Transmission fluid change

[Cam28315]

I have a 2017 with 78k miles. Mechanic shop where I do oil changes recommended a trans oil change based on mileage but I know the manual has that listed as maintenance many miles down the road (150k) or so; forget exactly. I’d be worried to change it that long from now but is there any benefit to changing now vs say another 5-10k miles? Worried about something going after changing but want to keep it in top shape as well. Brake fluid and all was changing about 15k miles ago after a brake master cylinder failure Searched on the site and read through some threads but didn’t see an answer to something like this so wanted to ask! Thanks!!

 

[762mm]

Watch this, it will answer everything :

 

[Trainmaster]

Unless you're doing a lot of towing or severe service, another five thousand miles shouldn't hurt anything. But do you know the history of the truck? Was it overheated or driven in stop and go traffic every summer day? Certainly changing fluid every 60K miles won't hurt anything but your wallet, running around with burnt fluid will shorten the life of your transmission.

If the truck was used in regular service, your 80K or 100K service should be fine. I've always done them around that mileage, and I've never had a failure and kept them all well into 200K miles.

 

[Plati]

He said change the oil at 3000 ... It will be all black ... He said.

My oil is not black at 6000 miles when it's changed. A little darker yes but not black by any stretch of the imagination.

2014EL

Even my 2003 ... darker but not all black. I've got a Craftsman lawnmower I never change oil. Now that's black.

 

[johnboneske]

Shops ALWAYS tell you to change it more often, that's how they make their money... Don't waste your money!

 

[762mm]

To each their own. Here are my observations from changing fluids in my (new to me) 2014 with 132k miles :


Coolant : Original "gold" coolant looked destroyed. It was turning brown and had gummy/sticky floaties in it. Flushed / replaced with Prestone green OAT coolant.

Power steering : Fluid was dark brown and looked nasty. Replacement fluid (Mercon LV) is bright red.

Brake fluid : Fluid in reservoir looked clean and had a slightly orange tint. If I knew it was in such good condition, I wouldn't have changed it (synthetic DOT 4 type).

Front diff : Fluid was dark gray color and smelled pretty bad. It looked like it was full of microscopic gray particles. It wasn't burnt though, just very dirty with metallic sludge. Fluid changed for 75W90 synthetic and a magnetic fill plug was installed to reduce future contamination (not factory equipped).

Transmission : Fluid / filter did not appear to have ever been changed. Fluid was dark red in color, but in good condition overall. Fluid filter casing was covered in microscopic metal particles and so was the pan magnet (no large chunks, though). It definitely could've used an earlier fluid/filter change to keep all solenoids happy...

Transfer case : Fluid had been changed in it before, as evidenced by the slightly damaged fill plug. Fluid was nice and bright red. I changed it anyway, just to be safe. Magnetic drain and fill plugs will be installed on next fluid change (not factory equipped).

Rear diff : Hard to tell if fluid was changed, as it was in pretty good condition and slightly greenish in color. The rear diff drain and fill plugs are equipped with magnets though, so that might've kept the fluid cleaner than the front diff. Changed it for new 75W140 synthetic.


So, saying that fluid changes "don't do anything but lighten your wallet" is a bit of an ignorant statement, as these electronically-controlled components are very sensitive to contamination... and clearly, most of these fluids were definitely due for a while.

 

[Plati]

To each their own. Here are my observations from changing fluids in my (new to me) 2014 with 132k miles :


Coolant : Original "gold" coolant looked destroyed. It was turning brown and had gummy/sticky floaties in it. Flushed / replaced with Prestone green OAT coolant.

Power steering : Fluid was dark brown and looked nasty. Replacement fluid (Mercon LV) is bright red.

Brake fluid : Fluid in reservoir looked clean and had a slightly orange tint. If I knew it was in such good condition, I wouldn't have changed it (synthetic DOT 4 type).

