I have one asian vehicle at just over 300K - never flushed and one at 226K - never flushed.

Fluids/filters changed regularly

Smooth shifting...nice and quite.

 

My daughter has a 2002 Camry with 230k miles on it. She has owned the car 6 years since it had about 40k miles and taken good car of it. However, the transmission fluid has never been changed and a couple of years ago it started having trouble shifting. I put a can of Lucas transmission conditioner in and the problem went away. Now the transmission is having problems again and she said that sometimes when she put the car in reverse there is a clunking noise that really scared her. A couple of days ago she took it to a transmission shop and they did a test drive. The technician said he heard a whistling noise when the transmission shifted and that the fluid was very dark (as would be expected). He also put it on the computer diagnostic tester and said it did not give him any problem codes. Naturally the technician recommended she leave the car so they could drop the pan, change the fluid, and do an inspection. She did not agree to this however because of all the horror storied about transmission shops ripping off woman customers. I am tempted to follow the advice of others in this forum and drain the Trans fluid in the pan (2-3 quarts) and replace with new fluid + the Lucas additive. Then repeat this a few times as also suggested here. The engine runs fine and I hate to get rid of the car as the car is long paid off she really can't afford another car payment right now. So what do you recommend we do?

 

If the fluid is black change it. Trans fluid breaks down with heat. The hotter the fluid gets, the shorter its life. Over heated fluid results from stop and go driving, trailer pulling, hills, etc. 230K on the original fluid is much to long!

Your best route if possible is to find a shop that will replace the old fluid with new. This is often called flush but you don't want any chemical cleaners put into the trans. Just the old fluid removed and new added. There are machines that will do this.

The issue with trans shops is the tend to lean toward wanting to replace the trans as this is how they make their money.

You can drain and refill the pan but this only gets about 1/3 of the fluid, the rest is in the converter. If you did this a number of times the overall fluid will be cleaner and newer but not as good as doing a complete replacement via a machine or manually.

Manually involves removing trans fluid return hose (fluid returns to pan) at the trans that comes from the cooler on the radiator. Place the hose in a one gallon container. Drain and refill the pan, start engine and allow 2 quarts to be pumped out. Refill and repeat the process until the fluid is clear. Take 8-10 quarts.

If changing the fluid yourself take note of the fluid type used which is stamped on the dipstick.

Dropping the pan and cleaning it would be nice but not required.

The shop would most likely be checking for unusual debris in the pan as not much can be inspected inside the trans without taking it apart.

 

Ok, I would like to change the trans fluid manually but did not understand your procedure? I understand there are two lines from the transmission to the radiator. I believe you are telling me to remove the "return" line from the radiator to the transmission and allow 2 quarts of dirty trans fluid to drain from the radiator into the bucket. So far so good but then I don't understand what to do next. Are you saying I should:
1. Draining 2 quarts of dirty fluid into a 1 gal bucket and then empty the bucket.
2. Add 2 quarts of clean trans fluid using the fill tube, start the engine and allow 2 quarts of dirty fluid to be pumped to into the bucket,then empty the bucket.
3. Repeat step 2 until the trans fluid looks clean.

Is this procedure correct? Any suggest on telling which trans line is the return line on my 2002 Camry?

 

V6 or 4 cylinder engine?

1) Drain and refill the trans oil pan with new fluid.

2) Place return line in a 1 gallon transparent or translucent container. If the line is metal you may need to add a section of hose and run this into the container.

3) Start engine and allow the trans oil pump to force 2 quarts of trans fluid into the container.

4) Refill trans pan with new fluid.

5) Repeat steps 3 and 4 until the fluid coming out is as clear as new fluid.

6) When fluid is clear reconnect the line. Top off trans fluid as required to the proper mark on the dipstick. If the fluid is cold use the cold mark. Recheck when fluid is hot using the hot mark.

 

The 2002 Camry is a 4 cyl. Thanks for the new explaination on the manual flushing procedure it is quite clear and concise!

 

The outlet tube would be the one nearest the drivers fender.

 

I am new on this forum but not to Toyota. I agree fully with Toyomoho and have used this method for years every 60K. On 2001 and earlier you can flush the screen. Note that on 2002 and above they they actually have a filter element. Toyota parts and service will argue with you about this when they order the filter for you. They are surprised when it arrives and they see it. Cost is about $39 for a Toyota brand if you shop around. This should be changed when you manually flush. I also run Amsoil Synthetic ATF which is proably over kill but I expect well over 200K with no problems.
I bought a Corolla with over 180K for my sister and the ATF was really dirty. I did this process 4 or 5 years ago and the car is still going strong knock on wood :-)
Good Luck,
Kenneth

 

Thanks Kenneth. I didn't know about the transmission filter on my daughter's 2002 Camry but will definitely order one from the Toyota dealer as well as a new pan gasket. The synthetic ATF fluid also sounds like a great idea an would be money well spent!....Don Weston