flush or change
04-27-2004, 12:24 PM
#1
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Milwaukee
Posts: 17
flush or change
Am I better off changing the transmission fluid at home, or taking it to a dealership for the whole flushing of the fluid deal. I got new filter and what not, just want whats best for the z. FYI, its got 76k. sorta daily driver...
04-27-2004, 12:58 PM
#3
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Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Statesville NC
Posts: 1,109
flush.
if you drop the pan and change the filter you only remove about 4-5 quarts of the fulid. there is a lot more in the system then that which should be removed and changed.
not only that it;s less parts to buy, just the cost of having it done is higher
EDIT, there are also many other shops and garages that havd a flush mechine that will be cheeper then teh dealer. We are a very small shop but he have one. if my car was an auto i would use it. I used it on my GF's car and it;s great especialy since it's no mess at all.
if you drop the pan and change the filter you only remove about 4-5 quarts of the fulid. there is a lot more in the system then that which should be removed and changed.
not only that it;s less parts to buy, just the cost of having it done is higher
EDIT, there are also many other shops and garages that havd a flush mechine that will be cheeper then teh dealer. We are a very small shop but he have one. if my car was an auto i would use it. I used it on my GF's car and it;s great especialy since it's no mess at all.
04-28-2004, 01:05 PM
#6
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Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Statesville NC
Posts: 1,109
with a flush there is no need to change the filter. they usualy hook to the lines in the tranny and pump the old fluid out and new fluid in. Most places run a cleaner through as well. this way they do not have to use a lift to raise the car, spend the time droping the pan, changing the filter, cleaning the mateing surfaces and reinstalling a gasket.
04-29-2004, 08:45 AM
#9
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Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Statesville NC
Posts: 1,109
not to start a flame war..
but there isn;t much of anything to get caught. metal shavings will get caught by the magnet and not the filter. the only time you need to change the filter when doing a flush is if the fluid is really really nasty or your having a shifting or engagement issue, but as you know chances are if thats the case once you change the fluid the tranny might never move again anyway.
if you keep up with it IE every 30k miles then it will continue to be clean and trouble free.
Problem is if you drop the fan and change the filter you will ahve to add however much fluid you took out before you can flush. One reason a flush is so expensive is due to the fact that the mechines hold aprox 16 quarts of fluid and depending on how the tech does it a ggm car will usualy use about 13 of them. so thats figured into the cost. If you drop the pan and lose the fluid thats another 4-5 quarts that will need to be put in before the flush cause if your low when you start your low when you finish.
My bigest argument is that there is NO WAY to get ALL the fluid out of the tranny by droping the pan. there is a LOT more inside the tranny, converter, cooler and lines etc. so think of it this way. your only changing about 1/3 of the fluid when you drop the pan. Would you change your oil every 3k miles and only drain 1.5 quarts and change the filter?
Trust me. I looked into this and learned about it before I ever did it to my gf's car. I have done aprox 10 flushs so far at work and it always turns out great. we had one customer with a chevy truck that knew the fluid was nasty and wanted teh filter change but sold him a flush anyway so that all the fluid would come out. He said the tranny never shifted so good since he had the truck
but there isn;t much of anything to get caught. metal shavings will get caught by the magnet and not the filter. the only time you need to change the filter when doing a flush is if the fluid is really really nasty or your having a shifting or engagement issue, but as you know chances are if thats the case once you change the fluid the tranny might never move again anyway.
if you keep up with it IE every 30k miles then it will continue to be clean and trouble free.
Problem is if you drop the fan and change the filter you will ahve to add however much fluid you took out before you can flush. One reason a flush is so expensive is due to the fact that the mechines hold aprox 16 quarts of fluid and depending on how the tech does it a ggm car will usualy use about 13 of them. so thats figured into the cost. If you drop the pan and lose the fluid thats another 4-5 quarts that will need to be put in before the flush cause if your low when you start your low when you finish.
My bigest argument is that there is NO WAY to get ALL the fluid out of the tranny by droping the pan. there is a LOT more inside the tranny, converter, cooler and lines etc. so think of it this way. your only changing about 1/3 of the fluid when you drop the pan. Would you change your oil every 3k miles and only drain 1.5 quarts and change the filter?
Trust me. I looked into this and learned about it before I ever did it to my gf's car. I have done aprox 10 flushs so far at work and it always turns out great. we had one customer with a chevy truck that knew the fluid was nasty and wanted teh filter change but sold him a flush anyway so that all the fluid would come out. He said the tranny never shifted so good since he had the truck
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