are tranny fluid flushes a meme? I've heard people say that

>>17419333
If it's a beat to shit transmission that's on it's last leg anyway, don't flush it, the gunky juice is probably the only thing holding it goether.

but if it's a well kept transmission and you plan to keep it that way, you should probably at least do a bi-annual flush/pan drop/filter change

>>17419343

how do I know if the transmission on an old vehicle its on its last legs?

>truck that was used for occasional towing
>shifts v. smooth, no hiccups
>tranny fluid smells clean (although it was treated with fluid conditioner by the guy who sold it to me)

and sadly no maintenance records

Flush it. If a fluid flush ruins it, it was dead to begin with, and was not "working fine".

Your service interval may vary. Even if your manufacturer claims that the fluid is good for the life of the part, fuck them they are trying to meme you. Do it AT LEAST every 100k miles, even if you hate your car.

I suggest 75k

I'm scared of ever doing something like that with my 4L60e with 175k.
I'll just follow the owner's manual maintenance schedule for "severe" service and change the filter and fluid every 50k. Maybe a simple drain and refill every 25k, but that is probably getting excessive.

>>17419375
you can just drain few litres/pan and mix it with a new one, many zf transmission maintenance were like that though drop the pan and fill it no need drain whole trans fluid..

>>17419343
>bi-annual flush

Way too much...just follow what is in the owner's manual for your specific model.

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>>17419333
I've got a camry with 170k and I don't believe the fluid has ever been changed. The trans fluid is completely black, but the trans doesn't slip or otherwise act strange.
Flush, drain and fill, or leave it be?

>>17419375

The problem is you really can't. The issue >>17419343 brings up is that your transmission operates within certain degrees of tolerance between certain parts. Over time, those parts wear and the tolerance becomes greater until eventually its so out of spec it doesn't even work. However, if you treat your transmission like shit and don't change the fluid, then the fluid itself becomes 'thicker' from all the shit it has collected over the years. A lot of times, this increase is just enough to keep the transmission running and to fill those expanded tolerances.

So, in that regard, without records, it is a total crap shoot. You would have to take apart the transmission and examine its internals to be 100% sure, but at that point you may as well do a rebuild.

>>17419564
You can check the transmission fluid and see how dark it is, if its still pretty pink then a flush should be fine, if its dark then it would probably make it slip.

>>17419519
>black
drain and fill immediately, but camry trannies are quite resistant to dmamge
>first thing that goes out is usually reverse
I shill valvoline maxlife, shit is SO cash

>>17419815
Thanks

>>17419333
My automatic 97 accord was shifting kinda rough for a year. Flushed the transmission fluid and it was perfect

>>17419333
Flush it, even if the manufacturer says its a lifetime fluid, more often than not, they are limiting the engine a bit more to get lifetime out of the factory fluid and not have to pay for tranny flushes when the car is under warranty

But once the car is past that, they dont care if it brakes since now you are the one paying it up for the tranny, so who cares if it brakes because of bad fluids, right?
Flush it, OP, keep your car healthy now that you have to take care for it
Also if you plan to push more power though your auto tranny than the factory output, flush it every year or two just in case

Always go with the manufacturer suggested maintenance schedule.

Honda seems to recommend 90k miles or 6 years across the board for transmission fluid.

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When I was driving pic related, the transmissions were known weak spots, I had mine flushed every year because I put a lot of miles on it (still miss that car)

My 2005 VW Passat had a "sealed" transmission. It was fine early on but by the time I hit 224,000 miles the damn thing was a slushbox.