I do a drain and fill on the pan. Then disconnect cooler line, start engine, capture two liters of old fluid that is being pumped out by the transmission. Stop engine, refill with two liters. Repeat, till fluid runs clean. Reconnect cooler line. Check level. Add if needed. Now you have completed a full fluid flush, without endangering the transmission. You are welcome.

If you want your trans to last 200K +, get the trans serviced, not flushed. I learned this from experience !

as a mechanic I agree entirely with your recs. In fact that is what I generally do. If the transmission has never been serviced and has high miles say over 150 K I do it every other or every third oil change with 5000 miles as my normal oil change interval. When it becomes red which usually takes 4-5 changes I ease back to about every 4th or 5th oil change.

This is great. You did an excellent job laying this issue to rest. Thank you. I'm a changer (fluid AND filter). I avoid the flushes.

Your recommendation is exactly what I do and I change the fluid out every 30,000 miles. It’s an older Honda Ridgeline 2010. I also installed an in-line filter going to the transmission to help keep the dirt out of the transmission and the fluid clean. So far I’ve never had a transmission fail, and I have been driving for 50 plus years. I still do all my own service work being a mechanic I am.

Thank you this clears up a lot of uncertainty I've got two vehicles over 100,000 miles and I was concerned if a fluid change would make it worse but it doesn't seem like it so I'll give it a shot

Very well said. Just change it regularly and it always remain clean.

It is a whole different ball-game today... I have been in the business for almost 50 years now!!!

How I did my fluid change last time (on two cars) was to pull a line from the trans cooler, face the hose down towards a bucket, pull the dipstick (make sure I have a case if trans fluid), get a funnel in the dipstick tube, start the car and fill through the dipstick tube as its dumping the old fluid in the bucket. Keep going until the fluid looks clean, shut off the car, reconnect the hose to the cooler, start the car check the level, done. It took at least 5 but less than 10qts to do it. That was a few years and many miles ago. Car runs like a champ. The old fluid was black. Its risky this way, but if prepare everything beforehand, its pretty easy.

You r 100 percent correct. I did repeated drains and fills on 330000 km lexus es330 4 times with 1000 km in between, and it went great

%100 Agree. I did that with my 2005 Jaguar XJ8 and after 367,000. care free miles she was traded.

Awesome video! I have a F250 super duty and opted for the filter change and refill, which changes about half of the trans fluid and fresh filter. I get to inspect and clean the pan and magnet so I can see what is happening in the trans. A little messy but I have had good luck with this. I can do everything myself so the cost is not as big of a deal.

My F150 has 260,000 miles - same engine and trans. Regular oil changes, and drain, filter and fills in the trans every few years. Last time I did a disconnected cooler line and 'flushed' the fluid and refilled as necessary. Thanks

This advice is spot on! ☝👍

My Mother when I was a kid had her transmission flushed with less than 60k on the car , and short there after the transmission started having issues , before that the transmission worked perfectly.. Later I went to college and became a Heavy duty tech , I personally would never flush a transmission , do a service , change the filter and oil every 60K and you should be nearly trouble free under normal driving conditions , 40/50K if under more extreme conditions like trailer hailing or lots of city only driving in hot environments ... JMO an experience .

