studiovette

So my 07 A6 has 20k on it and is going into hibernation soon. Would it be a good idea to have my trainy flued flushed or changed? Whatever the proper terminology is? I plan on keeping the car and don't mind spending 100-200$ to help protect the trans. long-term.

Don-Vette

From the 2010 owners manual.....


Automatic Transmission Fluid
How to Check Automatic Transmission
Fluid
It is not necessary to check the transmission fluid level.
A transmission fluid leak is the only reason for fluid
loss. If a leak occurs, take the vehicle to your dealer/
retailer service department and have it repaired as soon
as possible.
There is a special procedure for checking and changing
the transmission fluid. Because this procedure is
difficult, you should have this done at your dealer/
retailer service department. Contact your dealer/retailer
for additional information or the procedure can be found
in the service manual. To purchase a service manual,
see Service Publications Ordering Information on
page 8‑16.



First Engine Oil Change After Every
80 000 km/50,000 Miles
. Engine air cleaner filter replacement. See Engine
Air Cleaner/Filter on page 6‑27.
. Automatic transmission fluid change (severe
service) for vehicles mainly driven in heavy city
traffic in hot weather, in hilly or mountainous
terrain, when frequently towing a trailer, or used
for taxi, police, or delivery service. See Automatic
Transmission Fluid on page 6‑31.


First Engine Oil Change After Every
160 000 km/100,000 Miles
. Automatic transmission fluid change (normal
service). See Automatic Transmission Fluid on
page 6‑31.
. Spark plug replacement and spark plug wires
inspection. An Emission Control Service.

Gering

Sir,

Just my 2 cents, I would drain, drop the pad & replace filter, and fill it back up. I would also drain and fill the diff as well. Is it needed, maybe not, but it will not hurt. Also it gives you more time to inspect the undercarriage. I, like you plan on keeping my Vet for a longgggggg time as well.

carpe dm

C6ToGo

I have read every post on DIY A6 fluid and filter changes and have yet to see a write up that answers my questions before I start:
- Are there 2 bolts that are hard to get to?
- Is the refill all that difficult?
- Do I need to put new fluid in some kind of pump to get it into fill hole?

I have always done filter changes myself and plan to do the vette also.

My guess for proper procedure is:
1- jack up car level
2- drain fluid in measured container, drop pan, replace filter
3 - add new fluid in same quantity as drained (how does it go in?)
4 - measure level and top off with tranny just barely warmed up and engine running

where am i off?

Easy Rhino

I think that's basically it.

I will be doing mine the weekend after next.

I, too, have done all of my cars for years, intend to keep mine a long time, and changing what I can plus changing the filter will not hurt it.

Opinions vary, but I ahve never had a tranny failure, not planning on one now. I believe in maintenance.

I am well aware that I can expect to only get 7 quarts out, but that's fine for now.

Perhaps I'll take pictures and post a how to do it thread.

You and I should compare notes after we're done.

YMMV

lilcajun

I took my 09 to the dealer with the same problem. They said and even gave me a copy of the service bulletin saying this is normal for GM vehicles. Yea umm right. will see.

glass slipper

Oh good, it sounds like you're the absolute expert on flushing machines and exchange machines. Please explain for all of us in detail the differences between each machine and include links as well as part numbers to the different machines. I'll be wait patiently.

studiovette

Called my local stealership and they quoted me $279.99 for transmision fluid change. I think I might be doing this somewhere else.

Rebel 1

Right, you have an good dealer.
I have serviced many, many automatics and i would never recommend flushing and the like to anyone.
It is not difficult to DIY and will Save you a Lot of $$$. Search or service manual should be consulted for specs, torque values, etc.
For those who are interested:
Pull the pan and clean it.
Clean the particle magnet.
Install new filter and button it up. Add required spec fluid and Check Level ONLY at the required temperature.

Rebel 1

That is DOUBLE what should be charged.
Make sure a new filter is included with the change.

Ketchum

I paid $129.95 At Maxie price Chevrolet. They are a Corvette Superstore. Had a very experienced Corvette tech working on my car. The Chrysler store near me is in the $200 plus price. Now it will run more if filter is done. I did not do filter. Not until 60k. I had 29k. Between Mazda,Isuzu,GM and Chrysler cars I cannot even begin to estimate over 6 year time frame how many vehicles the service dept I ran and worked in how many 'fliud exchanges' were done with nothing but outstanding results. Have had fleet owners and rural route mail carriers praise how the amount of trans failure dropped significantly after using 'fliud exchanges' as part of regular maintenance. Had regular customer's comment it was the only time they noticed a shift improvement after a 'tran' service. Its real simple. New fliud goes in while old fliud goes out. We did filters between 60k and 90k.

fnsblum

Let me see if I understand this debate correctly. Some of you only want to change the filter and half the fluid. Now, is this like pulling the engine drain plug, draining three quarts and adding back three quarts? Now I don't have a clue what they do to flush a trans but I do know how they get the vast majority of the old oil out and new back in. My dealer has a machine with clear reservoirs. One has the correct amount of new oil + a little extra. The other collects the used oil. You would have to be color blind not to see the difference in the color from what goes in to what comes out. Now in the case of the low miles at which a lot of folks here change their oil, there won't be a lot of difference in color. Later! Frank

