2016 4Runner SR5
Senior Member
I would agree with a pan and filter service but I'd check condition of the fluid before doing that. Very curious what 200K fluid looks like to begin with.
Front and Rear Diff fluid change
- Thread starter Mijfwb23
- Start date
I would agree with a pan and filter service but I'd check condition of the fluid before doing that. Very curious what 200K fluid looks like to begin with.
CutthroatSlam
Senior Member
Superstitious OCD 2016 4Runner SR5 again. You realize no one cares about your 20 years experience taking your vehicles to the dealer while you wait and do your nails watching Oprah?:blah::blah:
You should really consider getting a Tesla. There's no fluids to change and they come with this nice feature called self driving.
Didn't take long to find this....
Jul 8, 2010 #1
transdude
transdude
Proven Member
515
27
Joined Jan 17, 2003
Hawthorne, New Jersey
Transmission Flush Myths- Busted!
Anyone who is even remotely involved with cars has heard this type of story- someone that they know got a transmission flush and their transmission failed within weeks or even days.
The urban legend behind this is that the "sludge" is all that was holding the transmission together and once it was removed with a flush, the transmission had no chance of surviving.
The story goes like this:
Jim was having a transmission problem, let's say that it was sluggish in the morning and would slip on take-off from a stop from time to time when it was hot out.
Now Jim has a brother-in-law named Bob that used to work on cars, do his own tune ups and oil changes, etc. When Jim mentioned the problem that he was having to Bob, his immediate response was, "You need to get that tranny flushed"
Of course Jim not really knowing anything about a car, much less an automatic transmission blindly follows the advice of his brother-in-law. After all Bob surely knows all about cars even though he hasn't worked on one for over twenty years.
Jim obediently takes his car to the local lube place for a flush and an engine oil change while it's there. Jim gets his transmission flush, pays and goes on his way.
At first, he notices maybe a slight improvement in performance but his transmission is still exhibiting most of the original symptoms.
About two weeks later Jim is driving to work and he stops to pay a toll. When he tries to pull away from the toll booth the unthinkable happens- the car just revs and goes nowhere, as if it is in neutral. Jim moves the shifter into low and is able to limp his car off to the side of the road and wait for a tow truck to take him to a transmission shop.
What happened?
Here's a list of reasons why the transmission flush myth exists:
•The myth is propagated by people who claim to be experts. I have even heard of transmission repair shops who contribute to the myth in the hopes of scaring potential customers into having their transmission overhauled rather than maintaining it.
•There are thousands of "internet experts" who promote the misinformation- it's truly a case of "monkey see, monkey do" on steroids!
•There may have been a time in the early days of automatic transmissions when failure after a flush was more common, perhaps because of antiquated friction material and transmission fluid technology during the 1950's and 60's but this was before my time so I'm not able to truly discuss the legitimacy of the possibility. I can, however, say with certainty that it's not an issue with 99.9% of the vehicles in service today. If your owner's manual is in the glove box and not painted on the wall of a cave, you are probably good to go.
•"Sludge" is all that was holding the transmission together and when it gets cleaned out the trans in going to fail immediately. Guess what? If you have sludge in your transmission, it's already bad and in need of a repair.
•Once in a while a flush is performed, usually at a quick lube operation, and the transmission is not refilled correctly- resulting in failure soon thereafter. Of course the incorrect fluid level is not recognized as the culprit- the transmission flush is! Many automatic transmissions have fairly complicated fluid level checking and filling procedures that are best left to a transmission repair expert to perform.
•People have unrealistic expectations. A transmission flush is no more likely to fix a failing transmission than an engine oil change is to fix a major internal engine problem. Both of these things are great to do regularly but they are maintenance- not a fix for a problem.
•The reality is that most people don't think about their transmissions until the day that they have a problem. Jim's transmission was on borrowed time- it was going to fail anyway but now that it has, he is going to perpetuate the myth. If he ever hears someone mention a transmission flush, he's going to proclaim, "I had that done and my transmission blew up within a month!"
I have been in the transmission repair industry since 1987 and can honestly say that I can't recall a single time where I saw a healthy transmission get a flush or a fluid change and subsequently have a problem. A transmission flush is the best maintenance that one can do to extend the life of your automatic transmission, don't miss out on the benefits because of the nonsense that exists surrounding changing your transmission fluid!
Anyone can feel free to repost this as long as you leave the "about the author" part intact.
