Not quite a milkshake BUT....

[popsmckracken]

I was replacing the wiper linkage yesterday in the cold and had the engine running while parked. A leak sprung from the radiator and the color looked a tiny bit milky oily....barely. Not sure if I was just projecting a milkshake in my mind because it really wasnt "milky" looking until I stared at it for a while. This happened while the tranny was in park, NOT while driving. I shut it down immediately and ran in the house screaming Mother F@%ker SH!t stain!! ...and proceeded to order a Koyo radiator and B&M 70268 SuperCooler. Of course I had been planning on doing this "eventually" ...well eventually arrived. I disconnected the tranny from the radiator and drained it without moving the vehicle at all or engaging the gears. it was very slightly cloudy so here's to hoping I caught her in time. Wondering if I should spend the money on some new fluid and give it a flush before refilling her. any additives or flush related suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Toyotayoda]

Additives are a big "no-no" for transmissions, get a case of dexIII and do the following. Disconnect one of the trans cooler hoses and let them hang into an oil drain pan, start your car, watch the old fluid pour into the drain pan. Once the fluid stops coming out shut off the car. Add 6 to 8 quarts of fresh trans fluid, start car again, this time run it until clean fluid comes out of the cooler hose. once clean fluid is coming out you are finished, reconnect cooler hoses in desired set up. There is no sprinting involved in this procedure, and it's fairly clean. It's the glycol in the antifreeze that cause the clutches to separate, I've seen many times if you catch the condition early little to no damage is done and simply making sure all the fluid is replaced is all that is required.

 

[popsmckracken]

Additives are a big "no-no" for transmissions, get a case of dexIII and do the following. Disconnect one of the trans cooler hoses and let them hang into an oil drain pan, start your car, watch the old fluid pour into the drain pan. Once the fluid stops coming out shut off the car. Add 6 to 8 quarts of fresh trans fluid, start car again, this time run it until clean fluid comes out of the cooler hose. once clean fluid is coming out you are finished, reconnect cooler hoses in desired set up. There is no sprinting involved in this procedure, and it's fairly clean. It's the glycol in the antifreeze that cause the clutches to separate, I've seen many times if you catch the condition early little to no damage is done and simply making sure all the fluid is replaced is all that is required.

Well, here's to hoping I havent been punished for putting this off. All This while trying to figure out what to do about the pinholes in my rear Diff as well. Hey money grows on trees right?!! Both my daughters have birthdays in December and there's no getting away with "here's your Xmas/birthday gifts girls.." !! lol

 

[thegipper]

If you in fact did have a PMS, you'll need to do several flushes to make sure all of the coolant gets out of the tranny. I would buy and flush at least 6 gallons of tranny fluid through it.

You will also need to flush out your cooling system real good.

And you need to do this sooner rather than later. The longer the coolant sits in the tranny, the more likely the clutch pack material will degrade.

You easily save it or you can easily destroy it. After you flush those 6 gallons through it, drive it around for a couple days and do it all over again.

Couple weeks later, do a simple drain. If you see any signs that there is still coolant in it, flush it again. Buy the cheapest compatible fluid you can find. This may seem like over kill but it took me about 12 gallons of flushing/draining for the fluid to show zero signs of coolant in it. This happened over many weeks, this is why you need to keep an eye on it for next few months.

Even a tiny amount of coolant in the tranny can destroy it. Fluid is cheap relative to how much it will cost to replace your transmission.

Good luck

 

[popsmckracken]

If you in fact did have a PMS, you'll need to do several flushes to make sure all of the coolant gets out of the tranny. I would buy and flush at least 6 gallons of tranny fluid through it.

You will also need to flush out your cooling system real good.

And you need to do this sooner rather than later. The longer the coolant sits in the tranny, the more likely the clutch pack material will degrade.

You easily save it or you can easily destroy it. After you flush those 6 gallons through it, drive it around for a couple days and do it all over again.

Couple weeks later, do a simple drain. If you see any signs that there is still coolant in it, flush it again. Buy the cheapest compatible fluid you can find. This may seem like over kill but it took me about 12 gallons of flushing/draining for the fluid to show zero signs of coolant in it. This happened over many weeks, this is why you need to keep an eye on it for next few months.

