7jeep

Heres my .02. In the past if I hav changed high mileage tranny fluid. the tranny dont work anymore, so if you have the money and time take A chance, but if you dont then DONT CHANGE THE FLUID IN THE TRANNY.

boy_named_sue

Luv,

A few thoughts for you:
First, I not only feel you, but admire you for not wanting to go to the mechanic. The cost of labor these days is intense! When I was 16, I remember picking up one of my parents' cars from the mechanic's for them. They had already paid for it, so I peeked at the bill. roughly $400 in parts, and roughly $650 in labor. That was the moment I decided I would HAVE to learn to fix things myself. I spent the next many years worth of birthdays and Christmases acquiring all kinds of tools, and still don't have everything that I feel like I need. Its great to hear that you love this vehicle enough to want to work on it. There's definitely something fulfilling about diagnosing/solving a problem, or simply maintaining a vehicle, with your own two hands. And it's even better to hear that you have a friend and neighbor who are "in the know", and are willing to share their knowledge and experience with you. This will prove invaluable to your mechanical experience in the future (yes, even better than a helpful internet forum ).

Second, I will never claim to be a expert on anything... and certainly not one on automatic transmissions. I know how easy it is on the internet to voice a strong opinion and not have to back it up with anything, and if I have come across as trying to sway you one way or the other, I apologize. That is not my intention. With so many facts and ideas that roll into one single decision, my hope is simply to offer a thought or two that may help build a framework on which you can make a calculated and informed decision... one way or the other. Which leads me to my third and final thought...

Third, I was talking with a very old man at a car show a while back, and he told me one thing that has stuck with me. He said, "Collect everyone's opinions and ideas, consider 'em hard, then do whatever ya damn-well-please." And after talking to him for a while, I don't believe he meant that other's opinions are worthless...otherwise he wouldn't have said to "...consider em hard..." But the bottom line is that you'll never learn from other people telling you their experiences. You will learn through YOUR experiences. So you consider the information you have, make a best-guess decision, and then learn! You'll experience both successful and unsuccessful ways of approaching a problem, and as long as you own the decisions as yours, no one can take those experiences from you.

If you leave your transmission fluid the way it is, you may never have a problem outta the thing for 15 years. Then, you may think "My neighbor and friend sure were right!" Or, it may finally take a crap in the dead of January in the middle of a blizzard (that is, if you live anywhere where snow happens...). Then, perhaps "my neighbor and friend were wrong." In just the same way, you go ahead and change the fluid, and it'll either work or it won't work. It would be easy, then, to praise or curse me for being wrong or right. But again, the decision's yours. And be excited to learn from it! With two mechanic's at your side, a basic array of tools, and your desire to "get down and dirty", I don't see any reason in the world you couldn't change the filter and pan gasket in your driveway (don't know where the solenoids are in these transmissions, but anything can be taken apart!). Heck, drop the think and put new front and rear seals in it if you're worried about them being old. How much time do you want to invest? Buy your mechanic buddies pizza, and see how long you can talk them into hanging around under your jeep for a weekend. Or, leave it. Worst case scenario is you break down at some point, then go to a junk yard and get ya a new transmission!

Anyway, I'm sorry for being so long-winded, but the best advice I can give you is to think hard about what YOU feel like doing, what YOU feel like risking, and what YOU think makes the most sense. Then do it. And ask for help along the way. And by then end you'll either know one more way NOT to fix a problem, or you will have successfully solved a problem. Both are incredibly fulfilling, if you allow them to be!

(Now if you're anything like my wife, that kind of answer is less than helpful... so if you would rather just be told what to do, option A or option B, send me a PM and I'll just take an opionionated stance and try to convince you of what I think is best )

Cheers! And keep us posted on your progress!

damageincracing

Bought my Jeep 6 months ago with 194K on it. Trans fluid was BLACK and was not a happy shifter. I changed the filter and fluid. Now it drives like a champ and NO SHIFTING ISSUES OR LEAKS. Change the filter and fluid... You say you don't like mechanics? I am one, and even I don't like em. I'd rather work on my own stuff than trust someone else to replace parts, hoping it fixes a problem...

robertj

I'm not trying to be smart, but seriously, what does this statement mean?

+1

s14unimog

Sure am glad I got a 5 speed... I never knew you could mess up an A/T with a new fluid change...

rwdawg2

haha, jackass unimog.

What are you even doing in this thread.

Maybe go to the tire thread, cus that's what you need.

Bluemax

Was this really necessary? im sure at one time you didn't know that either, so lose the cocky attitude or find another fourm!

damageincracing

I agree. Completely un-necessary. I know enough about Jeeps to work on 'em, but my specialty is old GM (and I mean OLD) and mid-80's Dodge Daytonas. I could tell you things to do to a Buick 350 (pre-common block) and a Dodge 2.2/2.5 that would make you wet yourself...

rwdawg2

Chill guys.

A bit of a friendly competition between old college roommates.

Sorry it came out harsh to everyone else.

Now you can continue with your informational thread.

962dr

If you change your fluid every 30k, WITH THE CORRECT FLUID, then how would this ever be BAD for the trans? If you like your trans, then you'll do a COMPLETE exchange (minus the solvents) and you'll be golden.
Did a complete swap from the trans cooler at 155k. Everything is fine.

1127xj

Well I work for a very reputable aftermarket transmission parts manufacturing company, and I have never heard of a case of an automatic transmission failing from a drain and refill. Hot flushes on the other hand, well, don't go there. As someone else mentioned, drain and replace the fluid, drive a few hundred miles, and repeat. If it's been in there a while, you may want to do this a few times over the course of a couple thousand miles. Not a bad idea to drop the pan and clean the magnets, screen, etc. at some point in the process, but DO NOT FLUSH unless you want problems. Stick with this, and it'll be fine.

rednekwizard

Sad to hear since ATF+4 is a trademark of the Chrysler corp.