You are right that keeping the oil fresh in the first place eliminates all the issues associated with a massive oil change later in the transmission's life. I do what you recommend, changing the oil at a similar mileage interval to that which you recommend, but I take it one step further. When it's time to change the oil, I drain and refill a few times in a row over the course of a few days of normal driving (driving a fair bit in-between changes is necessary to re-mix the oil, which is necessary for this method to work). I do it at least four times, but usually five, and sometimes even six. On the vehicles I've had, only 1/3 of the oil can be drained at one time. That means that with just one drain-and-refill cycle, 2/3 of the old oil remains, but the proportion of truly "old" oil that remains gets diluted down to a lesser value with each additional change. If you drain and refill 1/3 of the oil five times in a row over the course of at least that many days of normal driving, the proportion of old oil remaining is only 0.13. If you do this six times in succession instead of five, the proportion of old oil remaining is only 0.09. A lot of oil is wasted with this method and so the cost is pretty high, but with shop prices being what they are, it's still more economical than paying for a flush, and the results are comparable, in terms of how much old oil actually remains when the process is done (ask your shop for the real details and you will see that the flushing process is far short of 100-percent complete). The thoroughness of the oil-change process with this method is so good that I feel comfortable stretching my oil-change interval to 40,000 miles. The oil still looks like new when after another 40,000 miles has gone by and "it's time" for another change. If it sounds like a lot of work to do a few changes in a row, here's a time-saving tip that makes the job go really fast. Get two identical one-gallon jugs (one of the jugs is for measuring new oil so it must be spotlessly clean). Take the drained oil from your collection pan and pour it into one of those jugs. Now put the two jugs side by side and fill the other jug the identical amount with new oil (for jugs made of colored plastic, it helps to have a bright light to shine through and reveal the oil level more clearly). Now you have made sure that the volume of oil you will add is exactly the same as the volume that was drained, so there's no need for the usual trial and error when re-filling. In this way, your actual hands-on labor time for the entire drain-and-refill process is only about 5 minutes (I usually leave the transmission draining overnight or even much longer since it will keep dripping forever and the longer it drips, the larger the amount that gets drained, but that isn't part of your work time). If you drain more than a gallon of oil from your transmission, use the jug-comparison method to exactly measure how much oil is needed beyond that first gallon. This method requires that you have a drain plug, which is why I install my own drain plug on any transmission that doesn't already have one. For a transmission with a steel pan, I cut a pipe coupling in half and braze it to the bottom of the pan (first remove the layer of galvanizing from the location where the drain plug will go, and then paint that area when you are done so it doesn't rust). The actual plug is just a standard pipe plug. By the way, the guys who get more complete changes by disconnecting a cooling line and adding additional oil "on the fly" to keep from accidentally running too low while the transmission parts are spinning have got the right idea, but I prefer my method because the amount of labor and effort is virtually zero. I edited this post regarding the results of the math, since the math wasn't quite as straightforward as I had first thought.

If you wanna do a drain and fill occasionally and your car has an ATF dipstick. 1. Go buy a cheap fluid transfer pump from harbor freight ($7) 2. Suck it out through the dipstick into an empty oil bottle (measure every drop and compensate for the fluid in the transfer hose not much) 3. Refill EXACTLY what you took out Easiest and cheapest way for a smooth transmission and maintenance. Also only use OEM fluid (definitely for honda) but never cheap out on one of the most expensive parts of your car

As a mechanic I agree. I recommend a drain and fill and filter change if applicable. Also, I know with most cars today checking the fluid is sometimes nearly impossible. Jeep Cherokee hardest. But checking it and topping it off is very important. If just topping the trans off, you can use a Univeral fluid as long it recommended for your trans. When you are changing the fluid, I recommend buying the fluid from the dealer or getting a very good brand, example Idemitsu, liqui moly, pentosin, zF, motul, Valvoline, Castrol, Enso. Make sure you get the correct type for your vehicle. That is very important.

Cool. I do a single ATF drain and fill every 30k miles.I also do rear diff and TC every 30k as well. My 2006 Matrix 4WD has over 221,000 miles and shifts great.

A home flush uses no pressure or detergents but it does change more than 90% of the fluid. I've done this for decades. The same method can be done on the power steering system also.

On KZfaq it has been shown to remove hoses from transmission cooler . One end into new fluid that is suctioned up to flush out the old from the other , obviously vehicle running being normal pressure . To replace all fluid at one time , not the " drain and fill " , how many times . And not the flush machine that has too much pressure

I change the fluid and filter every two years in my van and pickup regardless of mileage. It usually works out to 25-35k miles. In the pickup I adjust the bands and replace the check valve at the same time. I've only needed to replace a transmission once and that was in a 1996 Dodge pickup with 186,000 miles. Dodge transmissions were notorious for failing in those trucks.

I just do a fluid change with a filter change. 163,000 miles on my transmission without any problems. I get my transmission serviced every 30,000 miles or 4yrs.

I just do a transmission fluid drain, replace the transmission filter, clean the inside of the transmission pan, install a new pan gasket, torque the bolts to the appropriate specs and refill the transmission with the appropriate amount and type of fluid bought at the actual dealership. I do this every 50k-60k miles and typically this allows the transmission to last 300k-400k miles without any issues. I would NEVER have a transmission "flushed" for the exact reasons you mentioned. It's just not worth the risk. If you can't change the fluid yourself just ask a shop to change it and specify you do NOT want it flushed.