Even a tiny amount of coolant in the tranny can destroy it. Fluid is cheap relative to how much it will cost to replace your transmission.

Good luck

Well, I drained her right away. As for the coolant system it is going on the scrap pile NOW. Awaiting my Koyo and tranny cooler I ordered yesterday. Keeping those two systems SEPARATE from now on.

 

[AntleredRuin]

If you in fact did have a PMS, you'll need to do several flushes to make sure all of the coolant gets out of the tranny. I would buy and flush at least 6 gallons of tranny fluid through it.

Couple weeks later, do a simple drain. If you see any signs that there is still coolant in it, flush it again. Buy the cheapest compatible fluid you can find. This may seem like over kill but it took me about 12 gallons of flushing/draining for the fluid to show zero signs of coolant in it. This happened over many weeks, this is why you need to keep an eye on it for next few months.

Good luck

To save on money, get the cheapest WalMart (Supertech) you can buy for the flush. Goes for like $11/ gallon versus like $17+/ gallon for name brands. You'll want several gallons pumped through to be safe, so the savings can be pretty significant.

I don't want to get in a 'brand fight', but for the flush, it'll be just fine. Far better than any coolant residue.

Disconnect one of the trans cooler hoses and let them hang into an oil drain pan, start your car, watch the old fluid pour into the drain pan. Once the fluid stops coming out shut off the car. Add 6 to 8 quarts of fresh trans fluid, start car again, this time run it until clean fluid comes out of the cooler hose. once clean fluid is coming out you are finished, reconnect cooler hoses in desired set up.

This idea is sound, but I would NOT recommend pumping ALL the ATF out at a time. Do 2-3 QTs at a time MAX. Use a clear plastic milk jug, measure out 2-3 QTs, and mark it with a Sharpie. Fill to that line, then shut the engine off, and put 2-3 new QTs in the tranny. This will take longer, but you're not running your tranny on empty several times during this.
Completely clearing your Tranny of all lubrication/cooling ability while trying to save it....to me that's like old time hack doctors that used to 'bleed out' patients to get rid of a disease.
You'll get all the coolant out faster that way, but you'll end up destroying your tranny (or significantly shortening its life) anyways.

But yes, do this as soon as possible.

 

[nissanh]

I know you are doing a complete flush with several gallons of ATF. Use the Walmart ATF just for flushing. At the final round, use toyota ATF.

Also when draining while the engine is running, drain about 2 quatrs (2 liters approx) at a time and QUICKLY turn off the engine. Then add 2-3 liters of fresh ATF, repeat the process until you get those gallons all empty.

Don't drain 6-8 quarts because the trans will run dry.

I always replace radiators (DENSO) every 5-10 years. I got the trans cooler inline after the radiator. If you plan to by-pass the radiator, make sure you attach the cooler right on to the AC condenser and make sure the cooler is in the proper size.

 

[MStudt]

Well, I drained her right away. As for the coolant system it is going on the scrap pile NOW. Awaiting my Koyo and tranny cooler I ordered yesterday. Keeping those two systems SEPARATE from now on.

Unfortunately a simple drain isn't going to help you in this situation. The fluid that you need to get out isn't in the pan. You have a good step by step that I'd follow right away. Having been in your situation I can say that flushing the hell out of mine didn't help much. It got me another 6 months before I ended up replacing it. Best of luck though.

 

[popsmckracken]

Unfortunately a simple drain isn't going to help you in this situation. The fluid that you need to get out isn't in the pan. You have a good step by step that I'd follow right away. Having been in your situation I can say that flushing the hell out of mine didn't help much. It got me another 6 months before I ended up replacing it. Best of luck though.[/QUO

Well as far as I can tell this isn't a pink milkshake situation. I may have been over anticipating it. hard to tell. I'll post a pic and yo guys can weigh in on the color and consistency. Maybe I'm in denial ..we shall see. (;

 

[thegipper]

By drain, I mean drain some replace some. You should never run the tranny dry on fluid.

Flush the hell out of it, then flush it some more.

A week later, flush it again. Keep checking the fluid for coolant.