Front diff : Fluid was dark gray color and smelled pretty bad. It looked like it was full of microscopic gray particles. It wasn't burnt though, just very dirty with metallic sludge. Fluid changed for 75W90 synthetic and a magnetic fill plug was installed to reduce future contamination (not factory equipped).

Transmission : Fluid / filter did not appear to have ever been changed. Fluid was dark red in color, but in good condition overall. Fluid filter casing was covered in microscopic metal particles and so was the pan magnet (no large chunks, though). It definitely could've used an earlier fluid/filter change to keep all solenoids happy...

Transfer case : Fluid had been changed in it before, as evidenced by the slightly damaged fill plug. Fluid was nice and bright red. I changed it anyway, just to be safe. Magnetic drain and fill plugs will be installed on next fluid change (not factory equipped).

Rear diff : Hard to tell if fluid was changed, as it was in pretty good condition and slightly greenish in color. The rear diff drain and fill plugs are equipped with magnets though, so that might've kept the fluid cleaner than the front diff. Changed it for new 75W140 synthetic.


So, saying that fluid changes "don't do anything but lighten your wallet" is a bit of an ignorant statement, as these electronically-controlled components are very sensitive to contamination... and clearly, most of these fluids were definitely due for a while.

Could you elaborate a little more on the sensitivity of the "electronically controlled components" to fluid contamination? I'm not understanding that.

 

[jeff kushner]

Yeah 762, you are talking 5 years for those fluids....we should expect degradation....especially in brake, coolant & power steering. The lube oils tend to be harder to break down and last longer but all oils become acidic after bonding to the other molecules of combustion and over the long term this can cause bearing issues but that would likely take 20 years.

Cars today are good, very good but you still need to take care of them.....time does not equal miles......


jeff

 

[Plati]

My trusted shop told me brake fluid doesn't degrade. Doesn't need to be replaced. These guy are older running a shop started by their Dad and are very good.

It is hydrophilic ... Can absorb water if exposed to atmosphere.

I'm running original brake fluid in my 2003, except for that bled during maintenance. Works fine. Brakes have performed well

 

[Trainmaster]

Shops ALWAYS tell you to change it more often, that's how they make their money... Don't waste your money!

Never ask a barber if you need a haircut.

 

[Plati]

Never ask a barber if you need a haircut.

How about surgery?
Should you ask a surgeon?

Ok, I guess that's a little sarcastic but I do consult with my shop for fluid changes and I trust their answers

 

[johnboneske]

Your probably the same guys who change their oil at 3000 miles too. READ THE BOOK! Do you honestly think that any shop or dealer has more.knowledge than the manufacturer themselves?



Go by what the book says!

 

[Cam28315]

Thanks for the replies!! I watched the video. I’m going to go ahead and wait another few months probably. They just do a drain and fill now typically? I remember hearing about the flushes causing problems on high mile vehicle when the oil hasn’t been changed. Think I’m just paranoid bc I love my car and want it to last a long time and don’t want to screw things up

 

[johnboneske]

Thanks for the replies!! I watched the video. I’m going to go ahead and wait another few months probably. They just do a drain and fill now typically? I remember hearing about the flushes causing problems on high mile vehicle when the oil hasn’t been changed. Think I’m just paranoid bc I love my car and want it to last a long time and don’t want to screw things up

I agree with you too! I love my vehicles and always take care of them. My pockets aren't as deep as alot of people, so I take care of what I own. But, changing fluids early is just a waste of $! Do what the book says and your fine.

I know plenty of people who change their oil every 3000 miles, and some who run Synthetic oil every 3000 miles too. I don't know what your book says for your year? I think mine says every 7500 miles and that's conventional.

I change mine with Mobile 1 and a filter at 8000, change trans fluid every 25k in mine though cause I routinely pull 7000 pounds. I've never changed diff lube, have changed the power steering fluid once(since the pump went bad) and once done the coolant. I have 225k on my odometer and is just fine. Sold my last Expedition with 298k on it, my wife's Trailblazer EXT has 195k on it... Changed trans fluid in it once.


