Home Transmission Flush

[keezer37]

Been doing my 100,000 mile service: serpentine belt, thermostat, new coolant (block drains:yikes:) etc.
Last but not least, new trans fluid. Justifiable paranoia tells me if I took it to the dealer for this they would do nothing but steal $140 worth of Amsoil fluid from me and charge me for their thievery.
So, in that I have cooler lines coming off my '05 Tacoma I'm thinking that one clear line in an empty jug and another in the new fluid and the transmission will do the work. I've got the whole fluid level/appropriate temp thing down now so that's not a concern.
My fears:
-Old fluid coming out and nothing going in.
-Old fluid coming out, new fluid going in but way too soon, new fluid coming out.
-Everything goes swimmingly until I get in the truck and put it in "R".
-God awful noises cause me to hurriedly shut the engine down and cry.

My alternate is to look the service writer/mechanic in the eye and say "I don't trust you to actually do the work and I want to hover over you while you do it." I'm sure I'll get the liability speech while I'm shooed off to the waiting area to watch "The Price is Right".

Any supporting/dissenting opinions on my procedure?

[nater]

That is an accepted way of doing a home flush. The other accepted theory is just to drain the fluid, replace, drive 100 miles or so, and repeat 2x or 3x times. That is of course very expensive with good fluid @$8 a quart or so and 5 or more quarts being used each time.

What exactly do you fear from your dealer? That they take the Amsoil and fill your tranny with junk? Or that their flush wont be up to your standards? Either way, finding a place you trust is key.

[refried]

It will pump out into the bucket but the new fluid isn't going to be sucked up by the other line with out being pumped in. what about the filter? new fluid isn't going to last very long being sucked thru a dirty filter and sitting in a dirty pan. pull the pan, change the filter, then flush the cooler and torque converter.

[BajaRunner]

Here's a pretty nice writeup if your interested:

http://home.centurytel.net/stevenjackie/transmission%20flush/tranny.html

[HMR]

Been doing my 100,000 mile service: serpentine belt, thermostat, new coolant (block drains:yikes:) etc.Were you able to locate the block drains? I've been servicing my 2005 since new and have never been able to find them. I took my truck to my local Toyota dealer (huge service dept.) and they couldn't find them either. Strange...

FWIW- I change all the fluids on my truck myself EXCEPT transmission fluid. I don't have the proper equipment to do it right. I take my truck to a local transmission shop, not AAMCO, but a pro shop that services hot rods, race cars, etc. They'll use whatever fluid you give them and just charge for labor.

Good luck!

[keezer37]

Were you able to locate the block drains? I've been servicing my 2005 since new and have never been able to find them. I took my truck to my local Toyota dealer (huge service dept.) and they couldn't find them either. Strange...

FWIW- I change all the fluids on my truck myself EXCEPT transmission fluid. I don't have the proper equipment to do it right. I take my truck to a local transmission shop, not AAMCO, but a pro shop that services hot rods, race cars, etc. They'll use whatever fluid you give them and just charge for labor.

Good luck!

Yeah. Don't look at the manual, their picture sucks.
They are both viewable from the wheel wells. Check out the passenger side first. Pull away the tar paper like splash guard thing and you'll see the brass fitting and the small drain tube.
It was not my intention to go after these drains but I only got about three quarts of old stuff out from the radiator drain. The majority came from the block drain. I think I got all but a quart+. I only opened the drain on the passenger side in that I got most of it out as per the capacity listed. If I damaged either of these block drains, I sure wouldn't want it to be the one on the driver side.

[MotoDave]

Here's a write up of the method you're thinking of:
http://www.4x4wire.com/forums/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=UBB78&Number=232123#Post232123

[keezer37]

Here's a pretty nice writeup if your interested:

http://home.centurytel.net/stevenjackie/transmission%20flush/tranny.html

Thank you and MotoDave for the links unfortunately the '05+ Tacoma Auto Trans has neither a fill tube nor a filter to change. The pan has a drain port and overflow port/tube (like a toilet tank) in the bottom. The fill port is on the side similar to a manual trans or any gear case. http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/05+/data/ileaf/06toyrm/06toypdf/06rmsrc/rm2006ta/02800210.pdf
I believe the transmission's pump will circulate the fluid this is why I believe that it will pick up along with discharging the fluid through the cooler lines.

