DIY - changing your transmission fluid/oil, M/T 7afe Options

[tomazws]

man this pissed me off so much, i found the first bolt, the fill one. but i have no idea where the drain one is, i mean i just couldnt find it... does anyone have anymore pictures that show 'where' it is like he showed 'where' the first one is by circling it or something? cause i spent 30 bucks on that syncromesh and i wanna use ittttttt
lol thanks alot if anyone can help

[malecrod]

Did mine today with synchromesh, pretty straightforward. Only problem was that car has to be jacked up to refill from the bottom. couldn't do it from the top. Haven't driven the car yet. Waiting on clutch release cylinder/slave cylinder replacement.

[94yoter]

i did mine with syncromesh today and it made a humongous difference.
my tranny used to grind when i shifted from 4th to 3rd.....
now the grind is gone
and i am completely thrilled with my fluid change.
i had a hell of a time trying to find the syncromesh though.
my local advance auto didnt carry it
and the guy up at my local NAPA had never even heard of it.
he looked at me like i was crazy when i walked in and asked for syncromesh.
i had to drive to another advance auto to get it.
other than that.....great how to article!

[GotToyota]

I'd like to do my tranny fluid soon, as far as fluid, I hear some use ATF with good result, and I hear some use Synchromesh with good results. If I went with ATF, I'd use Royal Purple Max ATF.

Anyone use this stuff before with good results? And does anyone know what fluid the manual actually calls for?

-Matt

[devilsden97]

I'd like to do my tranny fluid soon, as far as fluid, I hear some use ATF with good result, and I hear some use Synchromesh with good results. If I went with ATF, I'd use Royal Purple Max ATF.

Anyone use this stuff before with good results? And does anyone know what fluid the manual actually calls for?

-Matt

ATF is Automatic Tranny Fluid

Isnt ATF bad for manual trannies?

edit: from royal purple's website

"Max ATF is a synthetic, high-performance, automatic transmission fluid. Its low co-efficient of friction and high film strength help to dramatically reduce heat and wear. Additionally, Max ATF is more oxidation stable than other transmission fluids for longer fluid life."

This post has been edited by devilsden97: Jul 30, 2008 - 11:42 AM

[GotToyota]

LOL, I know what ATF is. I just know some manual trannies can use ATF.

[brthrurik]

you can mix atf in with gear oil, that's what Toyota does with most of the newer cars...

[Batman722]

you can mix atf in with gear oil, that's what Toyota does with most of the newer cars...

and why would you think that ?

[GotToyota]

I think I'm just going to buy the Royal Purple 75W-90(?) tranny fluid and see how it goes.

-Matt

[devilsden97]

I think I'm just going to buy the Royal Purple 75W-90(?) tranny fluid and see how it goes.

-Matt

good call


and for the record, when i pointed out what ATF was, it wasnt to inform you as to what the acronym was, it was more to point out that u were using autotrans fluid on your standard. (so i guess in a roundabout way i was trying to inform u of what the acronym ment...didnt mean any disrespect, didnt want u dmging your tranny for no good reason)

[Bricy]

Ive done mine with Synchromesh and it shifted like a dream afterwords. Just some advice though, those bolts WILL give you a hard time but with some PB blaster and some good 'ol muscle they will come right out. Also if your previous owner was like mine then that fluid is still the original that came in the car. When I drained the old fluid out it was a burnt copper color and smelt something awful. It might have been overkill but I changed the fluid drove it for about 2 months or so and then changed it again and the fluid looked a lot better. And a pick for my tools of the trade

[GotToyota]

Ive done mine with Synchromesh and it shifted like a dream afterwords. Just some advice though, those bolts WILL give you a hard time but with some PB blaster and some good 'ol muscle they will come right out. Also if your previous owner was like mine then that fluid is still the original that came in the car. When I drained the old fluid out it was a burnt copper color and smelt something awful. It might have been overkill but I changed the fluid drove it for about 2 months or so and then changed it again and the fluid looked a lot better. And a pick for my tools of the trade

Very nice, so it only took you 3 quarts? Good to know.

DevilsDen: I didn't take it as offensive man, you're good.

[GotToyota]

http://www.amsoil.com/storefront/mtf.aspx

Anyone have any info on this stuff? I'd like to get this.

-Matt

[trdproven]

How would you fill the ATF? My dipstick says cool and hot instead of full or low. Common sense wise, if the car has not been running, it should be at the cool level and at idle, running it should be at the hot level?

