Transmission Fluid Advice

Grumpy Bear · August 13, 2019

3 hours ago, Eddie 70 said:

I normally don't keep vehicles very long. Normal life for me has been about 3 years, over my working years. I am getting closer to what I want to be my retirement age to be and another 4 or 5 years should get me there. I have probably had 20+ vehicles. (Way too many and a lot of lost money, but I enjoyed every vehicle)

In May of 2018, I bought a little Honda to make the 41 mile, each way commute to work. At the time, May 25th 2018, my truck had 104,646 on it. As of July 12th 2019, my truck 108,804. This is coming from my aCar app that I use to track mileage. If those numbers keep up, the truck should make it pretty easily to retirement. The little Honda has been getting 42+MPG and cost $4000. It might pay for itself.

My current Honda has just short of a quarter million miles on her and still my daily driver. We've had on Toyota that was at 300K and still going for the new owner. Last two Hondas over 200K each when sold and both still in service of their new owners. I put 100K on the current Silverado in three years and she still looks new top to bottom, front to back, inside and out. My best run at it yet!!

In the 60's I got nervous when getting close to 100K. Now? Just getting broke in. Would have been then as well; had I known then what I know now. :crackup: Dad and Uncle Bob run them half a million to a million each back in the day. I'm still learning. :thumbs:

Fluid advice. Keep it cool. Load it light. Change fluid often. I'm a Red Line guy. AMSOIL is great as well. These are the only two I actually KNOW their chemistry.

300 Blackout · August 14, 2019

Grumpy:

How many miles would you say is lifespan for these trucks if properly maintained? I’m at 95k miles with my 2014 GMC and have decided to keep it “till the wheels fall off”. With the number of small problems that it has had, I just don’t know if that will be at 100k or 250k miles.

Grumpy gave some great feedback. I don’t know all of the reasons why manufacturers choose the materials, maintenance intervals, etc.. that they do. I think it’s safe to assume “reasonable lifespan” or “reasonable amount of maintenance” is somewhere in the mix.

Thankfully, I’m not a “reasonable” kind of guy. I expect more and am willing to do more to get it. :-) The 6L80 is a great transmission. If you’re goal is absolute longevity, decreasing time between your fluid change intervals, decreasing the fluid operating temperature by modifying your trans thermostat (very easy to do) and driving the truck gingerly will have a tremendous impact on how long it lasts. I absolutely think 250k+ is achievable before a rebuild.

Eddie 70 · August 14, 2019

22 hours ago, royalkangaroo said:

What size/material tubing are you guys using?

I have the AMSOIL hand pump to pump fluid from quart and gallon bottles. Would this work with a long section of tubing down the transmission fill tube?

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Not sure of the type of material, but I got it at Home Depot. It is the white plastic line they sell. Outside diameter is .380 according to my dial caliper which works out to about 3/8" outside diameter. But, if you are going to use your Amsoil pump, it depends on the diameter of the tubing requirements of that pump.

16LT4 · August 14, 2019

Manufacturers post their maintenance schedules as minimally as possible in order to sell cars, but just enough to get said cars through warranty. If anyone thinks that ANY company actually cars about you, I have a bridge to sell you. They don't make money on cars that don't need replacing. That may be a bitter pill to swallow, but its the truth: car companies don't actually car about the consumer.

I don't believe that a vehicle should ever suffer a single drivetrain failure. Ever. The lowest mile item in my fleet is my '16 K2 at 76k, the highest is my '08 X3 at 155k. The transplanted engine in my 442 has over 300k and doesn't burn a drop of oil, perfect compression, and has never been opened up. Original transmission despite enduring some beatings back in the '90s. Simply take car of the vehicle how IT wants to be treated and not how a marketing department wants you to treat it, and you'll tire of the vehicle long before it tires of you. I don't see any reason why any of my fleet (Olds, GMC, chevy, VW, BMW) won't be going at least a half million miles on original non-wear/tear items.

Grumpy Bear · August 14, 2019

7 hours ago, dukedkt442 said:

Simply take car of the vehicle how IT wants to be treated and not how a marketing department wants you to treat it, and you'll tire of the vehicle long before it tires of you.

I have this thing for 40's/50's Brit Singles. (Bikes not whiskey) If you think you can treat one like a Yamaha SR500G you will not be able to keep it off the scrap pile. If you ride it with a WW II war time mentality it will last your life time and maybe your sons and put a smile on your face you will keep in your sleep. What mentality was that? It wasn't a toy for many. It was the family daily transport. Give it some respect and TLC. Know it better than the back of your hand. If that isn't your cuppa then ….

Eddie 70 · August 14, 2019

On 8/12/2019 at 11:04 PM, Grumpy Bear said:

My current Honda has just short of a quarter million miles on her and still my daily driver. We've had on Toyota that was at 300K and still going for the new owner. Last two Hondas over 200K each when sold and both still in service of their new owners. I put 100K on the current Silverado in three years and she still looks new top to bottom, front to back, inside and out. My best run at it yet!!

