Transmission fluid change

Yup, even a short subscription to the Whatever the toyota system is called is a pain in the ass. When you try to download pdfs forprocedures, everthing is hotlinked to everything else.

Naive little me thought I could get a 2 day subscription and download everything for my 2006 Sienna. I was barely able to set enough time aside to find and download information on brake replacement and a couple other things.

 

Honestly, paying to have it done is the best option but.. no one to pay. The dealership has proven not great, so far.

 

Time to find an independent Toyota mechanic, word of mouth who is good in your area..
I agree, after looking under the bottom of the 4runner, I can see dealerships that worked on it sucked. missing bolts, incorrect bolts, broken plastic locking tabs.. Not right. but, how many people inspect before and after with the service guy, under the car. Shouldnt have to..

 

Changed my transmission fluid yesterday.

Cold drain and fill.

I got 3.5 quarts out and put 3.5 quarts back in.

No hot-wiring of the OBD2 port or going back and forth with the shifter like you're entering a Nintendo code.

I'll let you know when my transmission blows up in a couple hundred miles.

I like to live dangerously

 

If you did it within a decent time for fluid to change allot of temperature, you will be fine. I guess we need to find out how much fluid expands when hot vs cold.

 

According to the owner manual the power steering fluid is actually transmission fluid (Automatic transmission fluid DEXRON® II or III). And if you look at your power steering fluid reservoir you can see how much the fluid can expand by the hot-cold markings, for about 1.1 quarts capacity.

 

I agree.

 

I really think some people are nuking this... It really isnt that difficult.

Ive done mine 3 times (I do mine every 15k) and a buddy's once (he was at 70k and has never had it done!) so far. Drain it, fill it, let it idle for about 10-15 minutes while you check and fill all the other fluids, tires, wash the windows, eat a sammich and have a frosty one. Then pull the "check" plug. If it starts puking out, let it run until its a slow and thin stream. If nothing comes out, kill the engine, put in another 1/4 quart and recheck at idle. If you are hesitant to be under the car while its running, put the E-brake on and chock the wheels. I was brave enough to let my wife sit in driver's seat

I promise, it wont blow up in your face. If you can change your own oil, you can do this. I/WE have faith in you.

 

Here's my Blackstone analysis after a 75,000 mile transmission fluid change.

 

Thnx for posting. Its as if you havent even driven it according to the data.

 

Thanks for this post! When do you plan to do a change after seeing this info?

 

Probably somewhere around 150,000 miles.

 

So a 75k change schedule? Good stuff. This whole debate of some people on the other forum saying never to change it to some people saying every 30k, made things tough to figure. Your post seems the most fact based. Love it. Thank you.

 

I'm glad you found it helpful. I always thought 30,000 intervals was pretty ridiculous unless you tow on the regular or beat the living shit out of it.

I also didn't trust it being a "lifetime" oil after learning a little more about Toyota WS fluid.

After some consideration, 75,000 just seemed like a good fit for my normal driving habits.

Looks like I got pretty close with a good change interval based off what Blackstone said.

 

Yeah 30k intervals for a non performance suv seemed insane to me. Some of these guys are well over 100k without a change and see no reason to swap it. I don't believe anything is "lifetime" but some seem to think it equates to a couple hundred thousand mile lifetime, minimum. Even that is pretty comforting. I wish service centers were more reliable. At least now I know I have some time to figure out a good place to get it done.