$250 to Change the Tranny Fluid on a '97 XLT???

[rpr]

I have 88K miles on my Explorer (bought used with 42K miles). The tranny has been a bit quirky lately so I figured I would at least have the fluid changed and see if there were any error codes that could be found.

A local transmission shop that was advertising fluid changes for $34.99 just told me it would cost $250 to change the fluid on this vehicle because the exhaust system has to be removed to get the pan off!

Is this true???

I have a '97 SOHC automatic XLT.

 

[Bill Kemp]

Don't walk away from this "good deal" RUN>>>>>

There is a cat. heat shield on the side of the pan that is removed when the fluid is changed. It is nothing....

I would stay away from transmission places. Go to a repair shop and have them do it. Cheaper and they don't want to work on your transmission, just change the fluid.

 

[rpr]

Thanks!

For a '97 XLT with 88K miles (unknown if the tranny fluid was ever changed), would you recommend a standard fluid change (drop pan, replace filter, replace fluid with 2/3 total capacity) or the Jiffy Lube method (replace 100% total capacity without dropping pan - leaves old filter).

 

[aldive]

I have had Jiffy Lube do a complete fluid change a couple of times. I forget the cost but it was much less than that.

Good luck....

 

[espnfreak]

If your going to keep the truck awhile, get amsoil fluids, they last about 100k in the tranny, and you can have the place put it in when you do the change. I got fluids for everything for 150 or so, and it was well worth it, they are sitting in my garage now, but my truck will have new fluids in everything soon, including powerfoam for the engine, which should get rid of carbon deposits. They also have engine oil that lasts for 25k, and special filters. I think Agexplorer is a dealer, contact him for more info.

Just trying to help, Jason

 

[Bill Kemp]

I got mine with 60,000 on it and took it to the lube shop and had the fluid completely changed. $70. Nov.
In June when I could work on it I changed the filter & have done so about every 10 to12,000 miles.
It might be overkill but I dont think so after reading about how many tranny problems people have.

 

[aldive]

Bill, you should give some thought to adding an additional spin on filter to your tranny.

I am very pleased with mine.

 

[tbomb]

Originally posted by aldive
Bill, you should give some thought to adding an additional spin on filter to your tranny.

I am very pleased with mine.

i was thinking about that a while ago. where did you mount the the filter? and what filters do you use?

 

[aldive]

I purchased the kit from Summit Racingl I think it was about $40.

I mounted the unit horizontally under the radiator and additional tranny cooler. This was a easy place to mount and very easy to the tranny fluid lines.

The kit came with a filter; I used that one for the first 500 miles and changed to a Mobil 1 filter.

 

[rpr]

Speaking of add-on tranny coolers, any recommendations?

Under normal driving conditions, I'm fine. When I visit my friends in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia it overheats a bit (I can smell the tranny fluid burning, but I never see a leak).

 

[aldive]

I am a major believer in aux coolers; by a;ll means get one., it will never hurt.

Good luck.....

 

[rpr]

Well I went for the "T-Tech" complete fluid changeout at Jiffy Lube. Out the door for $80 in about 30 minutes. The tech said the fluid looked pretty brown, but no noticeable metal shavings.

Shifting actually seems to be a bit crisper, and it doesn't seem to "wind-out" as high with heavy acceleration, but that's probably all psychological.

Tx for the help!

 

[Robert]

It's probably too late now and I'm sure you are already aware that the T-Tech service at Jiffy Lube did not include a filter change. With that many miles, it should be replaced as well and I would be willing to bet there is a lot of sludge stuck to the bottom of the pan. I did a filter change on my '97 SOHC at 50K and then did a complete fluid & filter change at 80K. I was surprised at the amount of black sludge in the bottom of my pan at the 80K change. It wasn't quite as bad at the 50K change, but then again I only changed the 4 quarts that came out of the pan.

The $250 charge you were quoted was definately high, but they were for the most part correct that the part of the exhaust that goes under the transmission should be removed to get to the filter. I couldn't budge a couple of my bolts to my exhaust so I ended up removing the driveshaft instead. Regardless of how you do it, it isn't straight forward and there is more labor involved than most vehicles.