In the 60's I got nervous when getting close to 100K. Now? Just getting broke in. Would have been then as well; had I known then what I know now. Dad and Uncle Bob run them half a million to a million each back in the day. I'm still learning.

Fluid advice. Keep it cool. Load it light. Change fluid often. I'm a Red Line guy. AMSOIL is great as well. These are the only two I actually KNOW their chemistry.

I agree. It used to be that a car was pretty close to used up when it had 100k or so miles on them. They became nightmares to keep running. Overdrive came along and helped with longevity.

This is my 3rd Honda. My first one I sold with near 200k on it for what I had in it. My second one met an untimely demise at near 200k with a deer. Insurance covered that one. This one is 2011 Honda CRZ that was totaled. The bumper was off and the passengers side mirror was broken off. There are some scratches on the door and that totaled it. The bumper and a new mirror have been reattached and the car drives great. I am hoping to nothing happens to it, like the deer, and it lasts till I retire and then some. I'll probably add about 25k per year so that should have me around 250k miles or so. The car comes with a maintenance minder that tells you when to do maintenance. Nevertheless, I change oil and filter every 5k, just like my truck. This car only hold 1.5 quarts of trans fluid so it gets changed about every 15k. Air filter every 15-20k. Then what ever crops up in the mean time gets taken care of. Same maintenance schedule on my truck, our Maxima and my 1970 Vette. I take care of my cars and don't beat on them. It's too expensive to replace broken parts that you break being rough on a vehicle.

9 hours ago, Grumpy Bear said:

I have this thing for 40's/50's Brit Singles. (Bikes not whiskey) If you think you can treat one like a Yamaha SR500G you will not be able to keep it off the scrap pile. If you ride it with a WW II war time mentality it will last your life time and maybe your sons and put a smile on your face you will keep in your sleep. What mentality was that? It wasn't a toy for many. It was the family daily transport. Give it some respect and TLC. Know it better than the back of your hand. If that isn't your cuppa then ….

I had a 1980 Yamaha SR250 when I was a kid. I loved that bike. I wore the sprockets so bad one time the chain started slipping. I was afraid I was not going to make it back home. I changed the rear tire one time, one time. Easy maintenance on that one too. Seems like it would run about 80 MPH but knock down about the same in MPG if you rode the speed limit. Good times.........

jay webb · August 17, 2019

fyi there are two trans in these trucks. one is the 6 speed and the other is the 8 speed. you know the difference by looking under the hood and if it has no dipstick its an 8 speed trans.

2ndly the 6 speed and 8 speed require different fluids. the 6 speed is dexron vi and the 8 speed is a mobil 1 lv atf hp fluid. they can not be mixed.

3rd the mobil 1 fluid is recommend by the dealer due to the trans shutter issue, which is caused by the previous trans fluid getting contaminated via water, its very hydrogroscopic. the fix for the shutter is flushing the torque converter with the mobil 1 lv atf hp trans fluid.

4th at the dealership i work at ( nearly 7 years as a tech) i have done hundreds of trans services. pan drops , fluid exchanges (not flushes). the machine we use to do a fluid exchange uses the vehicles own transpump to exchange the fluid. we tap into the system via cooler lines in series and run the vehicle with the machine filled with new clean fluid and it pumps the old out and sucks the new in. typically changes 14 qts. when you do a pan drop you only change about 6 qts in the system. it is not pressured by shop air or anything. it does not damage the trans.

the 2014-2018 trucks have a trans thermostat. in order to service these we have a special adapter that we use to tap into the system, there is a block on the side of the trans held on by 1 bolt, it has the cooler lines attached. we remove that bolt and that block install the adapter right at the trans and connect the machine to that adapter.

typically on trucks or vehicles with a serviceable filter we suggest doing the fluid exchange at 45k and the filter at 90. if you tow alot, load down the truck , drive is harsh conditions every 30k would be ideal.

on vehicles with out a serviceable filter that still uses atf fluid the fluid exchange is the only way to exchange the fluid, most dont have dipsticks . yes there are fill plugs and fluid level check plugs/drain plugs. its 100% easier to do the machine and its the same thing.

for those saying dont let the dealer use "bulk" fluid ... the bulk fluid we carry for atf is dexron vi which is spec by gm.

RE1 · August 17, 2019

10 hours ago, jay webb said:

fyi there are two trans in these trucks. one is the 6 speed and the other is the 8 speed. you know the difference by looking under the hood and if it has no dipstick its an 8 speed trans.

2ndly the 6 speed and 8 speed require different fluids. the 6 speed is dexron vi and the 8 speed is a mobil 1 lv atf hp fluid. they can not be mixed.

3rd the mobil 1 fluid is recommend by the dealer due to the trans shutter issue, which is caused by the previous trans fluid getting contaminated via water, its very hydrogroscopic. the fix for the shutter is flushing the torque converter with the mobil 1 lv atf hp trans fluid.

