transmission fluid#@^&#^#

1998 lumnia with 70,000 miles. i finally decided to service a/t with new filter and fluid. cottman says they don,t recommend it. they say it should have been done every 30,000 miles.i hear that if you wait too long the fresh stuff breaks loose some gummy deposits and you have trouble soon after. i do know one mechanic with a lumina that changes one quart of a/t fluid with each oil change. he uses some kind of suction hose attached to a drill. this method he says it ain,t too severe. what,s you guys opinions ++++

1998 lumnia with 70,000 miles. i finally decided to service a/t with new filter and fluid. cottman says they don,t recommend it. they say it should have been done every 30,000 miles.i hear that if you wait too long the fresh stuff breaks loose some gummy deposits and you have trouble soon after. i do know one mechanic with a lumina that changes one quart of a/t fluid with each oil change. he uses some kind of suction hose attached to a drill. this method he says it ain,t too severe. what,s you guys opinions ++++

Well, i changed mine when i got the car, it had 150,000 miles on it, now has 210.000 miles and tranny still works fine. But i will add my old fluid just looked "old" no brurnt smell. I believe it is a hit and miss thing depending on if it was ever changed before, along with how rough the car was treated thru its life. There isnt any way of knowing really if it will hurt it, or help it. Some fail, other do not, if you really cant afford a new transmission, and yours is working fine, i dont think i would bother with it.

Drop that fluid like it was a broken rubber.

70K isn't that bad anymore. Some service intervals are up to 100,000.

DO NOT go to the sleazeball service places that charge 2 times what a trans service is worth and then they change the fluid but not the filter.

DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT get a fluid exchange. Only drop the pan and replace the filter and the fluid you lose when you drop the pan. If you do a trans flush/fluid exchange, you WILL be replacing your transmission soon. There are multiple threads on this subject, and all agree that a filter change, and refilling the lost fluid is the only way to go on a vehicle with over 75k.

I agree with previous thread, higher mileage cars do not like transmission flush machines very well. For best results, change transmission filter every 50K on a gm vehicle. Also, look into additives for transmissions. I have been using Valvoline Maxlife trans fluid and I am very pleased with the difference in shifting. my lumina has 250K with the original transmission and shifts better than new.

I agree with previous thread, higher mileage cars do not like transmission flush machines very well. For best results, change transmission filter every 50K on a gm vehicle. Also, look into additives for transmissions. I have been using Valvoline Maxlife trans fluid and I am very pleased with the difference in shifting. my lumina has 250K with the original transmission and shifts better than new.
Did you start using the MaxLife from the beginning or after it had lots of miles on it?
My 95 Lum V6 has 148K and I am trying to decide if I take a qt out and add a quart of additive.

I changed mine at 115,000, pan drop and filter, 7 qts to refill. No exchange no flush. Just change what comes outta the pan...If you're doing it for maintenance, fine.

Most people never do it until it starts acting up, by the it's too late, and changing the fluid will usually make it deteriorate faster.

As Jeff stated, most people wait until there is a problem before acting. If a place tells you your trans fluid is burnt and NEEDS to be flushed, it's too late and your trans is already toast. As regular maintenance, drop the pan, change the filter and the fluid that drains when you drop it and call it good. You can add Trans-X, Seafoam, or Lucas trans treatment at this time also, as all these products actually work and will not harm your transmission.
Any place that claims their fluid exchange machine "backflushes" your filter is full of crapola and has no clue. If it backflushed the filter, the reverse pressure would screw up the entire trans, especially the machines that require the car to be running while doing the fluid exchange. These machines use the trans pump to circulate the fluid.

As Jeff stated, most people wait until there is a problem before acting. If a place tells you your trans fluid is burnt and NEEDS to be flushed, it's too late and your trans is already toast. As regular maintenance, drop the pan, change the filter and the fluid that drains when you drop it and call it good. You can add Trans-X, Seafoam, or Lucas trans treatment at this time also, as all these products actually work and will not harm your transmission.
Any place that claims their fluid exchange machine "backflushes" your filter is full of crapola and has no clue. If it backflushed the filter, the reverse pressure would screw up the entire trans, especially the machines that require the car to be running while doing the fluid exchange. These machines use the trans pump to circulate the fluid.

Hey Rich...you know anything about GM Transmission Fluid Friction Modifier?

We had a couple of pints of it at the parts store in back...I never got around to reading it to see what it's for.

Well I changed just a pint of old fluid for a pint of Trans-X. 95 Lumina 3.1 with 148K, never been changed it looks like. I just bought the car and it was shifting hard into second. It also idled in gear really hard, with alot of hesitation at take off. So far I have 150 miles on the change out this weekend and all seems to be well. No more hesitation, no more hard shifting. Will let everyone know what is going on at about 1k miles.
Does the transmission taste ever go away from siphoning? Man that stuff is nasty.

Does the transmission taste ever go away from siphoning? Man that stuff is nasty.

Blech. I can imagine. Probably tastes like burnt brake pads and hot metal.

That's why I have a suction gun.:grinyes:

That is my next buy.
I plan on changing a pint about once a month for a few months to maybe help overall performance. I really should drop the pan and change the filter, then put old filtered fluid back in it. I am just scared of tranny's. I can rip and engine apart, but a tranny will make me queasy.
"Yes, I'm skered!"

Well I changed just a pint of old fluid for a pint of Trans-X. 95 Lumina 3.1 with 148K, never been changed it looks like. I just bought the car and it was shifting hard into second. It also idled in gear really hard, with alot of hesitation at take off. So far I have 150 miles on the change out this weekend and all seems to be well. No more hesitation, no more hard shifting. Will let everyone know what is going on at about 1k miles.
Does the transmission taste ever go away from siphoning? Man that stuff is nasty.


This sounds like what my car is doing at idle. I have a 97 lumina with 193,000 miles, and i suspect the trans hasn't been touched in it's life. The fluid is looking fine, but i think changing the filter and fluid might just help fix that.