplug one of the lines to the trans from the cooler, and start the car....and shut it off when it starts to sputter fluid out. and then top it off with as much fluid that came out you 'should' be fine(assuming that you were good to begin with). a better way to do it would be to take both off, find out which is to and which is from cooler...put the to cooler line in a bucket, and put the from cooler line in a tank with new fluid. and then start the car and put in N or P and let it take all the fluid it needs. and that's about as close to 100% as you can get without rebuilding the trans
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01-30-2011, 09:38 PM | #11 | |
Drives: 2007 Toyota Yaris LB Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Bay Area, CA
Posts: 76
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Quote:
Highly not recommended doing that way. |
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01-30-2011, 10:23 PM | #12 |
Drives: 2008 yaris, stripped, red Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: SE Texas
Posts: 977
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and i guess you have a reason why??? i've been doing it this way for about....mmm...maybe around 8 years or so. on toyota, GM, BMW, dodge/chrysler....even ford. i've changed the trans fluid on probably about 200 taurus models alone this way and never had a problem...probably saved a few befor the 36kmi trans failure issue
i'd like to hear why you think that MOC, Wynn's, GM, and soooo many other companies out there sell machines and DIY kits to change trans fluid in just such a manner as i described....and you think it's a bad idea to do it this way... i just wanna know why YOU think it's a bad idea. |
01-31-2011, 01:20 AM | #13 |
Drives: '10 Fit Sport MT and 2012 Fit Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Castaic, CA
Posts: 116
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Just because it's often done this way doesn't mean it's the intended way to replace the fluid, hence not necessarily the best way. I do not know what the recommended way is. It is possible to imagine why doing it this way can be harmful to the transmission. Just like changing the engine oil through the oil cooler in the radiator.
Again, I do not know what the best way is, but you have to know the internals of the automatic transaxle to say that it is safe to do, and just the fact that it is done often is not enough (at least to convince me). I drive a 2010 Honda Fit MT anyway |
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