Never Do THIS To Your Toyota and Lexus Transmission | Do's and Don'ts For Transmission Fluid

Dear Toyota and Lexus Owners. Please don't make the mistake of thinking just because you drive a Toyota that your transmission is just going to last a very long time without anything done to it.

The key of every Toyota and Lexus reliability is understanding the maintenance and performing it according to your driving conditions.

There are many theories and myths about transmission fluid replacement. Is it sealed for life? Should you change it and when? Should you leave it alone?

There are 2 types of Toyota transmission fluids. One is WS and one is Type 4. Each fluid requires a specific replacement interval and if you follow then you won't have any issues with your automatic transmission fluid for a very long time as they are truly well built.

Hope this helps someone out there not make the mistakes that I see people make all the time.

TCCN Automotive Inc.
Toyota and Lexus Specialist Repair

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#thecarcarenut #tccnautomotive #toyota #lexus

0:00 Intro
0:37 When Should You Change Your Transmission Fluid?
1:58 What Fluid Should You Use?
3:26 What if you are already over the recommended mileage?
5:06 Why You Should NOT Replace Your Overdue Transmission Fluid?
7:53 Transmission Fluid Flush VS. Drain and Fill
10:10 Should you keep changing the fluid until it's bright red?
11:00 What to DO and NOT DO when you have a high mileage fluid?
13:48 What About the Transmission Filter?
15:11 Final Recommendations

[TheCarCareNut]

To answer some of your follow up questions:
1- this is the same recommendations for CVT transmissions except the fluid is different.
2- This does NOT apply to hybrids. Hybrid ECVT transmissions don’t have clutches and a valve body, you can change it at any time. A good interval is between 60k-90k miles.
3- ECVT hybrid transmissions use WS fluid

I will update this list as I go through the comments to answer follow up questions

[inocente]

This guy is becoming a legend for us Toyota owners... keep it up bro...

[kennethwilliams]

Some of the most gratifying words in a Toyota owner's life is when you hear our beloved Nut say "Life is good".

[alucinosis]

Bought a 94 Lexus ES300 (1MZFE) in 2007 with 130, 000 miles. Changed Transmission fluid for the first time (original owner never changed it). Kept changing every 45, 000 or 3 years, engine and transmission still running strong to this day. 330, 000 miles now. Toyota/Lexus the best!

[Dtrm]

Been a car guy over 50 years. First and best real detailed info about automatic transmission service. Hats off, than you!

[lukewalker]

As an automotive engineer, I sometimes am pretty critical of your reviews because I actually create the DNA and know why engineers do what they do.
But this is one of the best Transmission Fluid Change Videos I have seen irrespective of automotive brand.
Really puts into perspective risk/benefit of changing fluids as all cars age.
Thanks for helping inform the public.

[tico]

My 13 year old Toyota with 200, 000 miles was shifting poorly so I thought what the heck. I drained the transmission and replaced the filter. Shifting much better now.

[rd]

I think he is talking about flushing. In my opinion, if the transmission fluid is dirty, no matter the mileage, a drain and fill is always beneficial, and you can do several drain and fill over several weeks because each drain and fill replaces only 1/3 of the fluid. Even 3 drain and fill won’t replace all the old fluid because old and new are mixed, BUT it improves a lot the quality of transmission fluid that lubricates and cools down the transmission. All those precious gunk that may be holding a broken transmission together are unaffected by drain and fill.

[steve]

Car Care Nut Rules!!!! You sir are a wealth of TRUSTED knowledge. Appreciate all the time you take to make these videos. I hope your business grows beyond your expectations. You deserve it.

[JG-kvoi]

We own a 2007 Yaris my wife bought new with 400, 000 km on the clock. I've changed the Trans fluid with Toyota WS every 40, 000 km and she's still going strong.

[istudyyou]

I changed my transmission fluid around 130, 000 miles I used Ams Oil and it works even better to this day. The car has now 220, 000 miles It’s a 2009 Lexus GS 350. 😁

[gregguiltner]

My Sienna is close to 300, 000 miles with no transmission fluid change yet! I think I'll just keep driving. What a great vehicle this has been! I should have changed it, but I didn't know any better until I was WAY past 60, 000 miles.
Thanks to The Car Care Nut, I'm way better educated on my Toyota maintenance now! Thank you so much for all the great information you provide!!!

[DrewsBackYardMechanics]

When I get a vehicle that has high mileage & original fluid, I change just one quart of fluid each oil change with oem fluid, & so far it has helped my vehicles shifting & one of the cars had 360, 00 miles & the other had 250, 00 miles

[NorthlanderMN]

My 2010 Camry has 160000 miles. Never serviced the fluid since new because the dealer said it’s a life time fluid. Did the drain and fill at AAMCO. The Camry now shifts from park to drive or reverse much more smoothly. It drives better and seems like it wants to keep going when foot is removed from the gas. Nothing was wrong with my Camry but it’s smoother now. Glad I did it.

[chrislang]

I’ve been changing the transmission fluid every 50, 000 miles with Toyota Fluid and the engine oil/filter with full synthetic 5w30 every 5, 000 miles in my 2006 Corolla, purchased in 2006, for 400, 000 miles and so far so good, its runs and shifts as it always has. Looking forward to throwing a 500, 000 mile party for the Corolla in a few years. Only issue is Yellow Check Engine light has been on since 150, 000 miles, no changes in fuel consumption or performance. Dealer resets and it comes back on.
I also have a 2002 Lexus SC430 I purchased 6 years ago with one owner 100% full timely service records, now at 120, 000 miles, which I am continuing to maintain at recommended service intervals with original Toyota parts and recommend fluids. Through diligent research I found an independent local shop of former Toyota/Lexus mechanics in my area, Minnesota, that are much like yourself who maintain my Lexus.
Thank You for all the great educational videos.

[-yankee]

Best You Tube instructional videos I have seen. I only wish I lived near his shop so I could quit watching the videos and just take my car to him. There was a time when I worked on my own cars, motorcycles, boat motors, and even maintained my own airplanes but I'm just too old and certainly don't trust my local dealerships to do shit (well maybe that is all I trust them to do), so I watch these to make sure they do what they are supposed to. Great job!

[Krakondack]

Aside from all the great points you made in this video, the observation that Toyota transmissions are normally clunky when cold saved me from going down the road of over-maintaining the transmission of my second-gen Sequoia. Thank you, this one is a classic.

[AR-pmnv]

My dealer refused to drain and fill one of mine, because it’s a “Lifetime” fluid. So I just did all 3 of my vehicles.They were at around 60-80k. 2015 Tacoma, 2016 Lexus GX460 and 2017 4Runner. I made it easy, by getting a pressurized fluid pump, and a Foxwell scanner that reads transmission temperatures.

[cadacabezaesunmundo]

I learned from you to change the transmission fluid in my Toyota. Good that you have helped clarify that the fluid gets dark after a couple of thousand miles. Thanks to you and your team for helping make the world a better world.

[jbaidoo]

I was very lucky then. Last year, I had the dealership change my transmission fluid on my 2016 Tacoma for the first time at 156, 000mi and so far so good. I will keep the interval you recommended and change it every 30k miles going forward. Thank you.