Does the 2004 Prius require transmission fluid? If so, how do you put it in? Where is the trans dip stick?
Q Hi welcome to PC! Its a manual transmission so like all manuals has no dipstick. In order to check the level you have to remove the fill hole plug on the side of the transmission from underneath the car. If this car is new to you or you have owned it for years I highly recommend you get the trans fluid changed. Its fairly simple for a diy'er. There's a million posts about it here on how to do it. Most dealers will look at you funny if you ask about it as alot of owners do not do it so its not done alot apparently but many oil analysis's done here suggest the fluid should be changed at least every 50,000 miles. Posts here suggest the dealer will do it anywhere from $100 to $200. Good Luck!
There is no dipstick. The fill port is on the transaxle housing and is best accessed through the hood with a funnel and hose. If you search for CVT fluid, you should find tons of info, pics, etc.
MollyB, :welcome: to PRIUSchat. This thread with pictures and everything should answer all your questions: http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...troubleshooting/50444-cvt-fuild-change-2.html
heres another thread that has more information: http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...bleshooting/44124-changing-transaxle-oil.html
I had the dealer change the oil at 60000 km. Much earlier than they would normally do. They didn't charge me anything for it .
:focus: So to sum up, there's no dipstick. Normally you don't need to check the levels; it will only go down if there's a leak, and in that case you should get the leak fixed. There's a fill plug on the side, and a drain plug on the bottom. The check for the fluid level is to remove the fill plug and see if the fluid is 0-5 mm from the bottom of the hole. If so, it's full. It takes a special Toyota WS "world" automatic transmission fluid, available at Toyota dealers. It's possible that other fluids will work, but do so at your own risk. Although Toyota does not recommend a service interval for the fluid, many here recommend doing it anyway. Be sure to read the thread referenced above for directions if you're doing it yourself; in particular, there's a coolant drain plug that's easy to mistake for the transmission drain plug.
This service should only cost 60-75 dollars at the dealer. If they try to charge you more just call another dealer. Also the service can be done by any garage, just make sure to buy the proper transmission fluid (4 quarts) at your toyota dealer and bring it with you to your mechanic so you are sure they are using the right fluid. It is best to do an initial change at 15000 miles and then every 40000 to 50000 miles after that.
