Transmission maintenance
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You may want to read your manual (if you don't have one, download it online for free).
The basic train of thought is 30k on each or sooner. Flushes can cause issues so if you want, just do a drain/fill every 15k. The key is to address your driving habbits and your enviroment and come up with a change interval that you are comfortable with. If you live in a hot area, dusty/dirty or drive semi agressively, it may be worth changing the fluids sooner then later.
Don't forget about the brake fluid too. Most people forget it and it does a lot for you in the long run.
The basic train of thought is 30k on each or sooner. Flushes can cause issues so if you want, just do a drain/fill every 15k. The key is to address your driving habbits and your enviroment and come up with a change interval that you are comfortable with. If you live in a hot area, dusty/dirty or drive semi agressively, it may be worth changing the fluids sooner then later.
Don't forget about the brake fluid too. Most people forget it and it does a lot for you in the long run.
I do a drain and fill of about 3.5 quarts every 15,000 miles on my 07 Frontier with auto. I use only Matic S which I can get for a little over $8 at the dealer. The rear and front diff I changed out around 5000 miles (filled with metal dust and then refilled with Mobil 1 75W-90 rear and Valvoline SemiSyn 80W-90 front. I redid them at 20,000 or so and will now lwave them unril about 50-60,000 miles.
I'm 64 yrs old. I put 150K on my last 4x4 Nissan. I've never changed any car or truck differential fluid. It is for the life of the axle. All this service is for the dealer's income.
Automatic transmission, change it about 100K. Manual, forget it and make sure it is full once in a while. You risk contamination every time you fiddle with it.
Pop
Automatic transmission, change it about 100K. Manual, forget it and make sure it is full once in a while. You risk contamination every time you fiddle with it.
Pop
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You have to be kidding me right?
Diff fluid is cheap and goes thru hell and back while in operation. If you ever go into medium/high rpm ranges, it is going to cause the fluid to break down quicker. Not to mention the seals are not always the best and can fail so you can get contamination thru there. Also, our rear diff breather sucks and tends to get stuck in the open position and will allow water/dirt to enter and contaminate the fluid.
The transmission is a similar thing. A simple drain/fill will not add more contaminates then it is removing. The key is to avoid power flushes because they can cause seals to burst and crap in the trans to clog passages.
If you honestly never changed your diff fluid I feel sorry for your truck and if you actually waited 100k for the trans, thats just ..........
The key to a long lasting vehicle is general maintance and if you neglect it, your vehicles quality will reflect it.
Seriously, maintence intervals weren't created so the dealer can try to bend you over. Imagine how much better your truck would run with fluids that aren't burnt to hell.
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Maintenance all depends on how lonv u wanna keep the truck. More than 3 yrs. Than follow severe service in your many. If u plan on dumpin it after 3-4yrs don't waste your time and money. Just top off
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I'm overwhelmed by all the tribologists on this board. I'm willing to bet my maintenance costs on the 90 HB w/ 150,000mi over 18 years was less than anyone here changing fluids with every full moon.
I had one snap ring come loose on the left front hub, cost $150 to replace the seal and repack a bearing. Replaced the expansion valve on the AC. Replaced the HP hose on the AC. Replaced one carrier bearing on the drive shaft. Replaced one thermostatic clutch on the rad. fan. Repaired clutch slave cy. 2 times (seals). Repainted one time.
Otherwise, just replaced oil and air filters, assessory and timing belts, antifreeze every 3 years, engine oil at 4K, brake pads, mufflers and tailpipe, etc.
New owner is still enjoying with no problems. It still has the original brake fluid, original transmission lube (manual), original diff lube (front and rear).
Can you match that?
PS: No engine noises, no oil consumption, no transmission or diff noises, no leaks. Driven on interstate on long trips, across plowed fields in lo 4X. Not petted, but not abused.
I had one snap ring come loose on the left front hub, cost $150 to replace the seal and repack a bearing. Replaced the expansion valve on the AC. Replaced the HP hose on the AC. Replaced one carrier bearing on the drive shaft. Replaced one thermostatic clutch on the rad. fan. Repaired clutch slave cy. 2 times (seals). Repainted one time.
Otherwise, just replaced oil and air filters, assessory and timing belts, antifreeze every 3 years, engine oil at 4K, brake pads, mufflers and tailpipe, etc.
New owner is still enjoying with no problems. It still has the original brake fluid, original transmission lube (manual), original diff lube (front and rear).
Can you match that?
PS: No engine noises, no oil consumption, no transmission or diff noises, no leaks. Driven on interstate on long trips, across plowed fields in lo 4X. Not petted, but not abused.
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And this is why I don't buy used vehicles anymore especially if they are high mileage. The lack of general maintance is astronomical.
Out of curiousity, is there any way you can talk the new owner into swapping out the fluids and giving you the old? I am very interested in how they look after 150k+. I wonder if they are worse then that BMW that didn't change the engine oil for 60k miles?
I have an 01 ,and is there plug on the trans to drain the fluid..?
What about changing the trans filter..? Does it have one..?
