Transmission Fluid!

[Mat]

Im replacing my transmission fluid can anyone recommend where i can get the correct fluid from - as all i keep getting is go to lexus!!!!

not very helpful

much appreciated!!!!

mat

[cleverdick]

Im replacing my transmission fluid can anyone recommend where i can get the correct fluid from - as all i keep getting is go to lexus!!!!

not very helpful

much appreciated!!!!

mat

You could try your Toyota dealer, insist on genuine Toyota T-IV fluid ONLY and don't take no for an answer when they say they've never heard of it.

You need 10 litres.

[Mat]

mate do you know how much im looking at paying for it?

cheers mat

[cleverdick]

mate do you know how much im looking at paying for it?

cheers mat

I hope you're sitting down...

About 18 months ago 10 litres cost me £90.

Obviously this seems like a lot of money, but when you stop and think how important the trans fluid is and what it has to do, then it kind of puts it into perspective.

If it's too much money, I'd say leave it for now and wait until you can afford it, rather than put cheap stuff in and have to do it again soon or risk trashing the box.

Good luck...

[Mat]

haha

thats fanatstic!!!! haha oh well im so glad that this is a project car so i have all the time in the world to finish it but 90 oh well, as you say the job it has to do is crucial!!

thanks ever so much for your time!!]

mat

[GoldfingerLS]

A drain and re-fill of the trans sump will only require 2 litres. A complete flushout of the torqure converter via the coolant pipes will require 10 litres, but always be careful you dont let the trans run dry while doing a complete flush.

Many people have different views on what fluid to use. I personally stick to the Toyota type IV fluid, you cant even comapre it to dexron II, dexron III etc, the tolerences of this box are very fine.

Also £90 works out much cheaper than a new geabox :)

[Syd Lambton]

Im replacing my transmission fluid can anyone recommend where i can get the correct fluid from - as all i keep getting is go to lexus!!!!

not very helpful

much appreciated!!!!

mat

Hi Matt

Had mine changed at LEXUS Poole 24/11/05, total cost £68.81.

Regards Syd

[Alex JB]

Hi,

I looked into this and there is an aftermarket that is specified up to the same exacting level as the type 4.

Mobil ATF3309

I went over the specification documentation with a fine tooth comb and it looks good.

Only problem is it's as rare as rocking horse poo and not a whole lot cheaper unless you buy in serious bulk (like a 205 litre drum!)

Take a look... http://store.avlube.com/mobilatf3309.html

[Mat]

Thanks ever so much for all your help fellas!!! what im going to do is drain the old fluid out and see basically how much comes to see if i need 10lts or just the 2

thanks everso much for all your help

mat

[simontaylor]

I think you will find 2 litres in the tranny sump plus another 8 in and around the gearbox which probably will not drain out.

Also, some one mentioned a warning about NOT letting the box run dry. By draining it, you may create an air lock ...... or two.

[Mat]

so whats the best thing todo then? i was under the impression that it was ok to take the transmission box off? i understand what you are saying....

advice is always appreciated

mat

[simontaylor]

have a look through the tutorial on lexls.com

personally, I have not changed the transmission fluid.

[tdiplc]

Red Line is very good

[Mat]

thats a great website, i found it when i first bought the car. Thats where i decided to change the transmission fluid.

thanks for you help

regards mat

[GoldfingerLS]

By either draining the gearbox fluid from the sump or by dropping the gearbox box sump it will only drain 2 litres. In order to change the full 10 litres you need to follow the lexls tutorial. In that tutorial he drains out 2 litres at a time from the trans fluid pipes that connect to the radiator.

When i mentioned not to let the trans run dry, you have to start the engine to turn the pump in the torque converter which will expel the fluid. Therefore I think that is why the lexls tutorial only take out 2 litres and then tops it up from the top (dipstick) with 2 litres, and does this 5 times to change the full 10 litres. Hence you never take out the full 10 litres in one go. By only expelling 2 litres at a time from the radiator pipe there is always enough fluid in the transmission so it doesn’t run dry. When I changed all of mine I just took out 1.5 litres to be on the safe side.

By the time you get to the last 2 litre change you will see clean fluid coming out. After 9 litres the colour of the fluid coming out of the pipe changed from a dirty-ish red colour to the lovely clean red colour that comes out the bottle. Lexus only offer the 2 litre drain and fill service as far as i know. They don’t offer the full 10 litres change service.

Last thing, when you have done the change, the most reliable way to check the level from the dipstick is the hot reading after you have been driving around and the gearbox is at working temperature.

[simontaylor]

GoldfingerLS, when you changed your Transmission oil, how quickly did the oil flow out of the pipe which was disconnected from the radiator? 10 seconds per litre ???

Did you change the transmission sump oil first?

Also, did you notice any improvement in driving and changing gear afterwards?

Lastly, I was wondering about having 2 helpers. 1 on the key (for back up, just in case) and 1 topping up the fluid as I collect the expelled fluid. I can rig up a device that tops up the filler at a similair rate to the expelled oil from the radiator. I was thinking of a big funnel with a hose and also a clam to have some adjustment as we go along.

