Well I changed trans fluid last night, dropped pan, cleaned magnet and pan, changed filter, put it all back together, filled the pan thru the filler tube. Had wife come out, I disconnected cooler return line at trans and spliced on a 3/8" clear line and had her start truck and put in R (P brake on of course) until bubbles came, put 4 qts in, repeat 2 more times until fresh fluid came out of tube, added 4 qts, checked level and went for test drive, got it good and warm, checked level again, topped it off to perfection.

Went to bed happy as a clam (How happy is a clam exactly? Does anyone really know?) knowing I had done a good thing for my truck.

Walk out to shop this morning to put everything away and lo and behold there is my magnet still wrapped in the clean shop towels I set it in to keep it clean until I got done cleaning out pan! RATFARTS!

So I had to have my brother come out after work today and help me drop the pan without spilling and drop the magnet in it. We lost a qt or two since it is nearly impossible to lower pan (with my equipment anyways) without spilling anything. Good thing I wore old clothes both times, because they are all getting burned. My brother looked like he had been shot when we got done, left half of torso all red.

Since I had used all but 6 oz of the 20 quarts I bought the other day at Napa (Valvoline ATF+4) I guess I will have to go in tomorrow and get a couple more to top it off again.

The good news is that I had hardly any buildup in my pan like I had heard people describe here before. Only a slight amount in the grooves in the bottom of pan and maybe a 1/16" to 1/8" sludgy buildup on magnet to wipe off. The oil was a maroon color but not as dark as I expected coming through the clear line. When I had it all in a bucket it looked pretty black but that is misleading. Also when I took it on the test drive to get it warm to properly check level, it honestly did shift more decisively than it did even with factory fill. It completely changed the funky shift-lockup sequence it has always had when shifting into overdrive followed by lockup, and made it seem a little more seamless. Before it shifted then promptly locked up in 2 distinct "chunky" feels that first time riders always got a funny look on their face about. It definitely is smoother now but is just as firm and decisive.

My wife took it to Grandma's today before I put the magnet back in and she even commented that it "doesn't do that funny shift thing anymore, it must be happy now."

So anyways, major pain in the butt but I did a complete pan drop and filter service plus complete fluid exchange for $105 bucks with tax included when the dealer wanted $235 for all this, and I at least know how everything looked and it indeed has new fluid in it, filter, etc. I also am glad it doesn't have to be done for another 30K

 

Sorry to hear about your troubles with the fluid change. That one was definately not fun!

Next time, if you can afford to spend the money you might consider a MagHytec Double Deep pan. It will hold 4 quarts more fluid than stock to help keep the fluid a little bit cooler. Also, and this could be important to you having gone through that experience.........is it has a drain plug on it so you can drain the fluid before you lower the pan to change out the filter. Makes the job SOOOOOOOOOO much easier.

 

Years ago when plowing snow we would weld drain plugs into the pans so we could drop the fluid twice a year. I have many magnets on my tool box that were forgotten by guys and not put back in.

 

Kind of like realizing that there is a set of piston rings still sitting on the bench after buttoning up an engine. Ratfarts sounds gentle....

 

Yea, I guess we've all finished up the trans and found the magnet still sitting somewhere at one time or another. I've added drain plugs to all my vehicles to make it easier to do a fluid/filter change. Costs about 5 bucks from most auto parts stores and adds 1/2 hour to the first one. They should come that way from the factory.

 

Ever heard one complain?

 

I had Marietta Dodge change my tranny fluid for $167.00. I found that it is money worth spending. I had my fluid changed early. 22,000 miles. I tow a camper often in the summer and I figured that its better to be a little safe than sorry. My new 5th wheel weights in at a hefty 12,500 pounds. Add gear and were talking a lot of stress on the transmission. I need to add a transmission temp gauge sooner than later.

 

My Chevy came that way and I couldn't get the plug out when I tried to change it. I had to do it the messy way. I tried to get the plug out after removing the pan to no avail. I guess it's just for looks.

 

Follow Up:

I went to another Napa today to get my top off quarts and had the clerk (who is co owner of the place) tell me that Valvoline MaxLife ATF "replaced" ATF+4 and that's what he recommended I use. I told him how Valvoline came out with actual ATF+4 this winter and I had used it to get my trans to where it was and I wanted the same stuff I used. He kept insisting that this was what the carried and sold for ATF+4 applications. I said it also wasn't synthetic, which my ATF+4 was, and he said "yeah but if you see the 'MaxLife' or 'high mileage' on the bottle, you know it is getting more to the synthetic side of things. All synthetic really is is oil that is just refined a step or two more. It even says on the bottle it won't void new car warranties."

Man I am glad I actually care about this stuff or I may have believed him. I actually bought a quart just so I didn't "disrespect" him since I know him pretty well. I guess it will sit on the shelf or maybe go in the fuel tank of an old tractor or something because I own nothing I can use Dexron III in.