When changing ATF, I'm using Valvoline for Dexron III vehicles. How would I change ATF and check the level? From what I've read, is when the car has not been running, fill until you reach the cool marks. Then turn on the car and standstill shift to all gears and back to park. As the car warms up check if the level is NEAR the hot marks. Then drive it a bit to get to the hot range and check again and see if it goes between the hot marks. Fill again as necessary. Correct me if I'm wrong.

This post has been edited by trdproven: Oct 16, 2008 - 7:38 AM

[jordisonjr]

I can't seem to find the filler bolt on my 5sfe can anyone help me out?

[Projek_01]

the fillter bolt is the side facing the front of your car. the bolt is located higher than the drain bolt. it is the only bolt that looks exactly like the drain bolt.

[BonzaiCelica]

i used some motul 75w-90. cost me $30 for 3 liters. Still have grinding when downshifting from 3rd to 2nd when i going about 40mph. People have said that my syncros are gone in 2nd gear. they are probably right.

So about the C52 tranny from the 7afe tranny. I just changed my clutch about a month ago and i was wondering how many bolts hold down the transmission. My friend took out the tranny and then i helped put it back together. But i think i might have forgot to torque down a bolt on the tranny with the torque wrench. I only toruqed down 4 bolts from the top half of the tranny. I couldnt find any big bolts towards the bottom of the tranny and in the chilton manual it list the amount of tranny bolts for the s54 but not for the c52. anybody know?

[BonzaiCelica]

bump (w/e that means) can anybody answer my question?

[delusionz]

I've been reading up about the right gearbox oil to put in my cars, and now I'm confused about what gearbox oil is right for which car.

The codes on my SS-III (Viscous LSD,FWD,Superstrut equipped) read - Trans/Axel S54 - 06D
& the codes on my GT-Four read E154F - 08B

Anyhow, after reading this ... I can't figure out whether any of this applies to my cars & What does he mean GT4 gearbox has no LSD, 185 or all including 205?

Gearbox Oil Selection

There are many many different grades of gearbox and differential oil. Toyota recommends GL-5 for the gearbox in all GT-Four models. Many disagree, but it is vital that a GL-5 is used, with good reason! Some use auto trans fluid with good results, it is now specified for most fwd Toyotas.

I have tried a few different gearbox oils in my eight years of ownership. The oil my ST165 came with was unknown so I changed to Pennzoil 75W-90 semi-synthetic. Despite this oil working very well in the W55 gearbox in my Celica Supra, it was not very good in the GT-Four, resulting in a notchy gearchange.

When my RC gearbox was fitted they used a Castrol oil. I assume this was Castrol Syntrac, as they suckered me NZ$35 a litre!! Despite the gearbox having just been rebuilt, the gearchange was crap! Very notchy.

I (again) changed to Redline oil, which at NZ$20 a litre was pretty reasonable. The correct oil to use in a GT-Four is 75W-90NS. This is the right viscosity rating, is a GL-5 oil and does not have friction modifiers for a LSD. The GT-Four gearbox does NOT have a limited slip diff in it! The viscous centre diff is a sealed unit and therefore unaffected by oil selection. This made a noticeable improvement to gearchange and was well worth doing.

GL-5 oil is mandatory in a GT-Four gearbox. As the excess traction of 4wd does not allow wheelspin the extra load is taken by the ring and pinion (the highest stressed parts in the gearbox). As a result of the high loads the contact surfaces of the teeth are known to wear prematurely. This was evident in my RC gearbox, which despite having new synchros had noticeable wear. We can only presume that the gearbox wore due to high mileage causing a poor gearchange. The owner used GL-4 oil to improve the gearchange, which increased ring and pinion wear. It was then rebuilt soon before I bought it. Hence use GL-5 or you will regret it.

That said, my RC gearbox was eventually replaced with a normal ST185 gearbox when the clutch failed. The gearchange in my RC box had deteriorated and I could trade the box over for only a $100 or so so I did so. I ran the new gearbox on ATF and the gearchange was excellent, who knows about the longativity though!

[blu94gt]

delusionz:

While I've never worked on a GT-4 to know for sure, typically all-wheel-drive cars don't have LSD, and usually if they do it's in the rear differential, not in the transmission/transaxle. The SS-III has a limited slip in the transaxle, which is why it requires a different type of fluid than your GT-4 transaxle. The reason for a different fluid is for the extra frictional forces in the LSD. The GT-4 should use just a regular GL-5 75w90 like a non-LSD front wheel drive transaxle.