You are right. I have always done it this way with no problems. Same with brake fliuld change what is in the reservoir once a year and have no problems.

I wish my 2020 Toyota Corolla XSE was as easy to change Transmission fluid as it is to change oil. Good points and advice

Thankyou so much ... I was actually going to get my transmission done by service i think i will do it myself instead

If you can do a non flush fluid change every other year, that will do much for that transmission then you can flush it out at around 90 to 100,000 mi and the transmission will be just fine. Also use a pint of lube guard that product will do a lot for keeping a transmission clean and functioning for well beyond a normal service life. I've used lube guard for many years in my Oldsmobile Alero with a 4T 60 automatic transmission and it's still going strong with 337,000 mi on it.

liked and subscribed, very sensible advise, (BMW owner here)

The term transmission flush machine or services is no longer accurate. Its been over 20 years since the industry shifted away from high pressure, chemical back flush services. Today these machines or service are referred to fluid exchange service. They merely capture the normally flowing fluid through the cooler, and return the same amount of clean fluid. Sometimes they may back flush the cooler, but that is all. For a 9qt transmission, it will take about 11 qts to fully exchange the fluid. I bought a 2012 Chevy with 90k, they did not do a service at 45k. It was black and burnt, oul analysis showed high wear metals and insolubles, and start to have some driveability issues. I did a complete fluid exchange. All issues stopped, did another exchange at 140k. At 190k miles still running great. I agree with a 30k spill and fill. If the filter and sump( no pan) is unserviceable, I recommend full exchanges or an external inline filter with magnets built in and magnetic fill plugs. If the transmission is already slipping, as the first commentor reported, than a full exchange is not recommended, instead 2-3 drain/fills with with a few thousand miles in between. Recently subscribed, good videos.

If you do mostly city driving in traffic service it at 25-30k mostly freeway 50k (assuming you are not driving in traffic).

I just did a hybrid fluid change yesterday on an Escape. No cooler lines or torque converter exist so I expect most of the fluid comes out. Vehicle gets a lot of mileage so I should be getting at it more often.

I perform a fluid change yearly on my 2012 Ford Escape. Four quarts drain out and I refill it. It has 118,000 miles and will probably last me as long as I want to keep it. BTW the owners manual says the filter can only be accessed by disassembling the transmission.

thank you I was about to go get my transmission flushed on my mustang orange fury I would of been pissed 😂😂 thank you 💯

Yup so true , I have a Subaru CVT and I do them every 45k just a drail and refill no flush just a d&refill and no problems so far. If I do this every 45k so the old and new mix good and keeps it moving good. Plus I use Amsoil CVT so it good fluid.

On my 06 Odyssey minivan 3.3 quarts will come out. Just put the new oil down the tranny dip stick tube. The tube is small. A Dollar General turkey baster is a good funnel. Do with each engine oil change until discarded oil is clean.

Best way is a "forward fluid exchange". Run the cooler return line to a bucket with a hose. Rig up a secure funnel into the trans fill hole. Drain the pan and refill the same amount from the funnel. Start the car, start dumping in new fluid, click through the gears 3 seconds each, go until it shifts instantly from brown to red. Turn off the key immediately. Done. Hardest part is getting the car up high enough to drain the pan, while keeping it level for the refill and rigging up a stable and strong funnel system that won't cause a panic during the procedure.

I noticed that when I change my oil, seems as if a good percentage of oil stays in the engine. Am on my 3rd 50 mile oil change/flush and its still coming out very dark

Very good video. This is the way I do it what do you think? I have a Hyundai Santa Fe 2017. My transmission holds 7.5 qts. of tranny fluid. When I drain the pan I remove about 3.5qts of fluid. Less than 1/2 the fluid. Make sure you purchase the correct fluid for your vehicle. I drain the fluid from the pan and refill it to the correct level. I now run the engine and shift threw he fears P-R-N-D forward and back for about 7 seconds in each position. After 50 seconds shut off the engine. The new fluid you put in should be in the tranny and torque converter and the old fluid in the pan. I drain the pan again a second time to remove the old fluid. Now refill to the correct level. Your done and I replaced over 90% of my fluid. I purchase 8 qts of tranny fluid for about $90. My tranny has new fluid in it and should last a lot longer. Recommend doing this between 30-40k miles. I hope this helps you out there.

