The Truth on Transmission Service Intervals

260,000km without an air filter change?
You should get your service dept to drain those fluids that have never been changed and post pics of what they look like after that long too.

 

dont care what toyota says every 30k I will do a drain & refill,on the trans,front & rear diffs....and transfer case.... ( I do alot of 4 wheeling on the beach and towing )
I think the key to the trans is dropping that pan and thoroughly cleaning it ,this way you get all the fine particles that normally settle down there and cause sludge...
I may also put a strong speaker magnet on the bottom of the trans pan to hold those particles between services...

just my 2 cents...

 

not changing air filter is insane!!

tranny? i did mine at 70k. i get into some nasty offroad crap while hunting. i also occasionally tow..getting to 140k will take some serious time..years.. lots of ways for a truck to go byebye..my tranny, i hope isnt the reason.

 

boss bought the truck so not my problem now - as for the air filter there is an indicator on the box which wasn't in the red yet - Now if it was mine I would have followed the manual at the very least as it was a company vehicle I have no say in the matter

 

Thanks Ross.... My big concern was maint. on my transmission and when the Serv advisor from Toyota stated that the Transmission never needed to be replaced... I was like thats "Bu@@".... Anyhow you confirmed it... Thanks again....

 

I wouldn't fall for it.

Used oil analyses over at BITOG suggest Toyota WS fluid should be changed around 60k with regular usage and 30 to 40k with heavy use (offroad, frequent heavy loads, towing).

Luckily transmissions don't have to deal with the same bullshit engine oil does, so all they really need is a top off to the additive packet every once in a while. A drain and fill every 40 or 50k should be fine for regular street use.

I myself do a drain and fill annually or every 10k, whichever comes first, but my truck catches hell and spends a lot of time with the torque converter near stall, which is heat city for an auto trans. I need to be more aggressive on my intervals. Most don't.

 

My independent service center recommends a transmission fluid change at 100K, then every 30K after that. While I’m considering the 100K change, I can’t see every 30K. I have owned Corollas, Camrys, 4-runners, and a Tacoma (my current truck) and have NEVER changed the tranny oil. However, since I plan on running my 2011 Tacoma into the ground, I may reconsider.

 

My current Tacoma has 322,000 miles and only time i added new fluid was to top off when some trickled out when changing my ujoints

 

My truck has 139,353 miles on it and about 500 miles ago, it began to run rough and shifting is noticeable. It is also making a hizzing noise like if the power steering pump is about to die. If I back out from my driveway and turn the wheel to go forward onto the street, it buckles and then jumps with a three second delay to move forward. So I'm wondering if I should follow the TSB the OP suggested and wait and see what happens; NOT!!! I did a flush and refill and replaced the filter, but kept the OEM to re-use it at a later time. I only replaced 9 quarts of the 11.5 quarts stated on the service manual. Now all the illments it had are gone! Shifting is smooth and truck will start moving as soon as I put it in gear instead of having to press the gas pedal like before. The first batch of dirty oil looked burned motor oil and the magnets in the pan looked like fuzzy dice! I added two more rare earth magnets for added collection real state. I bought that truck with 108,000 miles and had never done a transmission oil change, So I don't know if that is the original factory oil or the previous owner had already change it. The only indication that it may be the original is the filter has a metal mesh, but then again if they did it at the dealers at 100,000 more than likely replaced the filter with OEM.

 

My first gen had 600k on the automatic trans when I crashed it and sold it. Never had an issue. Never flushed it or anything

 

Toyota says that it doesn’t need to be changed as long as the fluid is inspected regularly and it comes out OK.


What are the chances the fluid in the transmission of even a DD looks great after 100,000; 200,000; 300,000+ miles????

There IS NO SUCH THING as a lifetime fluid. The fluid will need to be changed at some point.

As soon as the fluid starts turning brown it needs to go.
Most people do not inspect the fluid regularly and its a PITA to do it. So its easier to recommend a fluid change or flush at 100k. Its simple and easy to remember.

Toyota recommendations are not superior than all others nor are they the word of God. It’s OK and sometimes preferable to maintain a different maintenence schedule or use different types of fluids.

You won’t see me not changing major fluids regularly. Especially when I want to keep this truck forever.

I personally think auto manufacturers don’t make specific maintinence recommendations for most items past 100,000 mile intervals (for gas engines). The reason being a lot of people don’t keep vehicles that long (which is sad) and really all obligation and liability for a manufacturer to give you good advice to maintain your vehicle is gone and most people’s warranties are gone.

Toyota also doesn’t tell you to change your brakes and tires. It just says to inspect them. I’m sure everyone is aware these items will need replacing and are not “lifetime”.
The recommendation on transfluid should be taken the same way.

 

195k miles and no trans fluid change

ex wife sienna has 210k with no trans fluid change

 

Don’t change it if you don’t have to. Toyota puts this in their manual so they get your money

 

to each their own I guess... I change mine every 60k. btw holy thread revival batman!

 

Seems to happen a lot around here