Transmission fluid

Would anyone suggest just doing a drain and fill on a Tundra transmission with 71000 miles or do I need to flush it?

 

Me personally I would check the maintenance schedule in the owners manual as far as the drain and fill. I'm not a big fan of the flushing. I'm sure it wouldn't hurt to drain and fill with fresh fluid just not sure if there would be any benefit.

 

Never been a fan of flushing. Ever.

 

define flushing, like under pressure from an external machine?

I would pull the cooler return line and dump two quarts, pour two quarts in the pan, repeat until fluid is clean. And then check level @ proper temp.

Some folks might call that a flush, some won’t.

 

Drain what's in the pan and refill. Repeat in 5k miles. If it's really dirty I'll repeat a third time. Not sure if there's a filter on these, but if so I change it the first fluid change

 

i would only drain and fill a working tranny...if tranny aint working right, nothing to lose flushing...

 

Just curious but why are you draining or changing the tranny fluid?

 

Same reason I change engine oil. So the engine and transmission last longer.

 

Salmonator,

Do you have a transmission dipstick in your engine bay?

Don’t laugh but i have a good friend who has been working as a lead mechanic with Toyota for over 20 years.

Unless your having transmission problems he advises not to flush or touch the Tundra transmissions.

These trucks are much more complicated than you or I believe.

Just so you know I’ve owned 3 Tundras since 2000 each generation. Always bought, maintained and traded back to the same Toyota dealer. I never once had the transmission’s flushed.

 

I did a complete refill at 83.5K by disconnecting the cooler return line and running 12-13 quarts through it. In doing so, changed over completely to Amsoil synth xmsn fluid. From this point I'll just be doing the drain and refill with the Amsoil.

NO xmsn fluid lasts forever. Thats BS. If you want to keep your truck for a while instead of trading every few years, mind your fluid changes.

 

Oregon,

I wouldn’t touch it. My 2008 was traded in with 155,000 miles on it and I never serviced the transmission.

If you have transmission probs than there is a detailed process when working on the transmission.

 

They told me at the valvoline instant oil change place to flush it since it only had 71,000 miles but not sure I trust their advice, thanks for the imput everyone!

 

Nope no dipstick.

Holy cow. Don’t touch the transmission fluid until the transmission is having problems? Wait until there is an issue before you do maintenance? I seriously would not take any mechanic advice from your good friend. Good luck.

No question the transmission and WS fluid are light years better than the autos of the past, when 30k fluid changes were advised (and seldom followed). Lots of examples of these newer transmissions with high miles that have never been touched. But the truth is most folks never work their rigs hard and most don’t keep a vehicle past 150k or 200k miles.

If you want to drive the rig until the wheels fall off, and if you tow in the mountains I would change the trans fluid as regular maintenance every 60k or less. Personally I would change it even if didn’t tow or plan to keep it to 500k, it’s not expensive or hard to do.

I would never do a machine flush like they do at the quick lube places. A cooler line fluid exchange using the transmission to pump the fluid out is safe to do. I would probably not do it to a high mileage transmission that has never had the fluid changed, I would just do 30k pan drain/fill on one of those.

The lack of dipstick is dumb in my opinion, but Toyota obviously doesn’t want folks to DIY. Truth is most folks are not very handy. It’s not difficult if you get the service manual it tells you how to jump the pins in the OBD port to get it into the mode where you can determine if the trans is the correct temperature to check the fluid level or fill. Or you can use an OBD scan app like Fusion to read the temperature.

 

You did good. That’s the type of trans flush I would NOT do. Ever.

 

Studies have shown that 60% of the time it works every time.

 

Salmmonator,

Well how many Tundras have you owned?

This transmission is sealed for a reason and no dipstick is in the engine bay for a reason. I believe in my Toyota mechanic.

Also in your Tundra service intervals there is no tranny scheduled preventative maintenance either.

I would consult with a Tundra mechanic on the correct procedure on type of tranny filter and amount of tranny fluid to use.

Good luck

 

The lack of dipstick is necessary so the transmission can be pressurized and improve the flow through tight passages. It's low pressure caused by thermal expansion but is a big reason for extended performance and life.

 

There's not a filter so much as a strainer that can be cleaned and re-used.

The overflow plug installed on the newer transmissions is supposed to be more accurate than the old dipstick method. There is no fluid that can maintain its properties for all time and dropping the pan to see what's there every 60,000-100,000 miles will not cause any problems.

 

First tundra, previously had a Tacoma’s that towed heavy with and ran pretty hard. I never keep them that long unfortunately as I totoalles the last two - I murdered my last one at 211k. Didn’t burn a drop of oil had just replaced wheel bearings for the second time, was planning on taking it to 500k. Transmission was not the same, but extremely similar. No dipstick, same fluid change procedure.

Below is the 2019 Tundra maintenance guide. Note trans fluid change is recommended at 60k for those that tow, etc.

Seriously good luck with your mechanic. At least it’s a Toyota so they are hard to kill. I’m pretty sure I would be better off not consulting with your mechanic.

 

Didn’t know that, makes sense. Wasn’t planning on adding a dipstick, just frustrating that the general trend is that folks don’t work on their own vehicles much nowadays. The lack of a dipstick looked to me like an a example of the manufacturers being onboard with the non DIY trend....

 

You are correct though, less than 5% of owners now change their own oil. Most don't even know how to check fluids much less add or change them.

 

Salmonator,

Thank you for pointing out the obvious. Did you read the fluid change is for Special Operating Conditions.

According to my Toyota mechanic friend that towing a travel trailer, fishing boat hauling your atv or dirt bikes isn’t considered heavy use.

Per our manual it isn’t required to change tranny fluid unless you fall into Special Operating Conditions.

Since you are in the class of Special Operating Conditions according to the manual you have pointed out you must also Re-torque the propeller shaft bolt and tighten nuts and bolts on chassis and body.

I’m sure you are more than qualified to work on your truck but others are asking when to change the tranny and I’m just informing them to which a certified Toyota mechanic has told me over the last 17 years.

 

You are welcome.

Not so concerned with the propeller shaft, or body falling off the truck but I will consider the recommendation, thank you.

A transmission is an expensive item, fluid is cheap, and your transmission will absolutely last longer if the fluid in good shape.

Don’t think towing raises transmission temperatures? Ever monitor that? Wow.

Regarding your buddy that says the transmission fluid (preventative maintenance) should not be changed until AFTER a problem occurs, if you can’t see what is wrong with that approach, good luck to you.

 

Salmonator,

Problem is more construed from checking for visible leaks. Basically he has had his share of fixes from the Jiffy lube stop type places from many customers or the occasional do it your selfer.

He is a very highly rated Tech with many Toyota awards and has been of recent invited down to the Texas Corp office to meet with other top mechanics.

 

Resident forum “Toyota mechanic “

Weird.

 

I drain and fill annually, which is about a 20k mile interval. It keeps the fluid fresh and it only costs $150 or so.

I do this because I tow a 7000 lb boat/trailer during the hot Texas months (much of the year lol).

It's funny -- there's so much debate about this, but none about all the money (much that's OCD-driven) we spend on our trucks for stuff that is so unneeded and does nothing to prolong their life and performance.

 

I just had Toyota change my tranny fluid on my '16 with 50k miles. Why? Because I am a maintenance nerd. Was it necessary? Probably not. I had some firming shifting at times and thought maybe the fluid would help. I do think it seems smoother now shifting but it also could be in my head.

Toyota recommended changing it at 100k.

Either way, it can't "hurt" to change it but as others have mentioned I don't think it's necessary either.

I knew a guy who had an older Camry that bought it new. Sold it with 255k on it and never serviced the transmission once and never had problems.

To each his own.

 

Nailed it! Stories of why spend $30-50 on an oil change at 5k miles vs. 10k miles because the evil oil companies have ‘brain washed’ us, but no mention of the stealerships gain on gunked up engines/transmissions due to old fluids (usually after warranty expires). What does the dealership have to lose? Nothing.

Fluid changes are cheap insurance.

 

Don't spend money on your transmission until it fails, what a wonderful suggestion. It doesn't cost that much to go to the dealer and have the fluid changed out and strainer inspected.

 

I’m planning to drop the pan on my 2014 tundra and change out the fluid soon, does anyone know if the strainer is typically stainless steel or the plastic style? Can it just be cleaned and reused?