Just did the fluid replacement on my 2010 Ford Escape per the manual. Recommended at 103k miles. Did mine at 136k. Easy. 1 drain plug. No filter replacement. Drain, fill, drive. Drain, fill, drive. Drain, final fill. Only half the fluid drains, ~4.5 quarts. Took 14 quarts to complete. Leaves you with ~89٪ new fluid in there. 🤠

Hello young man I own a 2007 tundra 5.7 liter, very bad mpg but I love my truck. I need my truck for towing my 22 ft fishing boat every summer. It has 189500 miles on it. She runs perfect, the whole power train. I have been doing the drained and refilled for years. I think I probably over doing it because I perform that task every year just before towing season. Enjoy your video, very educational. Thank you, by the way this is John Chan the fisherman

What do you think about change a Non-OEM transmission fluid? Is mixing Old OEM transmission with new Non OEM transmission good? Or could it cause any harm?

My 2016 Land Rover discovery D4 has just hit 25,500 miles. I had a transmission fluid change recently. I also had both front and rear axle and transfer case oil change, over the top ? who me ??

I HAVE A PROBLEM. After changing my fluid and filter I found part of a ring that broke. I’m thinking the rest is still in place. So I go to a transmission shop and was told there’s no way to just replace that ring and that I need a full rebuild. Is this true? And would it be better to get a used trans? ‘99 Dakota 5.2L. Thanks

My favorite transmission fact is the Ford power shift gearbox. When mine stopped working I was really confused, because there was no dipstick to check the fluid. Then I looked it up and they said it was a lifetime sealed transmission. This is technically true considering the transmission never got to a mileage where you would flush it before it stopped working. Thanks ford.

Can i ask a question? Normaly maybe 30k miles will be achieved by 2 or 3 years for someone who use a car regularly to work or other daily activity But if you have a car that not being used regularly, maybe it only achieved 5 or 6k miles a year. Is it okay to change automatic transmission fluid once in 5 - 6 years? Or maybe there a certain maximum time interval that you should change that fluid beside from the car mileage like engine oil (which i know is 12 month that should be changed even the car is not reached certain mileage like 3 - 4 miles a year)

This is my current quandary. Bought a 2010 Volvo V70 (FWD) w/187k miles on it and don't know any history on the transmission maintenance. The car had very good maintenance since new and only at the Volvo dealer. It seems to shift fine but I have noticed that it sometimes seems to downshift slowly when coming to a stop. After stopping one or two seconds it "bumps" like maybe it finally got into the lowest gear to start again. My first inclination is it might be low on fluid but I'm too old to check myself anymore. With the high mileage I'm leaning towards just living with it until it gets worse and then rebuilding it but still curious if a fluid change would kill the trans or not.

Hi guys my vw jetta has coolant mixed with transmission DSG oil and vice versa. please suggest me 1. Reason for mixing coolant and transmission fluid ? 2. How to drain water/ coolant entirely from transmission system before adding new transmission oil . 3. Shall I change Transmission oil cooler along with ?

I bought a used Chevy avalanche 2005 and there was nothing wrong with the transmission but I went to a mechanic after buying it telling them to check what it might need and do an oil change and they recommended a flush. I did not understand why they recommended that but I thought they were the mechanics and they know better so I had it done. Short time afterwards my transmission blown. What recourse against an experienced mechanic shop do I have in suing them for the cost of a whole new transmission I had to buy? Thank you

How in the heck do you perform a change on a Saturn Aura 4cyl. & How many quarts does it even hold when Cold ?? Got me stumped !! 🤔

Just bought a 2014 Passat with little under 82k miles not sure if the fluid has ever been changed but based off research (google) I was recommended to do it ever 40-60k miles would changing the fluid be a good idea here?

I have a 2020 honda civic turbo 80000 miles never changed or flushed which should I do

How much of the fluid will be replaced in a manual transmission fluid change?

