Tuesday, July 20, 2010 - 01:33 pm, by: David Goldthorpe(Sprocket82)
Not having any problems with the transmission but have noticed the auto fluid is getting a bit brown, so maybe time for a service. My local auto-transmission specialist thinks a full power-flush is going a bit overboard unless the fluid is really bad. He thinks just a basic flush and filter clean is all that's required.
Does this sound right?
He thinks I'll need about 5L of fluid. I can only get Toyota Type IV fluid in a 4L drum from Toyota at this point ($57), so is 5L really necessary?
I've never done this service myself and was going to let the mechanic take care of it. Id like to have a go myself but how hard is it to get the pan off with just the front end jacked up?
Tuesday, July 20, 2010 - 05:19 pm, by: Tom Richards(Tomr)
the full system is about 12L, If you only replace the sump, you are putting 4L of new fluid with 8L of old crap. Is this a good idea?(bit like doing an oil change without removing the oil filter) It is easy to flush the lot and put 12L of "good stuff" in.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010 - 08:21 pm, by: Murray Lund(Murray)
David, I researched a trans fluid change recently and this is what I figured. Please note I haven't got round to doing it yet and there may be others here who can refine this information.
12 litres T-IV fluid Transmission gasket 35178-50010 (some just use sealant) 3 x Filter bolts torque 100kg-cm / 10Nm/ 7 ft lb 19 x pan bolts 75 kg cm / 7.4 Nm / 65 inch lb Triple Bond Sealant - note Type IV doesn't like sealers with silicon in them
NB: Fluid flows from passenger side of radiator to drivers side
1. Drain pan (note quantity) 2. Drop pan, clean filter 3. Replace pan 4. Top up through filler tube (same as you drained) 5. Undo passengers side pipe at the radiator and drain into bucket 6. Fill through drivers side pipe (plastic hose and funnel) while running engine and shifting gearbox into each gear (do a bit at a time, then turn off and fill same quantity as you drain) 7. Turn off when fluid pumped out is clean 8. Do up hoses and check fluid level (when vehicle is idling at running at normal temperature, shift up through each gear and back and then check level while idling.)
Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - 06:13 am, by: Matthew Sharpe(Madmatt)
Sounds about right. I run my car in 20-30 second runs, which seems to equate to around 2 litres of fluid per run so takes about 5 runs to flush. It can be a messy job if you position your catch can wrong! I've done that twice now :-(
Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - 07:28 am, by: Tom Richards(Tomr)
I have done mine a couple of times, but only removed the pan the first time. The filter was very clean (washable filter, not replaceable)It is a real pain getting the pan off, that is why i wouldnt bother doing it. I filled it up thru the dip stick. Its quick and easy if you dont remove the sump pan.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - 12:59 pm, by: Tom Richards(Tomr)
the car had 130k kms on the clock when i first changed the oil, so i would assume it had never been changed since new. Seeing how most places just drain the sump and put in 4L, i think putting in 12L is way in front even with out checking the filter.
Don Bagnall Moderator New Zealand 2002 Ford Fairmont AUII 6 cyl.
Thursday, July 29, 2010 - 03:54 pm, by: Tom Richards(Tomr)
give an update on the filter etc when you drop the pan. It is a tight fit to remove and tighter to get back in. I used the toyota sealent when i did mine. No leaks.
Friday, July 30, 2010 - 05:54 pm, by: David Goldthorpe(Sprocket82)
HELP... After tackling the job with a friend today, I suspect I may have gotten air into the ATF pump!
I followed Murray's procedure above and all was going well until I got to step 5/6. Either I mis-understood which cooler pipe is which or someone has previously swapped them over on the cooler because we started the engine and old ATF fluid shot out of the filler tube. So, after cleaning that mess up, I swapped the tubes around so that they were set up correctly.