My paranoia of dealerships not performing the work is based on observation. For the number of times I've had the truck in when under warranty or other vehicles for that matter in at various dealerships in the past, I always make a point of wandering around and scoping out my vehicle in the service area. I can count on one hand the number of times I've actually caught someone working on my truck. More often times than not, it is sitting there with the hood open or up on the lift with no one around it. So when it comes to something like this where I cannot verify the work was actually performed, my paranoia starts to kick in.

[RU55ELL]

There should be connections close to the tranny cooler. They break these connections and put the machine in line of the cooler and tranny. They fill the machine with new fluid and there is a drain line on the machine that drains the old fluid. That is how the Wynns machine I used was when I was a mechanic at a Dodge dealer. You ought to be able to get some old lines with those connections, hook them to the truck, run one to drain and the other to a tank of new fluid. The pump in the tranny does the work.

[refried]

unfortunately the '05+ Tacoma Auto Trans has neither a fill tube nor a filter to change.


Are you sure about that?

http://www.customtacos.com/tech/files/05FSM/data/ileaf/06toyrm/06toypdf/06rmsrc/rm2006ta/02700710.pdf

http://www.napaonline.com/Search/Results.aspx?Ntt=transmision%20filter&Ntk=Keyword&N=599001+102005+50070+2070023

[RU55ELL]

Are you sure about that?

http://www.customtacos.com/tech/files/05FSM/data/ileaf/06toyrm/06toypdf/06rmsrc/rm2006ta/02700710.pdf

http://www.napaonline.com/Search/Results.aspx?Ntt=transmision%20filter&Ntk=Keyword&N=599001+102005+50070+2070023

That NAPA link is bum.

[refried]

That NAPA link is bum.

Napa has 4
ATP 14271
ATP 17061
ATP 17035
ATP 18522

[CJCA]

So, in that I have cooler lines coming off my '05 Tacoma I'm thinking that one clear line in an empty jug and another in the new fluid and the transmission will do the work. I've got the whole fluid level/appropriate temp thing down now so that's not a concern.
My fears:
-Old fluid coming out and nothing going in.

That's what'll happen. The cooler line is pressurized. It won't provide any suction to draw in fresh fluid. Easiest DIY thing to do is a drain and fill. Or check around and find a shop you can trust.

[keezer37]

That's what'll happen. The cooler line is pressurized. It won't provide any suction to draw in fresh fluid. Easiest DIY thing to do is a drain and fill. Or check around and find a shop you can trust.

That was my one concern, that breaking the loop might remove the suction.

[keezer37]

Are you sure about that?

http://www.customtacos.com/tech/files/05FSM/data/ileaf/06toyrm/06toypdf/06rmsrc/rm2006ta/02700710.pdf

http://www.napaonline.com/Search/Results.aspx?Ntt=transmision%20filter&Ntk=Keyword&N=599001+102005+50070+2070023

It has an oil strainer. I believe it does not need to be changed. Truth be told, it's been so long now I cannot remember where I read this. Something else to research.
Then again for $38 http://www.trademotion.com/partlocator/index.cfm?action=getJointLocator&siteid=214074&chapter=&sectionids=1,0&groupid=10059&subgroupid=20013&componentid=60556&make=34&model=Tacoma&year=2005&catalogid=1&displayCatalogid=0 might as well replace it. Thanks for bringing it up.

[CJCA]

That was my one concern, that breaking the loop might remove the suction.

There is no suction. The complete cooler line circuit is pressurized to maybe 25psi. The only suction in the trans is in the pump intake. To my knowledge, the way the inline flush machines work is with a bladder, where the expelled ATF displaces the same amount of new ATF, which is fed back into the return line of the cooling circuit. They do not rely on suction.

Really, a regular drain and fill is fine preventative maintenance. Most Toyotas use a screen as a filter and unless there is a problem in the trans, pulling the pan and washing the screen is not necessary. If there is a problem, dropping the pan and washing the screen won’t help, except maybe in the short term. It’s not like the old days when Dacron or paper element filters (which clogged easily) were used.

An aftermarket cooler is a good idea as well.

[Jacket]

Any update on this pursuit keezer?

[jackal]

why not drop the pan and fill to the overflow line? i did that about 10k ago and have had no problems since.