JUST FINISHED.

Piece of cake. Took only 30 minutes and its 100 times easier than doing your oil. And you are right OFF ROADER, there really is no reason to post a DIY. But here is what I did (step by step)

1. Got my 17mm socket
2. Located the drain which is on the side of the tranny pan (towards the passenger front wheel)
3. Unscrewed that bad boy, and let the fluid drian for about 20 minutes.
4. Used KIA SP3 (SPIII) Transmission Fluid. I used KIA becasue they had the best price. I only used 4 quarts on my drain and fill.
5. Filled it back up

I must admit that it REALLY shifts smoother now.

Good luck guys, its really easy to do. Also it only cost $29 for me to do it. The dealer wanted $85 for a drain and fill. [sm=bling.gif]

 

Glad you didn't have any problems. One thing I suggest as your rig gets older (depending on use) is more frequent AT fluid changes.

Since I regularly take mine off road on much harsher conditions than what it will ever encounter in street traffic (rock crawling) I change my fluid (via a flush versus a drain then refill) annually (drive less than 10K/yr). Flushing it changes all the fluid, not just that which is in the pan.

I do this as a preventative measure especially with a 15 year old transmission w/ over 200k that's never been rebuilt.[sm=smiley20.gif]

 

Thanks for the follow up. How many miles on your truck?

 

240k-ish... (speedo stopped working about 3 years ago w/ 180k on the ticker). W/ 33x12.5's and additional extra weight (probably an extra 150lbs in the back & another 350lbs of armor) it ends up taking a major beating beyond a regular Montero.

I only stopped using it as a dailer driver in March.

 

How many miles you your truck Marc?

 

Well its a second car. The wife drives it, and it only has 28,000. Not bad for almost 4 years old. Basically takes the kids to school and to the grocery store.

 

To clarify further, I should give a better idea of my driving style so you have an idea of how hardy these tranny's really are...

I don't baby this truck but by the same token I do maintain it regularly with oil changes quarterly regardless of mileage (less than 3k) & the annual tranny flushes. Since 99 I've rebuilt the 1st engine once at ~90K (blown head gasket), replaced the first engine w/ a used one at ~170k (another blown head gasket), and replaced the drivers side head last year.

It's mostly driven in the city with typical stop and go driving. While I do drive it hard (usually at ~85 on the freeway or even higher on trips on I-5 between N. Cal & S. Cal.) I drive it conservatively in the city. Lets face it, gas hasn't ever gotten any cheaper.

I don't try to accelerate very fast though, cause it simply won't. [sm=gears.gif]

 

Hello-

Just wondering - If I change the fluid every 15k (just drain the pan, no flush) is that sufficient? Do I really need to do the flush? It's just a lot easier to do the pan.

Thanks

 

I guess it depends on which year/model tranny you have as well as your driving. If you're using it daily in stop and go traffic then that's harsher on a tranny that if you spend most of your driving on a freeway at a constant speed.

Also, just draining your fluid will not remove the fluid that's in the torque converter (more than 1 quart).

Lastly, you're talking $80 per year for that flush which isn't much when you take into account the cost you're paying for the fluid alone.

Remember though, this is for my 1990V6 Auto w/ over 240k miles on the odometer.

 

Ok, did a full flush tonight and got out only about 4.5 - 5.0 qts. Disconnected line from cooler and ran in neutral till it stopped flowing out. Then drained pan. Could there still be some old in there?

I am worried that the trans was running really low on fluid - supposed to get about 6.3 qts out.

The old fluid was not burnt or black (had about 20k on it). Should I be worried? It never shifted hard or anything.

Jack