After adding about a litre of ATF fluid to the inlet tube, we then ran it in Nuetral and old ATF fluid came out as expected. Once the new fluid started coming through, I added more new fluid to the inlet and we tried it in 1st.
I started getting a mixture of air and old fluid in 1st, so we stopped and added more new fluid.
I'm total I've added 10L of new fluid, and I reckon we drained about 10L as well (including from the sump). I still can't get any fluid to come out of the drain pipe in any gear except nuetral. I couldn't accurately measure the fluid I drained but the dip stick is showing at the bottom end of the scale (ie the cold reading). At that point, I decided to call it a day and ask you guys for advice.
Have I done something wrong and if so can anyone tell me what?
Should I just add the other 2L of new ATF fluid I have left, re-attach the coolant pipes and hope for the best?
Do you need to have the wheels spinning at a certain speed so that the higher gears are used?
Any help much appreciated!
Thanks.
Oh, and Tom, you were pretty spot on with the filter being fairly clean already. I've got photos I will post up if/when I can get this mess sorted. Cheers.
Saturday, July 31, 2010 - 10:20 am, by: Matthew Sharpe(Madmatt)
Don't bother moving it through the gears, I've never done that - leave it in neutral or park. The amount of fluid left in the pipes is neglegable, long as you get most of it out of the converter. Air in the system will work its way out, long as you check the level regularly.
Sunday, August 01, 2010 - 12:10 pm, by: David Goldthorpe(Sprocket82)
OK so I've drained a bit more in neutral. Only the new fluid was draining out so I've re-attached the coolant pipes, added another litre of new fluid and started her up. A bit of smoke started coming from the passenger side cat-converter where I had obviously spilled some fluid whilst filling at the dipstick (so no real drama there).
Went for a quick test drive and all gears work OK but it's slipping from neutral to 1st (ie. I need to give it some revs to engage 1st). I checked the fluid level again and it still looked good. I was hoping it might just be computer related, so I reset the main ECU and the Transmission ECU and went for a 5 minute drive, testing all gears. It still seems to slip out of gear sometimes when I come to a complete stop. Then you have to give it some revs to get 1st. The fluid level is currently reading at the second notch (just above cold).
I did a search but couldn't find any info on this exact problem. Is the torque-converter not getting enough fluid? Any help much appreciated!
Sunday, August 01, 2010 - 09:48 pm, by: David Goldthorpe(Sprocket82)
Still haven't solved the slipping problem but here are some photos I took:
Here's the old fluid drained from the sump. Note the corrosion mark in the middle of the red plastic strainer caused by the fluid. It was at this point I decided to wash my hands and wear gloves!
Here's the pan after being removed. There was a coating of very fine metal filings covering the magnets but that was to be expected.
Here's the filter after being removed. It was already fairly clean except for a few small bits of gasket and filings in there.
Sunday, August 01, 2010 - 09:52 pm, by: David Goldthorpe(Sprocket82)
Side and rear shots of the transmission. Getting the pan off was easy. Getting it back on was a different story, particularly trying to get the dipstick tube in the right spot whilst getting the pan into place .
After cleaning pan and filter with petrol.
I left the old gasket on as I didn't buy a new one and wasn't sure if there would be any clearance problems without it. Just added a good amount of "Gasket Goo" before replacing.
Sunday, August 01, 2010 - 09:58 pm, by: David Goldthorpe(Sprocket82)
My 1 dollar inlet funnel. Gravity feeding the new fluid took forever.
This shot is looking down from directly behind the radiator. For beginners like myself, remember to plug your inlet tube into the the passengers side cooling pipe (top pipe) and drain from the drivers side pipe (lower pipe). Otherwise, you end up with a big mess like I did.
Monday, August 02, 2010 - 06:44 am, by: Matthew Sharpe(Madmatt)
I always scrape all the old gasket off and re-seal. Takes ages, but I've never had a leak. Mind you, never done a A340E, only A340's which don't have a gasket but rely on the FIP stuff.
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