Change transmission fluid and filter on newly acquired vehicle?

I just got my wagon and was wondering if it makes sense to replace the trans fluid and filter?

I have no maintenance records for the car.

Going to do oil, oil filter and possibly plugs too. 67k miles on it.

The short answer is a resounding YES! Always change ALL of the fluids on a newly acquired vehicle. It kinda resets the clock on the maintenance.

Curiousnapper wrote:

I just got my wagon and was wondering if it makes sense to replace the trans fluid and filter?

I have no maintenance records for the car.

Going to do oil, oil filter and possibly plugs too. 67k miles on it.

didn't you just ask the same question about a 50,000 mile car?

I spent way too much time answering this question. Yes... but only when you have time/money to properly followup.

http://www.impalassforum.com/vBulletin/showthread.php?t=252894

phantom 309 wrote:

Curiousnapper wrote:

I just got my wagon and was wondering if it makes sense to replace the trans fluid and filter?

I have no maintenance records for the car.

Going to do oil, oil filter and possibly plugs too. 67k miles on it.

didn't you just ask the same question about a 50,000 mile car?

I wan't sure how many miles it had when I typed that. Sorry.

Curiousnapper wrote:

phantom 309 wrote:

Curiousnapper wrote:

I just got my wagon and was wondering if it makes sense to replace the trans fluid and filter?

I have no maintenance records for the car.

Going to do oil, oil filter and possibly plugs too. 67k miles on it.

didn't you just ask the same question about a 50,000 mile car?

I wan't sure how many likes it had when I typed that. Sorry.

Likes? this ain't face book,..

are you the facebook wagon guy with another forum name? u lysee whatever?


Nick
Troll catcher

phantom 309 wrote:

Curiousnapper wrote:

phantom 309 wrote:

Curiousnapper wrote:

I just got my wagon and was wondering if it makes sense to replace the trans fluid and filter?

I have no maintenance records for the car.

Going to do oil, oil filter and possibly plugs too. 67k miles on it.

didn't you just ask the same question about a 50,000 mile car?

I wan't sure how many likes it had when I typed that. Sorry.

Likes?  this ain't face book,..

are you the facebook wagon guy with another forum name? u lysee whatever?


Nick
Troll catcher

Don't use facebook sorry, the young kids in the family do though.

Joel, I looked at the info at the link you cited.
 Why not make a sticky out of it for this site as well. 

 Nick, what bait do you use for troll catching?  Artificial lures or "old crank" bait?
 Sorry to hear we'll miss you this weekend. 

 Dave

lakeffect wrote:

Joel, I looked at the info at the link you cited.
 Why not make a sticky out of it for this site as well. 
 Dave

I would rather not maintain it in two places, but if somebody wants to copy/past it with attribution, that would be fine.

I did the trans flush on my new to me 96 RMW with 70K for mileage ran in about 20 quarts by the time she cleaned up and added a new filter.
3,000 miles later the service engine soon light comes on, had it scanned and it was DTC p1870.
$400 bucks later after some valve body work she's back on the road.

Your experience may differ!

Just found this post. P1870 is a common problem on the '96-up 4L60Es due to valvebody wear in the TCC regulator valve. The correct fix is to use the Sonnax valve and reamer kit. The reamer is around $150 or so. Run from any shop that tells you can they easily fix that valve cheap. They will lock it in the full open position which will hurt your converter in the long run.

I just got off the phone with a local transmission place i trust and used before and he said he wont do the fluid & filter change on my 91. He said to leave it alone since i dont know if it was ever changed even though it's only got 34k on the car. He said since its working fine that i could end up with a bunch of issues from his experiences.
Has anyone here done the Auto-RX thing? Im thinking i will do that and change the fluids and filter myself and redrain.

I read the article in the other site and think its the way to go?

He said the same thing about the rear fluids to me?? Any advice on that would be helpful

I spent a lot of time writing that.  I think it's the way to go.  I challenge you to go back to the local trans place and ask them WHY issues happen.  My guess is he won't be able to explain without a bunch of handwaving and emotional arguments.

Yes, change out the rear axle fluid.  If you have posi, it's full of clutch dust and the friction modifiers are already worn out.

Cleaning stuff up is very often just done for piece of mind,.

You messing with a 34000 mile car makes no sense to me,.

Grease it, drive it,.stop obsessing,.

ironrobe wrote:

He said the same thing about the rear fluids to me??  Any advice on that would be helpful

My advice? Get a new transmission place.

There have been reported problems with power flushing an old transmission -- it can stir up stuff best left alone, and the excess pressure can stress old seals, etc. But fresh fluid, distributed by the transmission's own pump, is a Good Thing, and will replenish all the additives that have deteriorated with time. I am of the opinion that if your old tranny dies sometime after replacing the fluid that it was going to die anyway.

As for not changing the fluid in the rear differential, I've never heard anything so ridiculous. It's like saying you shouldn't change the engine oil on an old car. The rear diff fluid should be changed regularly as per the owner's manual or FSM, and if it's a limited slip, the additive must be included regardless of any claims on the label that it is "safe for limited slip". I won't name names, but it isn't, trust me.

I found a good Garage through a friend..... I was starting to worry since I was starting to get a random noise/ knock in the rear once in awhile when I'd take the car out of Park. Turns out it needed a U-joint, so I got both replaced and had the rear serviced (posi), the bearings checked and the Trans fluid and filter changed.
The owner worked on it personally and told me the bottom of the Trans pan was clean and no debris and the fluids didnt look bad. He actually hooked me up and went through a bunch of stuff other stuff at no charge and lubed the front suspension since he knew I just bought it.  He said that while there was fresh grease all over the ball joints etc, who ever had lubed it before did a crappy job and the ball joints were dry   . Drove it 60 miles today and the noise is gone and it's shifting even smoother than it was before

I always recommend the use of a Magnefine filter after a fluid change. Anything that comes loose will be caught by the Magnefine.