Trans fluid change

I always get the filter replaced so they would have to take the pan off.

 

You would have to call Toyota and ask them about how they service transmissions .
When the proper procedure is followed when flushing a transmission , the pan always comes off before flushing .
What year is your truck ?

 

I have an 05. The guy I got it from did the valve body mod and the dealership replaced the fluid but the receipt doesn’t say anything about replacing filter or flushing. I hadn’t thought about doing anything yet I just came across this thread and it has been a topic of interest for me ever since my explorer transmission went out in college.

 

Some reading for you . You have the A750 series 5 speed transmission
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...th-pics-for-second-gen-4-liter-trucks.289913/

 

I am not qualified to answer your question about flush - listen to Gearcruncher

 

So many opposing opinions here. One says flush at home because low pressure flushes are safe. Another says if you see solids in the pan do not flush. The only constant here is a high mileage tranny should not be flushed under pressure at a dealership. At this point just what you want and see how it goes. Put money aside for a tranny rebuild and if nothing bad happens use the money for a vacation.

 

I personally haven’t looked in my pans, I just tell the dealer to flush and change filter every 50k...has served me well so far

 

I second this statement, I followed the directions to a "T" and did the pan removal and cleaning with a new filter and gasket. Then did the DIY flush as described and all is well now.

 

Shit really? What sources can you cite? I'm about 400 miles from hitting 100k. Just clicked this thread to see what you all were doing.

Edit: And I'm gonna hit that... in like 3 days. I might be able to sneak into the dealer sub 100k on monday before I'm gonna stick on another 1k on her.

 

When I hand mine done at the dealer my technician was informing me of it.( master Toyota tech whom I’ve know for 30 yrs. very good friend) so I asked my service writer and he confirmed. He’s actually printing me out the Toyota memo so I can have a copy. Once I get it I will post it on here.

 

That would be so amazing for me if you could. I just went back and edited my post. I have a short trip coming up, and Monday will literally be the only day I can get to the dealer before I blow past 100k.

 

I will go by Monday and pick up so I can post it.

 

Awesome thanks, I guess I'll hit up my dealer one way or another monday as well. Glad I clicked this thread. I've been sittin here for the last 1.5 days purposely putting on miles that don't need to be there just so I can watch the 100k tick by haha.

 

I rebuild transmissions for a living .
I flush transmissions every day following ATRA guidelines . Pan comes off before you flush ....period

The only difference between flushing at home and having your vehicle flushed by a machine at the dealership
.A little quicker as well as cleaner than doing the job on your back in the driveway 1 bucket at a time .
There are zero pressure differences between a home flush and a machine flush . When you flush , you use the pump from the transmission being serviced .There is " NO " high pressure flushing machine . Pressure is approx 15 psi at idle using the machine as well as laying on your back under the truck with a bucket of new trans fluid

The reason we remove the pan is to determine a contamination level before we flush .
Why do we do a contamination inspection before we flush ?
On the A750E series transmission , the transmission pan is not made of glass and we cant see whats laying in the bottom of the pan , whats accumulated on the magnets or what has accumulated in the transmission filter .
If you enjoy taking chances ....many shops do . Go ahead and skip the transmission pan drop and filter cleaning .
What risk are they taking by skipping the pan drop and going directly to a flush ?
The original transmission fluid has worked hard all its life keeping your transmission clean by depositing sediments , steel , brass , plastic , aluminum etc etc into the bottom of your pan . Some of the particles are collected on the magnets . Some are collected in the pan and some are collected inside the filter .
If you are considering a transmission service , chances are the useful life of your transmission fluid has depleted . The re-agents in the transmission fluid are old , depleted and no longer working as they should .
When you introduce new transmission fluid with a very very high detergent rating , the new transmission fluid can wash or lift the old deposits off the pan , magnets and transmission filter and allow the deposits to travel into the valve body .
When this happens , you get stuck valves and no shifting or slipping .

High mileage transmissions ? flush them every day . Pan comes off first to determine a contamination level .
If the contamination level on a high mileage transmission is low , Go ahead and flush .
The owner of the vehicle obviously kept up with transmission services

If the contamination level is very high and the transmission has never been serviced , it may just be a drain and fill of the pan for that high mileage transmission because deposits will accumulate in other areas of the transmission due to lack of transmission fluid changes .

Aisn Seiki transmissions work best when the fluid is super clean . Because the valve body is a solid block of aluminum , the valve bodies are extremely susceptible to wear .
When the valve body begins wearing out , the computer compensates for the wear and the driver doesnt think there are issues because the truck continues to shift fine .

Keep your fluid clean

 

What do you recommend for the fluid flush interval for a "regular" duty vehicle? How about a "heavy" duty vehicle?

I took a automatic transmission rebuild class at my local community college auto center, and the #1 thing I took away from that class it to never, and I mean never skip servicing a automatic transmission!!!! You really don't want to need a transmission rebuild if ever possible...lol

 

Toyota started by saying Lifetime fluid and didnt need to be replaced . Yah ok ?
Then Toyota said every 100k ....I dont think so
Then Toyota said every 60 K possibly but I doubt it
An affiliate company of Toyota .......Aisn Seiki who actually build our transmissions say 30K .
The above are only guidelines .

To be honest , its not a question i can answer because of the variables that come into play with your individual vehicles .
Is the truck in stop and go traffic every day ?
Is the truck constantly running in 4 low with very little cooling going through the rad ?
Is the truck used for towing ?
Is the truck from Florida running higher than average temperatures ?
Is the truck from Alaska where they see high condensation levels due to very cold to warm cycles on a frequents basis ?

Only you as owners of these trucks can properly determine your transmission fluid cycles .

 

Gearcruncher’s advice will be my guide in the future. It’s just a shame that so many of us may have excessively worn trannys because we listened to Toyota’s “expert” opinion that the fluid never needs changing. In fact my dealership still claims it is lifetime fluid and seems to know nothing about a change in recommendation by Toyota.

 

BMW went to "lifetime fluid" in their automatic transmissions too. Basically I took that as it will last the life of the AT, which when it fails after 100K miles, was the life of the transmission. Since it's way out of warranty, you'll need a replacement.

Have to think that a transmission that has "routine servicing" should last 4X or 5X+ the life of one that doesn't...

 

The reason manufacturers went to a so called " lifetime " fluid was to avoid environmental fees .
If the manufacturer says their transmission fluid is good for the life of the vehicle , they save millions of dollars .
Our trucks use World Standard ( WS ) transmission fluid starting in 2005 -2020 . WS is no better than any other semi synthetic blend. WS is not full synthetic therefore it breaks down rather quickly .

 

I did a DIY flush and fill (didn't drop pan - didn't know it was something to consider at the time) on my 2010 @ 105k Km. Getting ready to drop the pan and replace filter, then flush and fill in the next few months - waiting for warmer weather. Should be around 190k Km.

I've searched and couldn't find a thread on Tacoma World that detailed how to do the filter replacement, torque specs etc. This video gives you a general idea, but was wondering if anyone has seen a nice write up on this site that covers the filter replacement? Thanks

Video here:

https://youtu.be/Mj-vQeQJlmg