Thanks much for the response on trans cooler location. Just finished reading the 26 page thread related to this subject....wow!
Hopefully completing this mod and a trans fluid flush soon.
Leaning towards Valvoline Max but not sure what was used at last fluid change prior to my ownership.

You're kidding right?
It says Dexron II or III. Can't get more specific than that.

good to know. i think i can get that stuff at cost.

tag for sub as i will be doing the tranny cooler mod in the coming months.

So what is the final consensus in regards to which Toyota tranny fluid to use?

I called around to 5 dealership service dept's today and asked each of them which fluid they would recommend for my '99. 3 of the service dept's told me Toyota T-IV, one of them transferred me to their "high mileage specialist" who told me that I have to use the WS oil ( which I know is total BS ) and the 5th dealer told me that I need to stick with the T III fluid. (which they happen to have in stock at $9 /qt. )

I had same experience today when I stopped by 2 Toyota dealerships and spoke with the service managers. They Looked like deer in headlight when I asked the question.
Decided that since i’ll be doing partial trans fluid flush once a year (about 12-15K miles) as long as I use a quality fluid I’ll be ok.
Picked up 3 one gallon jugs of Valvoline Max Life @ Walmart for total of $53.91.
Good to go.

That, ultimately, You have to make the decision yourself. It's 100% personal preference. Any fluid you put in there is better than no fluid AND the fluid you have in there now. So, pick your poison. Pretty hard to get it wrong here, the acceptable options are numerous.

post 14 is pretty specific.

I just installed a BM 70268 radiator bypassing the stock unit, added a Balkamp 1-8513 filter from NAPA, purged oil with Valvoline Maxlife as there wasn't enough Mobil 1 ATF in our location, 15 quarts to complete. Have run for 60 miles now, no leaks or explosions and have trans oil to the right level having finally found out to check level with hot motor and engine running.
Shifts are certainly smoother, kick down more effective, overdrive switch in/out crisper.
Reckon this was a good thing to do as the old oil was pretty skunky looking at 137000 miles.
Next time I do tranny oil, I'll drop pan and change out internal filter.
Thanks for all the info on this site. I always takes me an age to skim the cream of the facts but I'm a happy chappie today. Thanks.

is that an inline filter? i searched for it and i couldnt find anything on it. if so, what requires 'purging' on it?

Purging in this case,is total replacement of all transmission oil. I followed the majority method of draining trans pan 3 1/2 quarts and replacing that, then with the send pipe to the trans radiator disconnected and a big clear bottle under it with a 1 quart marker on it, then started motor and when 1 quart of oil had pumped into catch bottle, stopped motor, filled trans with 1 quart of fresh oil and repeated the 1 quart out, 1 quart in process. At 13 quarts, the oil was clear from the send pipe and the job was done. Needed 1 1/2 more quarts to get hot motor running up to hot mark on dip stick. This is a less harmful method of purging unlike the shop method which puts an external pump into the system that uses more pressure than the tranny pump. Many people discourage the shop method as it can dislodge more crud that can just upset the whole apple cart. Purging is such a lovely word, has many uses !!
As for the filter, that's all I know, it's what is on the box.

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thank you. i figured it out after i looked up the tranny flush thead, but thank you for explaining again.

so what is the point of putting another filter on the lines if there is one inside the tranny? im assuming you would want to keep the resistance as low as possible to allow as much ease of flow? does this go on the cold or hot line?

More is betterer !! One more line of defense and resistance is minimal. Mine's on the return line. Some one will prolly say that's the wrong spot but IDC......

The 'filter' in the trans is just a metal screen that is built in to the pickup...

-Charlie

16 qts of T-IV waiting for my old rig on Saturday morning along with a fresh tube of TPIG and a fresh filter screen. Thanks to everyone who shared information in this thread !