4th at the dealership i work at ( nearly 7 years as a tech) i have done hundreds of trans services. pan drops , fluid exchanges (not flushes). the machine we use to do a fluid exchange uses the vehicles own transpump to exchange the fluid. we tap into the system via cooler lines in series and run the vehicle with the machine filled with new clean fluid and it pumps the old out and sucks the new in. typically changes 14 qts. when you do a pan drop you only change about 6 qts in the system. it is not pressured by shop air or anything. it does not damage the trans.

the 2014-2018 trucks have a trans thermostat. in order to service these we have a special adapter that we use to tap into the system, there is a block on the side of the trans held on by 1 bolt, it has the cooler lines attached. we remove that bolt and that block install the adapter right at the trans and connect the machine to that adapter.

typically on trucks or vehicles with a serviceable filter we suggest doing the fluid exchange at 45k and the filter at 90. if you tow alot, load down the truck , drive is harsh conditions every 30k would be ideal.

on vehicles with out a serviceable filter that still uses atf fluid the fluid exchange is the only way to exchange the fluid, most dont have dipsticks . yes there are fill plugs and fluid level check plugs/drain plugs. its 100% easier to do the machine and its the same thing.

for those saying dont let the dealer use "bulk" fluid ... the bulk fluid we carry for atf is dexron vi which is spec by gm.

Thank you for posting this.

Regarding the machine exchange system.....What you describe is exactly as has been explained to me by the techs at the service department where I been going to since my truck was new.

I did the machine exchange at 40k and recently a full pan drop and filter replacement at 94k.

Z45 · August 17, 2019

Keep in mind the dealers only recommend what makes them money. They want to sell more so they often recommend service that isn't needed and overcharge for the work being done, such in the in post #1.

Local Dealer charge.

AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SERVICE

Drain and refill up to 5 quarts of transmission fluid. Synthetics extra.

$ 125.00

RE1 · August 17, 2019

24 minutes ago, elcamino said:

Keep in mind the dealers only recommend what makes them money. They want to sell more so they often recommend service that isn't needed and overcharge for the work being done, such in the in post #1.

Local Dealer charge.

AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SERVICE

Drain and refill up to 5 quarts of transmission fluid. Synthetics extra.
$ 125.00

Seems like folks here feel 40k-50k interval for transmission fluid change is recommended and not overkill.

1SLOW1500 · August 17, 2019

I will say don't go cheap 30-40k based on use get a pan drop,filter and clean magnet. Then just stay on the flushes. The trans are just like a new engine. Ever read any service manual they want oil changed in 500 or 1000miles and cycles get full inspection at that point also. Race engines we did after every weekend race and had breaking oils for first start up.
I just don't understand why people are ok with leaving all that debris in the pan anyways. And even though some people may drive there truck 150k+ many people expect 100 to 150 before major service work. So 30-40 on first clean on trans is key in my opinion. Remember the trans has adaptive tables as it learns so those break in miles and the lean may where out parts. Also as I said gm had huge drive train issue on the 2014-2018 truck. See shudder,vibration,driveshaft,axles,converters, software updates, and trans replacement threads.

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16LT4 · August 17, 2019

I replace the fluid in every drivetrain component (except the engine) every 20-30k miles depending on the part in question and the manufacturer. I installed a drain plug in my transmission pan so I can drain/fill every engine oil change (5k miles). Silly to buy a $30-60k truck and then cry about maintaining it.

RE1 · August 17, 2019

56 minutes ago, dukedkt442 said:

I replace the fluid in every drivetrain component (except the engine) every 20-30k miles depending on the part in question and the manufacturer. I installed a drain plug in my transmission pan so I can drain/fill every engine oil change (5k miles). Silly to buy a $30-60k truck and then cry about maintaining it.

Transmission fluid drain/refill every 5k definitely sounds like overkill. To each their own.

16LT4 · August 17, 2019

1 hour ago, RE1 said:

Transmission fluid drain/refill every 5k definitely sounds like overkill. To each their own.

When about half the old fluid comes out on a single drain, it really isn't; 2 drains is 75% new fluid, 3 is 87.5%, etc. Easier than dealing with a dealer, a fluid exchange machine, or disconnecting lines, but not as "perfect." After 5-6 drain/fills, I dial it back. Won't see me having a mechanical failure during the life of any vehicle.

RE1 · August 17, 2019

56 minutes ago, dukedkt442 said:

When about half the old fluid comes out on a single drain, it really isn't; 2 drains is 75% new fluid, 3 is 87.5%, etc. Easier than dealing with a dealer, a fluid exchange machine, or disconnecting lines, but not as "perfect." After 5-6 drain/fills, I dial it back. Won't see me having a mechanical failure during the life of any vehicle.

Makes more sense now. Thanks.

Since I don’t have a drain plug, I’m gonna use the pump into the dipstick tube method next time.