Trans Flush

What all is involved if I did a Trans flush on my 90' cherokee automatic? is it as cut and dry as draining and filling? i know it needs it. any info accepted, Thanks Justin

Hi Justin,

I'll tell you what I discovered and you decide...

A full tranny flush at the shop will cost you about $80. I'm pretty sure this includes a new filter screen and a total flush of the system.

I thought I'd save some money and do it myself. I figured to get close to a similar quality of fluid replacement, I'd have to drain and fill a couple of times, with driving in between to get all of the old fluid out. (I don't have the equipment at home to suck all the fluid out of the tranny, only the stuff in the pan) I'm sure there is still some residual contamination in there, but I did it three times, by the third time the fluid was coming back out pretty clean.

The hardest part of the whole job was getting the pan off to change the screen at the beginning of this process. The dipstick tube comes down and enters the side of the pan, which makes it a royal pain to get the pan off. The tube is split about 8-10" above the pan, and theres an O-ring in there that is a bugger to get loose. I ended up squirting some Sea Foam lube in around the o-ring and working it until it finally came loose. Once you've got the pan off the filter is a snap and the rest of the project is putting it all back together. After that, you don't have to drop the pan to change fluid, just use the drain plug.

So here's the math:
the filter for my tranny cost $35
(if I remember right) 5qts fluid per change X 3 = 15qts X $2 = $30
My time (including extra time for fighting the pan) = 3 hrs

If $65 and 3 hours (total) is better than $80 and no time, then do it yourself. Otherwise for the total flush, next time I'm taking mine in... If you just want to drain and fill, definitely do it yourself. Make sure you read your owners manual for the type of fluid you need. Mine called for the ATF +3 (not Dexron III) due to foaming.

Good luck!

It is any easyjob but can get very messy! I have done about 100 of them in the past. A flush will remove most of the fluid including the coverter, but the price often does not include the filter. Me I opt to have the pan removed and filter replaced this removes all but about 1-2 qts! If you go the route Idaho went you may want to drill the pan and put in a drain plug ( after pan has been removed PLEASE) Good luck!

Hey Scuba, mine has a drain plug right out of the factory... Works great...

the xj's don't have an oil cooler do they? if they did there is an easier method using the lines to the oil cooler.

My XJ has tranny cooler lines running to the radiator. I've read a number of articles about installing an add-on cooler out in front of the radiator, esp for vehicles doing lots of climbing or towing.

I imagine something could be rigged up to allow you to flush using those lines... You're going where this man has never gone before...

there is a post over in the ZJ forum, I'll look for it later.

Hi Justin,


So here's the math:
the filter for my tranny cost $35
(if I remember right) 5qts fluid per change X 3 = 15qts X $2 = $30
My time (including extra time for fighting the pan) = 3 hrs

If $65 and 3 hours (total) is better than $80 and no time, then do it yourself. Otherwise for the total flush, next time I'm taking mine in... If you just want to drain and fill, definitely do it yourself. Make sure you read your owners manual for the type of fluid you need. Mine called for the ATF +3 (not Dexron III) due to foaming.

Good luck!
My 96 XJ $130.00 tranny filter,gasket and fluid replacement Done at the Jeep Dealership
Watching the Mechanic spend 4 1/2 hours trying to get the pan off the tranny Priceless!!!
For everything else i will do it my self but for times like this there's MASTERCARD

My 96 XJ $130.00 tranny filter,gasket and fluid replacement Done at the Jeep Dealership
Watching the Mechanic spend 4 1/2 hours trying to get the pan off the tranny Priceless!!!
For everything else i will do it my self but for times like this there's MASTERCARD

LOL... If I had known my oil pan would be so difficult to remove when I did my real seal, I would have GLADLY paid the dealer to do it.

Knowing what I know now...I'd have taken it to the shop too! Getting the dipstick tube apart is the hardest part of the whole thing. After that, no prob.

I'd like to hang the guy who came up with the idea to bring the tube into the side of the pan...

Knowing what I know now...I'd have taken it to the shop too! Getting the dipstick tube apart is the hardest part of the whole thing. After that, no prob.

I'd like to hang the guy who came up with the idea to bring the tube into the side of the pan...
Its the same guy who invented the Pet Rock Both items are useless and a pain in the Azz