I agree!!

thanks

I replaced filter and fluid on my 2014 Corolla cvt. Running like a champ

I did a fluid flush at the Toyota dealership for my Scion XB at about 140k miles. It shifts great. I’ve been told Toyota transmissions aren’t as crappy as GM or Ford transmissions that will fail if a flush is done after 100k miles.

I do a "fluid exchange" on my Hyundai Sonata every 10,000 miles since I bought her new in 2009 I just did it again at 110,000 miles. It shifts like the day I bought it. I do this by sucking out as much fluid as I can through the dipstick tube using a simple $10 pump from Harbor Freight. About a gallon comes out and I use a bucket to capture the old fluid. The I replace it with the new fluid and use the empty container for the old fluid and to be recycled or disposed of properly. Sometimes I will repeat this after only 500 miles if I feel the fluid is not as clean as I would like. It looks so clean on the dipstick I sometimes need a flashlight. It always smells like it just came out of the bottle. The fluid in the bucket does tend to look dirty, mostly probable clutch wear but does not smell bad or burnt. When I finally have to retire her I do not know what I am going to do. Most cars are now made with SEALED transmissions. I am sure there is a way I can still service it and will make sure before I choose my next vehicle that I can indeed do it on the make and model. Unfortunately you can NOT get all the fluid out because it is in the torque converter but like the man said, since you are servicing it so often it still will be much cleaner than if you didn't change it at all. In my case I do it every 10k miles instead of 30k as he recommended. I use Valvoline MaxLife Multi-Vehicle transmission fluid which is only about $25 at wall-mart. Even at every 10k miles that is a far cry from a new transmission you will get raped on at a repair shop and lucky if they even fix it correctly. If you drive like I do then the transmission will should last the life of the car. Bought new on June 1, 2009 my Hyundai Sonata has only had an AC compressor last year and it actually was only the field coil in the clutch. It took me only a little over an hour to replace the compressor, vacuum the system and recharge it.

2018 F150 with the 2.7 has no drain plug. Have to drop the pan from what I understand.

I have gone back and forth on this. My vehicle has 230,000 miles, likely never had transmission changed. I talked to the dealership and they said NO, NEVER change it if it hasn't been changed regularly. I clarified even change vs flush and they said DO NOT even change it, top it off and leave it for the life of the vehicle unless you're prepared to buy a new transmission. And if that's possible, then just buy a new transmission and wait for the current one to fail and hope you're not far from home

95 Bronco, pull my fishing boat, and 4wheeler/ trailer. Do a fluid/filter change every spring. 215k ,trans works like new.

As a professional mechanic, i agree with most of you said, but...all the transmission flush machines i have used use the transmissions own pressure, and DO NOT introduce their own higher pressure. Good video tho!

I have a 07 scion tc with 182xxx miles on it, im planing to drain and refill my trans due to the color is dark, this will be my 2nd time drain and refill my trans which i did back in around 70k-80k miles. my concern is if i should change the filter also or just leave it, i seen some forms that "you dont have to change the filter unless your trans are slipping or rebuild. So im kinda stuck if i should replace the filter or not. But trans just runs fine and no slippage. Pls help 🤙

What about changing a transmission filter? How often do you recommend to replace it?

I want to do my 2011 Honda Ridgeline it was done once before do you recommend changing it I am the new owner thank you

Drain / Fill each year. Never put less than 200K on a car and no transmission problems.

What do I do when I bought a used car, do I need to change the transmission oil or do I get it flushed when I don’t know about what the last owner did?

I have a 2018 Challenger SXT, and the transmission drain plug is stuck. I'm trying to do a drain and fill on my car but when I put the 10mm hex bit into the drain fill hole, the drain plug deforms plastically and never lets me unscrew it. The fill plug came off just fine. I think I can replace the drain fill plug but I can't even get it out. Any bright ideas here?

You seem to be talking about regular transmissions. What about CVTs? I’ve heard flushing those is a big mistake.

I’ve had transmission that didn’t shift properly and had transmission flushed with new fluid went back working perfectly if fluid not red needs new

Many people forget there’s a transmission filter especially on Honda 5 speed autos

How about a cvt?

Just drain and refill every 30,000 miles and you're golden.