I agree, take care of what you own and love but don't listen to the shops. They would have you do it much more frequently.

 

[johnboneske]

Your right, I have known a few people(myself included) on flushing trans fluid when a vehicle is just below the 200k mark and after the change the trans wouldn't shift right, which tells you that it needed the "crap" that was in the fluid to work properly.

 

[Gary Waugh]

I change my transmission fluid, transfer box fluid and differential fluids every 70K miles, its not a huge expense if you do it yourself and gives me peace of mind, I have over 180K miles on my expedition El (08) and it still runs great, changes gears great and has no leaks. It pulls a 24 foot enclosed trailer on a regular basis so I like to change the fluids more often. I change the brake fluid every 5 years again, just for peace of mind!! I have heard that if you leave the old transmission oil in for a long time and then change it (say at 140K miles) the transmission sometimes starts messing up on shifts!!

If you do the work yourself all the fluids cost less than $200 total, and I have to do it once every 5 years or so!! Seems a low cost job and I like the peace of mind it gives me!!

 

[richs fishes]

Do you honestly think that any shop or dealer has more.knowledge than the manufacturer themselves?

I hate hearing that as an answer and sort of agree and disagree at the same time. If the manufacturers really knew so much we'd never see vehicles break down, have recalls, TSBs, updated parts etc. Ideally the manufacturer certainly should know more. Maybe they do and keep the info to themselves for some reason. But that doesn't mean a particular shop wont have just as much if not more knowledge about one aspect or another of a vehicle. A run of the mill shop might also know that the manufacturer was forced and regulated to use a particular part or fluid to meet one standard or another when it reality it is not the best choice.

In my case when I bought my Expy with 92K miles I had a transmission shudder that I resolved by draining and refilling the fluid.

 

[Icemanjones]

First: brake fluid should still be checked from time to time for signs a seal is breaking down. If you dont catch it in time you may have to overhaul the whole system including the abs (ask me how I know).
2nd: the color and smell of the fluid will tell you a lot. Dont just rely on numbers. 3k mile oil change in 1 vehicle could be a waste of money but in another could have saved the engines life from a disaster! My 95 GMC gets changed with good old dino juice every 6 months even with only 500 miles ticked off during that time. Be cautious until you learn your truck.

 

[johnboneske]

First: brake fluid should still be checked from time to time for signs a seal is breaking down. If you dont catch it in time you may have to overhaul the whole system including the abs (ask me how I know).
2nd: the color and smell of the fluid will tell you a lot. Dont just rely on numbers. 3k mile oil change in 1 vehicle could be a waste of money but in another could have saved the engines life from a disaster! My 95 GMC gets changed with good old dino juice every 6 months even with only 500 miles ticked off during that time. Be cautious until you learn your truck.

I agree with that. Every 6 months is a good rule of thumb if you dont put any miles on it. Although I have 2 Taurus SHO's(89 and 95) that I change once a year with Synthetic, they both get driven less than a 1000 miles a year.

 

[762mm]

Could you elaborate a little more on the sensitivity of the "electronically controlled components" to fluid contamination? I'm not understanding that.

Like Makuloco says, these solenoid-controlled transmissions are very sensitive to contamination.


As for "manufacturer recommended change intervals", they are a friggin joke! The manufacturer doesn't care, because the truck will be looong off warranty by the time the tranny or rear end ***** the bed on original fluid! Like Makuloco says in the video above, it's a marketing ploy to make you believe in low costs of ownership. In other words, it's the ******** that helps them sell more trucks!


Take it from a guy (me) who had to get transmissions rebuilt 3 times on my previous Ford : that new fluid and filter is the BEST investment you'll ever make! Same applies for transfer cases and rear ends, especially if you tow heavy.


If you got the truck used and don't know if it was ever in water, changing diff fluid (front and back) is a must. At the very least, you have to check for water contamination...