newbie tranny question

[3bears]

while I might be a newbie to this forum, I am not a newbie to twisting wrenches. 62 year old doing all my work for many many years.

But my new to me 4 runner I want to do some work on tranny
(2000 SR5 Automatic V6, 148k)

1) ordered the B&M cooler and will by pass stock cooler/radiator.
2) in all records I see no mention of tranny service. So I thought I would flush the tranny while at it. recommended brand, not yota, not synthetic
( I had real issues switching my last yota corolla to synthetic but that had 250k on it)
3) If no records, what is the standard drop the pan and filter interval on these, should I go ahead and do it
4) I don't know if I have a bent dipstick or a replacement that is too long or what, but this dipstick in this car is one pain in the butt to get back in. No matter what direction I start it in, or spin it when it is going in, when it gets to about an inch and a half from the handle seating it hits something hard and you have to wiggle, twist, hold your tongue right, hold the metal shaft and the handle to get it to go in...is this common ?

 

[vanion2]

1. One of two methods to approaching this. Bypass to eliminate the milkshake issue but increases your chances of having your ATF too low a temp during cold weather (depending on where you live). Put in a new radiator (every 120K or so) and add the B&M inline is pretty common as well. Either seems to work based on personal preference.

2. I did a search in the 3rd gen forum and found that drain/fill method is highly preferred to the flush as flushing increased your chances of notchy shifting afterwards. As for preferred brand of fluid I saw Mobil1 synthetic mentioned most but, like engine oil, is mostly just your personal preference at the end of the day as no one complained about the type being problematic.

3. The interval I read that seems most common is drain/fill every 100K miles or so. Usually 4 quarts at a time getting the best results.

4. I haven't had any problems with mine but then maybe I am just lucky?

Reference material:
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/193596-b-m-70264-external-transmission-oil-cooler-more-efficient-than-oem.html
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/195004-transmission-temp-operating-range-a340f.html
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/194950-changing-trans-fluid-bad-idea.html

 

[Brveagle]

Anymore these threads turn into a debate over which method of flushing is best and if a B&M tranny cooler should be used in place of factory cooling methods.


I would highly recommend you drain/flush your transmission, rather just a drain and refill. It's pretty simple and can just take out one quart at a time and then just add 1 quart to the pan.