The best practice is to do a trans service every 30k miles. You will drain approx. 1/3 to 1/2 of the fluid the first drain, then drive 500-1000 miles, do a second drain, then repeat a 3rd time. By then you will have about 85% newer fluid in, then drive it 30k, then repeat. Somewhere in there replace the filter by say 90k as well. Of course if you are buying a used vehicle with 60-90k on it to begin with, and have no service records, assume the fluid was NOT changed and do it asap before the fluid gets too dirty & causes issues past 100k. Once the trans starts having issues, doing the fluid drains/fills most likely won't fix those issues, sadly.

Yep, spill and fill every 30k to 40k is what I do.. And don't overfill when putting back in the new stuff.

I have an 04 Taurus that has been great. I’m a woman. I want to change the fluid because it’s starting to slip. How do I do this. What do I need?

I bought a 2010 Expedition at 92,000. I had the dealer do a flush. The flush destroyed the rubber plug where the wires go in. I had to take the pan off to replace it. DO Not do a flush on a Ford 6 speed auto.

Never flush drain and fill using a full synthetic compatible fluid Toyotas have magnets in them that need to be cleaned off and filter replaced flush is ok but you still need to change filter and clean magnets

On CVT even earlier

I just dump the sump, 3.7 quarts at 15,000 mile intervals. She’s happy

First thing first it’s always better to change your oils on time on a regular basis. Cheaper and lasts longer

If car industry says you don’t need to service your transmission, it’s because they measure a car’s life around 160k miles. Adding trans service would increase costs during this time making it more expensive to buy. If your transmission breaks down after 160k, it would cost so much you would prefer buying a new car. That’s what you have to understand under “lifetime lube” and sealed transmission. If you want your car to live further, do drain your transmission every 30k miles.

Sure takes a lot longer than changing the oil when you have a '03 Honda Odyssey! Because you have to disassemble and take a lot off and out of the way so you can do it. Then you have to put it all back on.

I always just do a fluid dran and fill. And do it every 50,000 with full synthetic

Change the filter and drain and refill the fluid 300 miles. Change the fluid 3 times.

Pan drop, fluid and filter change every 40k. Lower that to 25k if towing a lot.

what does slipping feel like?

Change at 30,000 miles 3 times. That is drain and replace 3+ quarts, run the car change again, and again.

Isn't it as least as important to change the filter ?

Coolant 2008 rogue

I do my own transmission fluid change on my 2015 Impala. I drain it, then fill it (measure what you take out, and put that amount back in). Then in a day or two, do the same thing again, because the first time doesn't get the fluid out of the torque converter. after the fluid has all mixed for a couple days, draining the second time and refilling will make the fluid a nice bright red and pretty clean. Whatever you do, don't believe that bologna about changing it at a100,000 or whatever. That is way too long to wait. It's just a sales gimmick that the manufacturer uses to make people think the car needs very little maintenance. Same thing with the oil changes. Since our government wants to stick their nose into everything we do, why don't they go after the manufacturers for putting out that false information!!!

Or you can do a fluid change . Drive 500 miles ... Do a fluid change... Drive another 500 miles ... Do a final fluid change.... This will pretty much ensure good clean fluid... Then leave things alone for 50 000 miles and repeat as above...

When the car industry used the term “lifetime fluid” for their transmissions they were really saying that so they wouldn’t have to anything until AFTER the warranty period ends.

Fluid is change is fine! Just do it on time and not let it get so nasty.

1:40 is when you start to repeat some bad info. Dirty fluid is not what keeping an old transmission from slipping. Before you say I'm wrong. Have YOU ever rebuilt a transmission before? I have and I have video to prove this. Changing just your fluid every 30k miles will not help the transmission last longer. If you did this for 120k miles. You still have a filter with 120k miles of dirt in it. New fluid will not pass through it any better.

I think most of it is the cost. Dealerships want $500 to do the flush.

Why even risk a flush, plus it's just a rip-off anyways. I just drain my car's transmission fluid, refill, drive it for an hour, and then drain and fill again. I do that every two years or so.

I changed every 8-10k.

Do you do an “engine oil flush?”….no you don’t so why do it to your transmission??….just another way for dealers to scam customers.

Nobody flushes anymore.