About the author:
John Lombardo is co-owner of <a href="http://www.importperformancetrans.com">IPT Performance Transmissions</a> and has been in the high performance industry for over 20 years.
<a href="http://www.importperformancetrans.com/"> IPT Performance Transmissions</a> <br>
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2016 4Runner SR5
Senior Member
LOL man you're a sad little cali lib aren't you. You get so defensive for what? Get your panties out of your mangina and move along.
I'm going to try and find out and will report back.
Well, then there's that perspective also. But I will admit It got my attention when the head of the dealership came out to tell me he was refusing to take my $415 unless I signed a release. It gave me the impression that correct or not, he was willing to give up the cash rather than test the "gunk in the tranny is all that's keeping it working" theory. But as I have zero expertise in transmissions, I will readily concede to yours...
MossJenks
New member
2016 4Runner SR5
Senior Member
I suppose you're no different than him. Someone's opinion differs from yours so your feeling are hurt. Hurting snowflake feelings is literally my hobby. Don't like my opinion? No one's problem but your own. Truth is, it's your truck, you do something you shouldn't, I really don't care. You're paying the repair bill, not me. At the end of the day, it sucks for no one other than you. All I try and do is speak from experience and try and avoid that from happening. ALL advice on these forums should be taken for that it is, free advice. Take it all with a grain of salt because most here are nothing more than google searchers and have no clue what they're talking about and no real world experience.
2016 4Runner SR5
Senior Member
I'm triggered? Funny coming from the lady quoting a post that has absolutely nothing to do with you. Run along now, your thoughts are invalid.
2016 4Runner SR5
Senior Member
Tesla oil filters are on the shelf right next to the 1974 Beetle radiators.
MossJenks
New member
LOL. If you say so kid.
CutthroatSlam
Senior Member
1000MPH
Senior Member
1000MPH
Senior Member
I’ve got just over 91,000 on the truck.
Changing my Transfer Case fluid for the second time in its life.
45596 miles and almost 4 years of service using the Delvac 75w-90.
No leaks, no issues so far. Fluid level was right at the fill plug. Fluid looks good and no debris on the drain plug (no magnet). If you’re wondering about the fill plug still installed in the pic, I put it back in after checking the level to slow the initial draining.
Changing my Transfer Case fluid for the second time in its life.
45596 miles and almost 4 years of service using the Delvac 75w-90.
No leaks, no issues so far. Fluid level was right at the fill plug. Fluid looks good and no debris on the drain plug (no magnet). If you’re wondering about the fill plug still installed in the pic, I put it back in after checking the level to slow the initial draining.
Attachments
2016 4Runner SR5
Senior Member
I thought these would have had magnetic plugs? Something to look into before my first drain and fill. Swap in a magnetic drain plug, did the same with the engine oil drain plug.
1000MPH
Senior Member
Yeah I guess I forgot that they didn’t have it on the T/C.
Here’s my front diff.
Fluid is even cleaner. I like to think I do a lot of 4wd but obviously not that much. My long breaker is too long, the medium worked but hard to get leverage laying on my back. This did have a decent amount of gunk on the magnet.
Here’s my front diff.
Fluid is even cleaner. I like to think I do a lot of 4wd but obviously not that much. My long breaker is too long, the medium worked but hard to get leverage laying on my back. This did have a decent amount of gunk on the magnet.
Attachments
2016 4Runner SR5
Senior Member
I changed my OEM front diff oil at about 11k and it was dirtier than that. Rear was quite a bit dirtier than the front was. Wondering if it's just initial break in and it'll be cleaner moving forward. I had only been in 4wd for the monthly engagement and quick trip around a parking lot and used it for short periods through the 1st winter I had it. Guess we'll see what it looks like when I change it again but that'll be a while. I bought my 2016 and drove it home brand new January 29th 2017, left the lot with 8 miles on it. I don't even have 14K miles on it yet, I don't put many miles on my vehicles. By the time I hit 50K and service the transfer case it'll be 6-7 years old give or take with an average of 635 miles driven per month. Curious to see what the oil looks like at that point but I feel it'll look brand new. I'm about 1000 miles from my 15K engine oil change, curious to see if I find anything on the magnetic drain plug when I pull it and curious to see what's in my catch can since this will be the first 5K mile oil change since I installed it. Last oil change revealed about 2 ounces of mostly water in the catch can, that was in about 2K or so.
Attachments
Rainier42
New member
Changed mine today at 36K miles and samething, was fairly clean with little to no residue on magnet. Was expecting oil to be dark.