I asked a buddy of mine that owns an AAMCO trans joint about changing trans fluid and filters..He pretty much said "if it aint broke,dont fix it"..
I have 205,000 miles on my fronty right now....
What about changing the trans filter..? Does it have one..?
I asked a buddy of mine that owns an AAMCO trans joint about changing trans fluid and filters..He pretty much said "if it aint broke,dont fix it"..
I have 205,000 miles on my fronty right now....
false. the reason you do a coolant flush is becuase rust builds up in the water then eats through your radiator. that is why they reccomend you get rid of that and put new coolant in. so your radiator doesnt blow up in your face on the highway. have fun with that. same basic ideas for the rest. includig tranny and diffs. does that mean you also never change your oil? is that lifetime?just like oil, coolant does burn off a little bit.
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Well, now that this thread has become a bit out of wack, I will throw this out there.
If you drain/fill the fluid from an auto trans or use a flush machine that doesnt' do anything in reverse or introduce any kind of pressure (kinda like the DIY flush with the trans hose), you should not have the major failures that people talk about after having their trans flushed. These drail/fills should be on a tighter schedule (15-30k) and on a longer schedule (60-100k). The failures that are caused is that the sedement that is in the trans from the clutches wearing down cloggs passages and when you power flush, it forces the sedelments into the passages causing it to restrict the fluid flow and thus causing failure.
If you are a manual trans, its just gears and no clutch packs in the trans so it is just the viscosity of the fluid breaking down. Personally I would follow the same process as an auto trans but there is no reason to do any kind of power flush. Just do a drain/fill and you are good to go. This is probably why Pop was able to go 150k+ without touching the fluid.
The other fluids follow a similar schedule but it is all based on your driving habbits and your enviroment. If you drive in the high rpm range or wheel or etc.... you should change the fluid sooner then later. If you just do highway driving in the low rpm range, then you can choose to stretch the intervals.
Mikeg: Your AAMCO buddy mentioned to just leave it because he has probably seen a vehicle with high mileage flushed and in a few k later, the trans failed and they were blamed. This is the crap shoot when you flush a vehicle with high mileage.
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And this is why you are at 200k+ on the motor. If you didn't, the oil would break down and not allow proper lubrication to the moving components and they would wear and get play and etc....
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read much?
3 posts before yours he said he changed coolant and engine oil.
BTW....i change my oil w/synthetic every 5-6k miles. Rear axle was replaced under warranty at 25k miles. Changed the rear diff fluid at 60k miles. Changed front diff fluid and transfer case fluid (it was terrible!) at 80k miles.
I'm now at 83k miles and will do a drain/fill of the auto tranny fluid soon, again at 100k and then every 30k after that.
Interesting comments, but I'll change any dirty oil or fluid when the additives are used up.
I plan on changing the tranny fluid in my 08 just about 80K, unless it gets dirty earlier. I'll change the antifreeze about every 3 -4 years, no flush. The oil gets changed every 3-4K, cause that's when it gets dirty.
Antifreeze will not cause rust unless the additives are gone, usually because bubba put dirty water in to "top off". Only add antifreeze mix. If you need to flush the tranny "to get the water out" you don't need maintenance, you need a major repair.
Change the dirty oil, watch the color of the brake fluid(keep it sealed), use the Nissan filter, change the air filter every year or so, check the tranny fluid and diff fluids. Then drive it. If something goes wrong, it won't be service, just a bad part. Changing fluids never fixed a bad part.
I plan on changing the tranny fluid in my 08 just about 80K, unless it gets dirty earlier. I'll change the antifreeze about every 3 -4 years, no flush. The oil gets changed every 3-4K, cause that's when it gets dirty.
Antifreeze will not cause rust unless the additives are gone, usually because bubba put dirty water in to "top off". Only add antifreeze mix. If you need to flush the tranny "to get the water out" you don't need maintenance, you need a major repair.
Change the dirty oil, watch the color of the brake fluid(keep it sealed), use the Nissan filter, change the air filter every year or so, check the tranny fluid and diff fluids. Then drive it. If something goes wrong, it won't be service, just a bad part. Changing fluids never fixed a bad part.
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Okay, now I am a bit confuses and I bet others are too. You are now saying that you actually checked these fluids to see how their color was and then that determined if they needed to be changed? If so, then atleast you checked them instead of just blaintly neglecting them as it sounded like before. The only thing to remember thou is that the color isn't always a clear sign if the fluid is past its prime or not.
Side Note: I like the comment on the brake fluid "keep it sealed" because most people don't understand that it is hydroscopic and will attract water and lower its boiling point. I just don't understand how you checked the fluids color down at the calipers without doing some kind of bleed? I know when I flushed my brake fluid, the resivour looked alright but the fluid down by the bleeders was burnt bad.
I believe it has become more important to check and bleed brakes well with new fluid - ABS, ABLS, Hill decent/assist, VDC all cause brakes to be used more (kind of out of drivers control) and can heat up fluid threw pads threw the pistons - I haven't done it yet though (still new) but does anyone know, can you just gravity bleed these systems??
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