DSOMC6

Bill Soda

Could not agree more. Flushing is the " cop-out " to do the job properly. As posted above...drop the pan, wipe the internal portion, clean the big donut magnet stuck to the bottom of the pan and install new filter ( no attach bolts just an interference fit with one seal ) Install the pan. Torque attach bolts to 100in/lbs with the reusable gasket or buy a new one like I did. Three aft attach bolts are a little difficult to start, but not impossible. Remove these three bolts first and install them last. I bought a small Pennzoil pump at Pep Boys for about $15.00 to fill the pan with Dexron VI. Pump about seven quarts in ( this will be too much ) but it will keep you from burning yourself on the exhaust system to top off a low initial fill later. Start engine, run it through each gear range and pause for 3-4 seconds. Allow trans fluid temp on DIC to reach 86-122 degrees F. After this is done have vehicle level ENGINE MUST BE RUNNING and in " park " remove big drain plug in the center of the pan. Allow fluid to run out until it just dripping. Install plug & you're done. If no fluid comes out with the ENGINE RUNNING, pump more fluid in until it dribbles out with the engine running. Fluid is now set to the proper level. It's not difficult, just kinda messy.

Dendk

I don't think this is entirely accurate but it is better then not changing it at all, I have also serviced many transmissions that have failed...I hated the smell of burned clutches and such, most because of lack of maintenance which brings broken/burnt parts. One of the issues I see with flushing is the lack of full flush/exchange service, the pan still has to be dropped to service the filter and clean the pan otherwise the contaminants especially on high mileage trans might get lodged in a valve body or other area and cause damage, the fast lube places do not follow this and they just flush/exchange.

On the other hand just dropping the pan does not get all of the fluid out so you mix old with new, again you can dislodge something and cause a problem...i still think a full service/exchange is a better way to go...and generally your better off following the service guide for your car on maintenance cycles, if you follow that you should be fine unless you fall into that severe category and that changes your intervals.

Rebel 1

What i posted is Completely Accurate. This is the way automatics have been serviced for 100 years and this is the way i have have serviced them for 41 years.
The two Main reasons a trans will fail is:
1. Not changing filter and fluid.
2. Trans overheating.
It seems many people will change their oil/filter on time for the engine but neglect the transmission. Many people i have talked to over the years simply didn't know the trans had to have fluid/filter change.

Agree with you about changing the filter. Why change the fluid and leave a dirty filter? When it clogs, bye bye transmission.

You don't have to get all of the fluid out on a pan drop and filter change. Not necessary.
There are people i know and some on this forum that had a service exchange/flush and Did, in fact, dislodge particles which ended up in the wrong place and the trans failed.

The "flushing and service exchange gimmicks" were started by dealers and some shops to Separate people from More of their Money.
Only thing GM states to "flush" is the Cooling System.

The main thing is, as you said, have a maintenance plan for your trans and it should live a long life.

Ketchum

Chezz. Exchanging the old fliud out and new is is not a gimmick started by a dealers. Its not s 'cop out'. What makes it a 'cop out'? Just cause auto transmission were ONLY serviced by loosing a few quarts and a new filter dosen't meaning its the only or best way. Times change. Oil bath air filters are a thing of the past also. New fliud in,old out. Sounds a lot better to me then loosing 3 to 6 qts of old atf and topping off. No one says not to every change the filter. Its just that some of these filters are designed to last 60k to 100k. Doing a fliud swap(exchange) uses the vehicles own power and it does not 'back flush'. Nothing gets dislodged and can go into the valve body. It is a simple procedure and virtually replaces all the old fliud. Old fliud in,old fliud out. Thats it. You can do it in your driveway if you so deserve. Its just much easier to pay someone with a bladder machine. Tire store near me has a BG fliud exchange machine. I have used Amsoil ATF in vehicles in the past. Tire store charged me $35 bucks to hook my vehicles up and I use 17 quarts of my Amsoil ATF. Other wise I would be heavily mixing 3 or 4 qts of Amsoil synthetic ATF with the old fliud in the trans.. Wasted fliud and money. You can do a exchange with filter. Change filter,top off trans,hook up machine and old out,new in. The point being is NEW fliud in old out. There are 'flush' machines out there. I've never seen one. All I've ever seen was BG fliud exchange machines. The Chevy store that did mine says they use a competitor of BG and liked it a little better. Do a Google search on read about the machines. The info is at your finger tips.

HOXXOH

Don't even bother with the trans fluid. You drive only 4K per year and considering your question it's highly doubtful that you even come close to severe service. The 100K suggested for a normal service fluid change means you can drive for 25 years.

I just don't get why people who hardly drive their cars are so worried about such minor things, yet will invariably trade off the car long before the warranty is over and sometimes even before the first reccommended service.

Ketchum

If I had it from new I would not have done some of the service I did to my 2006. I bought used and I don't like the fact that there is no dip stick to check fliud. I know the color of the fliud is suppose to not be very meaningful, but I like being able t o see it. On used vehicles with a little age such as my 2006 I like to get a base line. I serviced my 2006 from front to back. Trans fliud,coolant ,brake fliud, differential. Changed fliud in all. Pair of new air filters and a cabin filter and wiper blades. Really needed them. Makes me feel better about my ride. Oh and its FOR SALE.