If you do this, you'll probably be ok.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[MStudt]

Well as far as I can tell this isn't a pink milkshake situation. I may have been over anticipating it. hard to tell. I'll post a pic and yo guys can weigh in on the color and consistency. Maybe I'm in denial ..we shall see. (;

Pink milkshake is obvious, and you'll know when you see it. Just look at your overflow tank, and you'll see what you need to see.

 

[alumarine]

Let's see a picture of the old anti freeze.

Everyone's go to conclusion is always milkshake and bypass the rad!

Could be cloudy anti freeze.

Have you checked the transmission dipstick?
That will tell the tale.

 

[Mark_BC]

All This while trying to figure out what to do about the pinholes in my rear Diff as well.

Drain diff fluid, wire wheel down to sound metal in surrounding area, flush outside with degreaser then acetone really well to make sure all gear oil and degreaser residue is gone, make sure it is totally clean. Then slap on some JB Weld epoxy. Long term solution is to weld on a new cover plate from Barnes 4X4, or put on a new axle.

 

[mtbtim]

[MENTION=102606]infamousRNR[/MENTION] and I have a video that might help you out in this situation. You can use the DIY technique in this video to flush all the contaminated fluid out and get new fluid in. It's a safe method and at no time do you run the trans dry if you follow the instructions we give you. Even if you didn't get a mixing of the engine coolant and ATF, this is good technique to renew your trans fluid in one shot.

Here's the video:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RumPXivBlk8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

If you want to add an external trans cooler in-series with the radiator cooler, we have a video for that as well.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2nVbwe2t2T8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[popsmckracken]

OK, I disconnected the Trans from the radiator and flushed it with two gallons of walmart special ATF. After that it was already coming out clear so I joined the in and out hoses filled the transmission to capacity with a cold engine and drove half way down the street in reverse and then took it down the street from high to low gear over a half mile put it back on the ramps before she got too hot and drained all the fluid out again. Even then it was coming out crystal clear so I stopped added a couple more quarts and drained out the two that were left in the system. I filled her back up now I'm just waiting for the two radiators to get here. No slipping and she seems to shift just fine.

 

[popsmckracken]

Drain diff fluid, wire wheel down to sound metal in surrounding area, flush outside with degreaser then acetone really well to make sure all gear oil and degreaser residue is gone, make sure it is totally clean. Then slap on some JB Weld epoxy. Long term solution is to weld on a new cover plate from Barnes 4X4, or put on a new axle.

Well, Ill probably be needing a new axle at some point or at least a rebuild to some degree. I checked one smaller junk yard the other day for a new axle to no avail. There's another bigger U-pull-It yard that's much bigger not far away. I wonder how common it will be to find one in good shape. I need to figure out the ratio somehow first. I recently bought a mig welder and I'm just practicing with odd pieces of metal. Not sure if I'm ready for the cover job yet, we'll see. I wire wheeled the cover the other day and hit it with a good hot soapy water pressure wash. there are three little pin holes. I would be interested in seeing what the new cover procedure looks like.

 

[Metallurgist]

Did you happen to get any pictures of your process?

 

[popsmckracken]

Did you happen to get any pictures of your process?

yes I did, however I had some issues trying to post them. not sure why. I'll try again this morning.

 

[thegipper]

OP

Just keep checking the fluid over the next few weeks (even a couple months later). My bro flushed gallons upon gallons until it was crystal clear like yours. Months later when it became mine, the fluid was cloudy as hell and still had coolant in it. There are so many tiny passages and areas for it to not get flushed out initially.

I bet your tranny will be fine as long as you keep an eye on it.

Also look for black clutch plate chunks/particles the next couple times you do a simple tranny fluid drain. Use a clean drain pain and inspect after you pour out the old fluid.

If there are lots of black chunks (clutch plate material), that is not a good sign.

 

[jgue467]

Well, I drained her right away. As for the coolant system it is going on the scrap pile NOW. Awaiting my Koyo and tranny cooler I ordered yesterday. Keeping those two systems SEPARATE from now on.

I would suggest replacing the thermostat & gasket too.

In the hills in your area the trans temps will hit low to mid 200s if you keep the radiator from cooling your trans, Ask me how I know. :cowboy: