Tranny fluid flush for FE?

[itjstagame]

Originally Posted by brucepick

Shucks, plenty people drive 100-150K with no maintenance and then the say "gee, the tranny is slipping, they just don't make 'em like they used to".

That'd be me!

I think I seriously need to learn the flush and filter change intervals to increase the lives of my automatics, up until now I've never really driven that many miles per year so it didn't matter and I would just buy a 'new' used car for $500 or whatever and lament that I did not own more manuals, but I don't want this truck to ever die and don't plan on trying to swap a trans (even if it would be super beneficial), so I better get my act together.

[01_fast_ride]

brucepick
I agree that the trans flush was a great thing for both the longevity of the tranny and possibly helping raise your numbers a bit. And I think your idea behind full flush combined with 3K mile drain and fill is smart. I hear alot of people are doing similar things over on VolvoForums. Its cheap insurance for your trans to renew the additive packs.

I am getting ready to do a full flush on my '01. (Maybe I was naive to follow Volvo's recommendation to not change the fluid until 105K.) I think I'm going to add a Magnefine filter inline on the return hose for added protection. I am actually quite nervous to see how much crap has been circulating through the tranny all these years.

[brucepick]

You must be the same SSixty that's on CleanMPG.
Good to see you here!

I don't know too much about the Volvo fwd cars. I know the AW (Aisin Warner) auto trannies in the rwd cars are pretty much unkillable.

Good luck on the flush! FWIW, when I drain from the bottom of the tranny pan I get fluid but no junk. I never pulled the screen, on the rwd bricks there are hazards to beware of re. the dipstick tube attachment to the pan. So I leave it alone. FWD, I don't know about really.

[01_fast_ride]

Yeah, you got me... I go by that alias. And I have seen Sven on the mileage logs over there as well. Nice skills.

Thanks for the words of encouragement. I began researching 'the flush' a few months ago, so right now I could probably do it in my sleep. A few of the other forums I've visited all seem to slam me, WWE-style, for owning the '01. They claim its a lemon - that they don't last beyond 70K miles.

[vt420]

on a only partially related note. I've always seen an increase in MPG after changing the oil in my manual transmissions, but I've changed to a semi or full synth (depending on the car and my finances at the time) so the first change had a huge impact (nearly 10% in one car going to semi-synth)

I just changed the 240sx over to redline mt90 so we'll see how that goes


I would tend to think the the effect would be at least as good on an auto, especially since sutos actually pump the fluid around and through small valves and orrifices, not just splash it around like most manuals.

If you haven't yet, I would change the diff oil also. a good semi-synth (i've used valvoline durablnd gearlube in the past) would only cost maybe a dollar more a quart than a quality dino-oil. Even a full synthetic wouldn't be overly expensive since you shouldn't need more than 2-3 quarts. I don't remember all the brick fluid capacities off the top of my head, but most rearends don't need more than 3.

Jeff

[brucepick]

Yeah - I've been meaning to change the rear end fluid out for synthetic. Just didn't get around to it. I'm progressing on changing over the tranny fluid. 2.5 qts swapped at every oil change. It will be due again in just a few weeks.

[smay665949]

Look at getting a high quality synthetic like Amsoil. After I replaced the radiator on my 2001 Impala I topped off with 1 quart of Amsoil ATF and the whole car seemed smoother. I can't wait to change all the transmission fluid. I have already changed the engine over to Amsoil and gained an average of 2-MPG while driving the exact speed limit with the cruise on. I expect a similar gain with a full ATF change. You may also want to look at the gear oil in your rear differential. I have a friend in North Dakota who changed the gear oil in a ford truck in the winter after a 7-degree night. When he pulled the cover the gear oil it was like frozen orange juice and took 2 hours to completely thaw and run out while the Amsoil gear oil that had sat in the back of the truck all night sloshed in the bottle like motor oil. In addition Amsoil can go for longer drain intervals, which makes up for the higher cost.

http://www.lubedealer.com/T&SMay/fea...ductsview.aspx

Good luck,

[8307c4]

I couldn't tell you whether it increases mpg, but what I do know is it prolongs the life of the transmission considerably. I understand most folks never do it, I didn't either for many years, but I started about 6-7 years ago and never looked back, doing that stuff is like money in the bank.

Now I don't cycle it, I just do it every 10k miles, drain, replace filter, refill.

[brucepick]

Originally Posted by 8307c4

... Now I don't cycle it, I just do it every 10k miles, drain, replace filter, refill.

I'm glad there's somebody else out there doing this!

As I understand things, you actually are cycling it if you drain and refill. Because draining it only gets out part of the fluid (in my case, 32%). The rest of the fluid is in the torque converter and elsewhere in the system like cooling lines.

You can check your owners manual for the total system capacity and see how much drains out of the pan. Mine has 7.8 qt capacity and 2.5 qt drains from the pan. That's the 32%.

I built a spreadsheet that calculates the % of new fluid in the system after x number of drain/fill cycles. I'm one of those obsessive nerdy types.

For Volvo rwd auto trannies we don't change the filter/screen. Even Volvo recommends leaving it alone. I'm good with that because changing it is a PITA, you have to remove the dipstick tube which sometimes breaks etc. etc. Dunno about your car - if changing the filter is a reasonable process then doing it makes sense to me.

[Brontegirl]

This thread is very imformative. My car is 6-years old with 66k miles and I've never had the trans fluid flushed. Per the manual, it is not due until 100k but keep in mind that this is the same manual that recommends oil changes every 7,500 miles! No thanks! I'll do it every 3k since my mileage is better and it is better for my car. Now to tackle the trans fluid! And me wondering about my next weekend project!