[lutonmatt]

when i change my box it was nearly bone dry as i had it out and the sump off so when i filled it up i put 4 liters in to start check it not running showed there was loads in there started up went down filled it up checked it in every gear as you should when you drain it all looked fine but went to run it off the lift and it did not move so thats were it stayed for the night as it was 10pm went to it the next moring lookedat the level and it was empty so put more in and it all worked and now checking it every day running in park and just top it up if needed

but it was a big air lock but a rest over night did the job(for me as well)

[GoldfingerLS]

Hi Simon,

I would say your guess is right. It did take approx 10 seconds to fill 1 litre. It doesn’t fill up super fast but you still have to act quickly and be co-ordinated when you do this. However beware that after you have switched the engine off, over the next 1.5 to 2 seconds, the engine is still slowing down to a stop and is hence still turning the mechanical pump in the torque converter. Therefore after you have switched the engine off another 200 or 250ml or so will continue to flow out of the pipe. After the first run I took this into account and just switched the engine off just as the level was approaching the 1.5 litre line.

Me and my dad did this together and having 2 people was enough. My dad was on the key and I was signalling to him to turn it off when I saw it was approaching the 1.5 litre mark. What I did was to attach an approx 2ft length of garden hose pipe to the radiator pipe so that I was able to put the pipe in a bottle just in front of the front bumper (instead of having to put my head under the car to see if it was full).

I didn’t change the sump oil first, but after doing this I regretted not doing this first. If I was to do this again I would definitely change the sump oil first. The reason is 2 fold:

1. There are two types of shavings which come into your transmission sump. Firstly there are metal shavings which are from the actual gears and cogs. These metal saving will attach to the 3 magnets inside the sump tray, so no problem here. However there will also be non-magnetic brass / carbon etc shaving as well (as a result of normal wear and tear). These non-magnetic particles will obviously not be picked up by the magnets and will settle at the bottom of your sump pan, semi-suspended in the fluid. By draining the sump first you end up draining these impurities.

2. When you fill the fluid from the dipstick filler pipe, I’m pretty sure that the fluid goes straight into the sump pan. But what I’m unsure about is if you get oil fluid mixing with new fluid in the sump IF it is the case that the fluid is being expelled directly from the torque converter and not the sump pan.

In terms of improvement, I didn’t notice much. At the time the car had only covered 52,000 miles and was 5 years old and the transmission was very smooth as it was. If anything, the gear changes went from being extremely smooth to unnoticeable. Even now under normal pickup the only way I can tell that the car is changing gear is if I look at the rev counter. Afterall, like any oil the trans fluid does start to break down over time, particularly the “slippiness” of the Type IV fluid.

I would recommend doing it 1.5 or 2 litres at a time, switch the engine off, refill and keep on repeating. I’m not 100% sure but I don’t think from my experience it will be possible to fill up fluid at the same rate at is it getting expelled. The reason being the filler pipe (i.e. where the dipstick goes) under the bonnet is very narrow and I can remember that it goes in much slower than it is expelled.

Garages that repair transmissions often have a special diaphragm machine that does it all in one go. When you disconnect the coolant pipes, fluid will come out the outlet pipe and the other pipe will be the inlet pipe taking fluid back to the transmission. As the fluid is being expelled from the outlet pipe, the diaphragm machine pushes/forces fluid back through the inlet pipe at the same rate.

If you can rig up a clever device that can do something similar, would be most interested to hear about it for future use.

Lastly, just as a FYI, I’ve changed transmission fluid on my previous Honda which took Dexron II. If you got Dexron II on your hands it would wash off easily with fairy liquid and a bit of scrubbing. With the Toyota Type IV fluid, if you get it on your hands it won’t wash off easily. Even if you wash your hands with fairy liquid it does comes off but it still leaves a slimy/slippy feeling on your hands. This is what I meant about the fluid being very “slippy” compared to other trans fluids. It’s good stuff.

[Mat]

Wow so much info

everyone who tributed to this topic a big thank you!!!

mat

[Mike Floutier]

Hi all,

This is a very interesting thread!

I just bought an LS430 with 145,000 miles on the clock and I'm wondering about the ATF. I intend to get it to over 500,000 miles over the next few years and although there is no suggestion that the fluid should be changed regularly, I can't help feeling that, with the mileage I intend doing, it could be a good idea.

The fluid certainly isn't red anymore but, on the other hand, it doesn't smell burnt and there are no issues with regard to gear-changing.

What do folk advise me to do?

Thanks

Mike

[Mike Floutier]

Also, I noticed that the level is about 1/2" above the max so I'm going to have to do something so if it's easy enough to change the fluid maybe I should??

Mike

[Rob00158]

Hi all - FYI:

Purchased 5lt of the Toyota Transmission fluid T-IV today at a cost of £43.70 from a Lexus main dealer.

When checking your transmission fluid, I think the general rule is to do so when the gearbox oil is hot, with the engine running and the transmission in park. I could be wrong but this seems to be the general rule for most automatics.

[Matrixabc]

Does any one know the make of the gear box?

on my Audi A8 it turned out it was a ZF gear box and it was used in BMW , Renault, etc and the "audi oil" was a re branded shell product which you could buy for 50p per litre as apposed the the £11.00 a litre Audi wanted.