Define a Trickle

T

troopa4life

New member
I'm planning on doing a drain and refill of the transmission. I have a 2016 4runner with 15k miles on it. When checking the transmission fluid level, what do they mean by trickle? Is it a steady stream or is it a constant dripping? Any thoughts would be appreciated.
 
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troopa4life said:
I'm planning on doing a drain and refill of the transmission. I have a 2016 4runner with 15k miles on it. When checking the transmission fluid level, what do they mean by trickle? Is it a steady stream or is it a constant dripping? Any thoughts would be appreciated.
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Who is telling you a trickle? What is being referenced to as the trickle? The fluid coming off the trany dipstick? As far as checking the fluid. Truck on level ground, at operating temp, while engine running in park check as you would the oil.
 
Soneill said:
Who is telling you a trickle? What is being referenced to as the trickle? The fluid coming off the trany dipstick? As far as checking the fluid. Truck on level ground, at operating temp, while engine running in park check as you would the oil.
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No dipstick on the trans for the 4R.
 
troopa4life said:
I'm planning on doing a drain and refill of the transmission. I have a 2016 4runner with 15k miles on it. When checking the transmission fluid level, what do they mean by trickle? Is it a steady stream or is it a constant dripping? Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

Changed the fluid on a Taco not too long ago. A trickle is just about as much as it takes to spill over the edge of the threads.

images%2Farticle%2F2016%2F02%2F01%2Faustin-powers-urine-sample-o.gif
 
You're telling me at approximately 5:40 into the video that's a drip?? That looks like a trickle to me but I could be wrong.
 
Its some time before you begin to shake it off but after the standard stream subsides........you know that in between "trickle"

:lol:
 
Yes, WTF are you doing changing the transmission fluid at 15k. 100k+ is when I will start thinking about it. It's a totally sealed system.
 
troopa4life said:
I wish we had a dipstick, our trucks have a sealed transmission and don't have a dipstick. They have a drain bolt, fill bolt and a check level plug.
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They don't have a dip stick to prevent people from messing with them unnecessarily, causing damage. Barring some incredible circumstances, you shouldn't touch it until at least 100k miles
 
I am planning on doing an initial drain and refill at 15k then will be doing one every 50k. This is based on what the fluid looks like at just 50k miles as noted in the example below:

Transmission Fluid Change Results - Toyota FJ Cruiser Forum

My plan is to keep the truck for as long as I can. I understand the regular recommended service is 60k for towing/off road use and 100k for regular use but I don't feel comfortable with that. Call me old school, but to me doing it at 15k then every 50k helps me sleep at night.
 
troopa4life said:
I am planning on doing an initial drain and refill at 15k then will be doing one every 50k. This is based on what the fluid looks like at just 50k miles as noted in the example below:

Transmission Fluid Change Results - Toyota FJ Cruiser Forum

My plan is to keep the truck for as long as I can. I understand the regular recommended service is 60k for towing/off road use and 100k for regular use but I don't feel comfortable with that. Call me old school, but to me doing it at 15k then every 50k helps me sleep at night.
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Do as you please... but your chances of doing more harm than good are very high... I don't understand people who always want to outsmart the system with their old school thinking. I get not following every mfg recommendation... but you are wasting time, money, and just creating unnecessary waste here.
 
Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but my reasoning to not follow Toyota's recommendation is due to the fact individuals have had transmission issues i.e. Vibration, shudder etc. which have been resolved by a complete flush or drain and refill (Please see the fj cruiser forum, tacomaworld and t4r.org). I don't think my schedule is overburdening as it is only a drain and refill of the pan. I could agree that it may be overkill if I were to completely flush the entire transmission, but that is not the case here. In terms of more harm then good, I plan on measuring exactly how much was drained and filling a small amount more and running through the check level procedure. It should be fairly straightforward but I have to agree with you that messing with the transmission could do more harm than good which is why I want to make sure I get everything spot on before doing it which is why I asked the question in the first place.
 
If you're having such issues with a 15K new car. Take it back the dealer. Don't be so quick to blame the tranny for the shuddering, vibration, etc etc. There's a whole lot of other things involved. There's a whole world of other drive train components that can cause such shuddering. OEM fluid is pretty darn good and unless you're towing a lot, i would not mess with it, especially at 15K and especially still under warranty.
 
I also believe in changing at low mileage, but about 25k. Biggest problem has always been people and shops overfilling, so many cars do not have dipsticks/easy access to filling. Eleven qts. of oil expands quite a bit when heated. Under-fill becomes apparent because trany doesn't shift right - although correct level important, an ounce or two when talking 11 qts is not. Get to about correct temp, open level plug - a trickle is solid and a drip is interrupted.
 
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