I changed my tranny Fluid and now I have a ?

[sirhk100]

I changed the fluid this weekend and all went well, just dropped the pan. Didn't try any of those exotic flushing method that I'd researched. My question now is this. The fluid was still bright red. This is the second change, the first at 50K with 13 quarts of Mobile 1 ATF according to previous owners records. I figured since he flushed the system with Mobil 1 I'd stick with the same. When I dropped the pan the fluid looked clean but the entire bottom of the pan had layer of silver metalic slime. Is this normal. The tranny has 102K on it and seems to do fine. Is this just normal wear? I remember once hearing that metal is normal in a auto tranny as long as it's metal powder and not chunks or shavings and as long as there is no plastic floating around. Anyways, I put it back together with a new Temp guage installed and it seems to be fine. Please let me know your thoughts on this metal sludge in my pan!!

 

[BUCHVILLEMAN]

it sounds like you have a fine operating tranny. the grey sludge is normal residue from miles of hard work. it is a good sign that yhe oil is clear. when i changed mine i just cleaned the bottom of the pan out with a paper towel and some degreaser becuase im **** but it shouldnt harm anything. this is based on my own experience i am not a qualified mechanic, but i have over 130k on my x and it seems to fine. trans fluid is so often overlooked but it is so vital.

 

[sirhk100]

That's exactly what I did, wiped out the old sludge till it shined with cleanliness and removed the old gasket. I actually cleaned part of the pan with carb cleaner to get ALL oil residue off it cause I braised (SP?) on a threaded collar to accept my tranny temp sending unit. Talk about a messy job!!! I haven't decided how long I'm going to wait till I do it again. So far it's been changed at 50K with full flush of Mobile 1 sythetic ATF and then this one at 102K. Next time I might just pay to have the full flush with mobile 1 done. Do they change the filter when they do this?

 

[BUCHVILLEMAN]

they normally change the filter when they do a fluid change. of course you know that it cheaper to do it home but your right it is a mess. almost worth it to go pay someone else to do it. with that mobile one you can prob go another 50k. ive dont it 2 since 50k and i will prob do it again by the fall. i put about 2k on my baby a month and hunting season is 2 months of hard driving in th ewoods so im thinking that i will do it before november. which would be near 50k. i think that using mobile 1 is about the smartest thing to do. it is such a good product. i had my dad switch his engine oil from cheap 10w-30 to mobile 1 5w-40 and now he doesnt burn oil like he used to. he would add a quart between changes and now he doesnt add at all. ive never had to add oil between changes and im confident that it is running solid.

 

[jimbo74]

when a fluid push flush is done they do not change the filter.....

 

[leebo]

Originally posted by jimabena74
when a fluid push flush is done they do not change the filter.....

Kinda true... Kinda not

You can get them to change the filter while they're at it, but you're going to pay about an extra $50 or so.

 

[tbomb]

sounds like your tranny is looking good, but you might wanna start changing your tranny fluid every 25-30k instead of every 50k.

 

[sirhk100]

Have you all picked change intervals that just sound good or what? How are you determining how often to chage? I changed mine even though it still looked clean on the stick just cause I knew it hadn't been done in awhile. I actually was thinking about alternating. Since I changed filter and only 5 quarts this time I'll have a full flush done in 30K and then I'll do a filter and 5 quarts again myself at another 30K etc. etc. until the tranny goes or I sell it. What do you think? This would be a filter change ever 60K and a full flush every 60K with 30K checks. Is this overkill or what? With the amount of money I plan on dumping into my suspension I plan on keeping this for the long haul plus it's just my weekend vehicle/utility/tow vehicle. My Honda Civic is what really sees the milage at 1000/week since I drive 95 miles one way to work M-F.

 

[mikeh]

Khris,

Sounds like you have a good plan to me. The guys who go 50,000 use synthetic. If you are using the normal Dextron V or Mercon then you should change every 30K for normal use or 15K for (extreme conditions).