choopermane
New member
I got a 97 with 3.4 and auto. Trans fluid is black as it gets. What should I do? I heard a complete flush and fill is not good for high mileage transmissions. Btw I'm at 260xxx
Trans flush?
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96 ToyRunner
Member
I agree as It was said above but when you say black as can be on a white paper towel there's no red and also does your transmission work good i've read that if its never changed and it has high miles dont change it but as I've heard and have read that's a old wives tale but do like It said earlier drain and refill drive for a little for a few months and do it again im not the sharpest tool in the shed but that's what ive heard and read.
If the trans fluid is black it's likely that your clutches are burnt and a flush at this point is not going to help nor hurt your transmission a drain and fill is pointless you'll only get a little bit of the fluid out
If the trans is not slipping under load which would be like when you are towing something I would say go ahead and get the flush this will insure that you get all trans fluid replaced since the torque converter holds most your fluid and then pull your pan and replace the filter I'm a trans mechanic and I try to do this about every 50k mi it's great preventive maintenance
If the trans is not slipping under load which would be like when you are towing something I would say go ahead and get the flush this will insure that you get all trans fluid replaced since the torque converter holds most your fluid and then pull your pan and replace the filter I'm a trans mechanic and I try to do this about every 50k mi it's great preventive maintenance
KidVermicious
New member
Black fluid is bad! I've never heard a definitive argument one way or the other regarding complete flushes, but you can't leave it like it is and expect much more life from that trans. I would drop the pan and change the filter ASAP. Then do that again in a thousand miles or so, and then do it again. At that point the fluid and filter should be coming out relatively clean - if they aren't, your clutches are toast and you should start saving for some major transmission work.
choopermane
New member
I've never towed anything with it but driving around it shifts fine haven't noticed any issues. It doesn't smell burnt either. Think maybe the previous owner could of put some kind of high mileage additive that changed its color
UTEP
New member
Hi,
My 4R has dark red that had a semi-burnt smell when I got it about 30,000 miles ago. As is suggested a power flush and fill was not recommended.
I ended up drain and filling about 12-16 gallons of Valvoline MaxLife over about 2 months and now it's bright pick, fresh as a daisy and no issues.
I did it over time as locally it seemed to go on sale at weird intervals. When buying supplies I'd grab a couple gallons.
I think I ran 4 gallons through right away and saw a marked improvement and then did subsequent changes on oil change day every ~3000 miles.
Expensive but cheaper and safer than a power fill.
HTH
Utep
choopermane
New member
I think I will take that route cut I don't really see any problem with the trans it self. I drive and hour to and from work each way so It deff. Would of gave signs if there was something wrong
ILRunner98
New member
Ive been a mechanic at my toyota dealer for 7 years now and have done lots of trans flushes on high mileage yotas and never had one come back with a bad transmission. We use Valvoline Maxlife for our flushes also. Really good stuff IMO.