How to Drain/Refill Automatic Transmission

Have an 05 Pre-runner 2wd. ight.It does not have an at temp. The owners manual states that this light is only on the 4wd. I have an 07 4 runner. I will try the at temp mode check on it and see how it reacts. Its service manual also states that D will flash for 2 secs when entering AT temp mode. I;m gonna give it a try,l

 

It would easy if they just put the dam dip stick back in and we wouldn't have this problem. maybe if we all called and or wrote letters to the Toyota and tell the how stupid it was to remove the dip stick maybe it would get done on the next model. I've send 2 letter to Toyota saying how dumb it was to remove the only way we can check the fluid level and yet we the consumer are responsable for the fluids.

 

I am a lil slowwwww...how much fluid does an automatic transmition hold? How much is actually being changed? I have read this thread from beginning to end. I am just trying to find out how what a drain and fill actually accomplishes. Thank you for your time and concern.

Sincerely,

Al

 

Thanks for the writeup man. I've still got another 30k to go till I have to do this, but it's always good to know ahead of time what is required, plus being able to do all these system checks will save me lots of $$$ from the stealership

 

TTT

 

Awesome Write up.... My bud made the rookie mistake of changing his oil for the first time and drained some of his tranny. This worked easily.... cheers....


esto

 

Im @ 31k miles with my prerunner, might do this @40k/45k. I am concerned a bit of the flush vs. full flush, read thread and looks like avg 3qt fill when its 6qts?

I'm sure changing half the fluid for a "no-need/100k/60k" service is better than nothing...

 

I stopped by my local Toyota dealer today to pick up some Toyota ATF WS to do a transmission fluid change. I got there a few minutes early, so I had some time to kill. I started looking through my owner's manual and noticed it says the 5 speed automatic transmission has a capacity of 11.5 quarts. I brought this up to the shop foreman at the dealer and he says draining the pan and replacing 3-6 quarts is not a complete fluid change. They dealer actually drains the torque converter, transmission cooler (if equipped), and pan...then replaces the fluid. I know this has some-what been covered already but it's looking like having the dealer do a complete drain and refill is the better way to go!

 

No doubt this is better than a drain & refill. However, for most people the issue is the cost. Three bills at the dealer is too steep for many here.

 

This is what I can tell since I have just purchased my first tacoma and doing a little research. You have to know what type of Transmission you have first. If you have a dip stick in the engine bay then this process isn't for you. The process is just like all transmission in the pasted using the normal toyota fluids.

Now for most TRD Autos you will have a Transmission that doesn't have a dip stick in the engine bay. This is because it is a sealed pressure unit. Doing this procedure is not a good idea in my opinion because like he stated you are only changed 2 quarts out of a 13 quart system. Most dealers now do a complete flush including the fluid in the converter. For these transmisions it is expensive because the fluid(toyota WS) is about 20 dollars a quart alone. I recommend taking it in and getting the full flush with all new fluid because Toyota has very good fluids and replace all the fluid with fresh and that will last you another long time. Have you noticed that there is no service option in the manual for these trans?

 

I was intending on doing this but have decided to just let sleeping dogs lie. I bought my current 05 with 112k on it and there was no record of it being touched by Toyota. It has 131k on it now and it shifts perfect. I don't drive it hard or do a bunch of towing and when I have towed with it (open steel car trailer with a car on it most of the time) it did perfectly fine. I was going to drop the pan, clean it, clean the filter, and refill. However the possibility of me dislodging something in the process to get sucked into the tranny and cause a problem makes me think leaving it be is a better way to go. A tranny flush by machine is a great way to go every 40-50k miles. But doing it on a 100k plus tranny in my opinion will certainly dislodge some crud and potentially give you some troubles. I've seen it happen on several other makes where a few days after a flush the tranny starts slipping. My 00 4Runner has 215k on it and the tranny hasn't been touched since 50k miles. It shifts perfect too.

 

OIL STOP by Chevron claims to use only Toyota tranny fluid for auto trans mated to 4.0L. They charge $99.99 for the service. Unlike Jiffy Lube they claim to use Toyota products. I wonder if that's true. They couldn't show me a bottle since they have it come out of an oil gun set to a predetermined flow/amount.

I know the Toyota Auto Trans fluid is set to the friction needed for the tranny. I'm just a bit hesitant to go outside the dealer or source the fluid from the dealer and do it myself.

Anyone try Oil Stop by Chevron?

Nice write up.

 

Its three quarts that get replaced from the total capacity.

Not everyone has access to a flush machine. Neither shop within 500 miles of me has a flush machine, including the dealer. Do you suggest I don't perform any maintenance at all in lieu of a flush?

You're getting ripped. I only pay $7 a quart at the dealer.

While not a complete fluid change, a drain and refill of the pan at the proper intervals recommended by Toyota is all that is required to satisfy the ATF maintenance requirements. Since the dealer makes no $$$ on this service, they "upsell" the flush procedure. Not required and actually more harm than good in higher mileage units.

 

read the first 4 page of the thread on this tranny diy, did we clearly confirm the light come on for the 4x2's? or is that light just for the 4x4's, also stated the "d" light.

i have an appliance repair company and i rack some miles buaght the taco nov last year and as of today i have 46,569(baught the truck new with 0 on dash)

 

Paid $189 to have mine flushed. At that price, it cost just a bit more than doing it myself. Plus, this is my first automatic, my only transportation at the moment, ive contemplated doing it myself for a few months now but with no shop to work in, and the cold rainy weather I bit the bullet and got it done.

For anyone with high mileage I recommend it. As soon as I pulled out of the dealership I felt an improvement, better throttle response, Quicker shifts with a nicer firm feeling, no more harsh 5th gear shift when cold, no more lurch into 2nd gear around corners or starting off facing down hill. Feels like it did when I bought the truck. Another thing to note is it shifts slightly quicker from Park to Drive/Reverse etc.

No idea what its going to do long term wise but I know Aisin automatics tend to outlive Toyota engines, the Toyota WS fluid can only make me more confident in that. Think I will do a drop and drain yearly from now on.

Im at 195,000 kilometers now.

 

If your truck is equipped with a tranny cooler, a simple drain and refill won't cut it. You'll need the information from this link as well.

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/68462-diy-full-flush-automatic-transmission.html

 

Great post ,Thank you

 

My Scangauge reads tranny temp.

I'd rather depend on it than doing the jumper wire.

At what temp is the tranny "warmed up" to check the overflow.


RT

Never mind, write up says between 115F and 130F

 

Thanks for the tech info. Worked perfectly first time on my trans service.

 

I must have missed something in the previous 10 pages, what is used for the transmission fluid check light for the automatic trannys? I have an 09 auto also and do not have the tranny temp light like on the manuals.