Although, Halogen Fluid really needs to be power flushed at least once a year.
Toyota stations are still pushing the need to clean the carbon off the throttle-plate!
At 5 years or 60k miles, some of this is required to maintain warranty. If you have a 100k warranty as I do, well....
I was advised over a decade ago against transmission flushing (by a mechanic). He said that often they clean it “too well” but did not elaborate.
I will add that the only time I have ever experienced transmission failure (on a newly purchased care under 60,000 miles) was following a transmission treatment. The car was still under warranty and the engine ran in great shape until the frame was compromised in a rear-end collision at over 100,000 miles.
Great advice - thank you!
I will follow your advice and check the manufacturer’s recommendation more carefully.
Great info, thanks for posting. I never bought the transmission fluid flush sales pitch. The first time I heard it, the guy said “...so you can see that YOUR fluid is losing its nice pinkish color.” Sheesh.
for later
Ping!
Good post. Right on the money.
This sounds like it should set off the BS meter.
Just try running that F150 for its lifetime without changing the transmission fluid. You will be replacing it at around 100k.
I take my plasma HDTV in at least once a year to have the plasma “topped off”. Once every three years I plan to have the plasma “flushed”. /sarc
And never use that 'engine leak fixer' fluid stuff. And DO use synthetic motor oil because you can go up to 10,000 mi before an oil change!
Most IMPORTANT service for a car is to DO REGULAR OIL CHANGES (EVERY 6,000 MI (AVG.)) AND ALWAYS CHECK YOUR OIL DIPSTICK LEVEL!!!
Oh, and.. DRIVE A MANUAL TRANS., NOT AN AUTOMATIC!!! And NEVER get a BLACK car because you will have to wash it constantly and it's about 10 degrees hotter on the inside on hot days than a white car is.
This is how you get 200K+ miles out of a car. Of course, has to be decently designed and reliable in the first place.
Our 1993 4Runner is hitting the 200K mark without any major repairs. Knock on wood. Think that it still has the original clutch too. Funny. I don’t remember replacing it. Lol. My son learned to drive a clutch using it. So it is probably due.
Best advise is simple - follow the recommended maintenance schedule in your owners manual.
What about an engine flush. I’ve read both pro and con on the subject. I’ve Los read that synthetic oils can and do break down sludge, and that can lead to clogged oil channels.
Any truth to that?
Titles uses the alarming word “Dangerous” but the article never does and never explains it.
A guy walks *OUT* of a bar, where 3 cops are standing. The guy crosses the east-west street, right in front of the cops.
The guy is only some 30 ft from the concrete pillar of a parking garage, where he stops - in plain site, still - un-zips and pees, right there.
Apparently, that was *NOT* “potentially dangerous.”
I had purchased a 1966 Dodge Dart in 1992 from a little ol’ lady. The odometer had 39,900 on it, and I had it up to over 120,000 in 1994; the transmission fluid was never changed, and the transmission never had any problems. The 28 year old fluid was still pink.
My old Dodge Van automatic transmission actually quit working because the filter became clogged after it got overheated towing a trailer. I thought a tear-down would be necessary, but incredibly just changing the filter and fluid took care of the problem. With most automatic transmissions if your fluid gets really fouled you must drain it twice or more to get the majority of the bad stuff out. That is because if you drain them merely by taking the pan loose over half the fluid can still be in the torque converter and cooling system.