On a standard trans service all they do is drop the pan, replace the filter and refill, some will price the job with band adjustment and some will not. Oh and some say the cost of new fluid is extra so if you don't ask for it I would assume they reuse your old fluid. All of the trans rebuilder I have talked to say to always replace the filter when you service the trans and also say don't touch the bands unless you have a problem with it shifting.

 

i am planning to do my band adjustment this weekend after i replaced my fluid and DID NOT install drain plug. oh well another stain on my driway.

 

I think the reason they don't put drain plugs in the pans is because they WANT you to change the filter. That's really important on the first service after any new wear-in debris has finished coming out.

The quickie lube joints are making money pumping fluid with flushes and the dealers and tranny shops get an added bonus from that replacing trannies out of warranty because they fail after one too many flushes without a filter change.

 

Step 1 and most important, put down all the cardboard and old newspapers you can get ahold of before you think of touching a wrench. I thought I could do it with just a catchpan and a couple rags. I was wrong.

 

You may be right, but I think the reason is that they can save money by not putting a plug in. My '56 T'bird has a drain plug on the gas tank. How many modern cars have one? Answer - zero.

 

A good transmission serive should include a new filter, new fluid, and a band adjustment. Why would anybody re-use old fluid? And you don't wait for the transmission to have a problem before adjusting the bands. By then it's too late, and the damage has been done.

If possible, you should have a shop do a complete flush of the trans. It costs more, but it's worth it. Simply dropping the pan only drains out about 2/3 of the oil. 6 qts of clean oil + 3 qts of dirty oil = 9 qts of dirty oil. Would you do that with the crankcase?

I know, I know. Back in my day......... Well, back in your day the transmissions were not so sophisticated, not so efficient, didn't last nearly as long, and weren't so darn expensive. Remember when you could get a rebuilt TH350 for a few hundred bucks? And it would easily last 50K miles.

 

I disagree with that statement as an absolute. There are degrees or "dirtyness". What defines "clean"? The oil you pour from the can into the engine/trans? Is it still "clean" at 1,000 miles? At 5,000 miles? At 10,000?

Your example of 6 clean plus 3 dirty = 9 dirty is true, but not. The resulting 9 are not as dirty as what you drained out. It's 2/3 rds clean and 1/3 dirty, so it's 2/3 rds cleaner than what you drained out. Of course what I've posted is just my opinion, as is what you posted. Neither of us quote lab tests, etc to prove our points.

 

I disagree with that statement as an absolute. There are degrees or "dirtyness". What defines "clean"? The oil you pour from the can into the engine/trans? Is it still "clean" at 1,000 miles? At 5,000 miles? At 10,000?

Your example of 6 clean plus 3 dirty = 9 dirty is true, but not. The resulting 9 are not as dirty as what you drained out. It's 2/3 rds clean and 1/3 dirty, so it's 2/3 rds cleaner than what you drained out. Of course what I've posted is just my opinion, as is what you posted. Neither of us quote lab tests, etc to prove our points.

 

We have a pretty good dealer in my area. They were charging $198.00 to flush, refill, change filter, and band adjustment. Had mine done every 30K and am sitting at 162K with no problems.

 

Well since my dad owns a tranny shop I'll give my Opinion. With that many miles on it drain the fluid into a clean pan. Filter it and reuse it. If you put new in it will strip all the old varnish off the parts and bad things can happen.

 

If you're having the transmission serviced, then the fluid is at the end of it's service life. Otherwise, why would you be getting it changed? It's "dirty". Get rid of all of it, not just some of it.

Same thing with crank case oil. Would you discard 2/3, and re-use 1/3? Why not?

 

I had my tranny drained when it was rebuilt at 160,000 mi. 4 months ago . I have always just changed fluid and filters around 20,000 mi. .When it was rebuilt everything still worked and looked good . I don't baby my truck but I treat it nice . If there is no problems and the fluids and pan look good why pay the extra money for a flush ? Just my thoughts , thanks .

 

ok, here's a stupid question... how do you refill, once you've drained the pan and changed the filter / adjusted bands??? thru the dipstick tube?

I can't seem to find any info on this.. my rover has a fill and drain plug, but no dip stick..