Hit 100k CVT fluid photo

that looks pretty darn good for 100k. i wonder if it's even worth it.

 

I can just hope mine stays like that for even 50k.

 

In reality; NOT. It's quite dark compared to new fluid.

Starting with the Gen III, Toyota no longer provides a magnetic drain plug, and there is likely a lot of steel and iron particles worn off of the gears in the fluid.

I've attached a photo of a Gen II drain plug taken out after 100k miles.

Even with the little ceramic magnet, there is a lot of iron and steel.

When I changed mu fluid at 13k, I replaces the standard drain plug with my custom milled OE one fitted with a rare earth neodymium magnet.

 

i find the engine oil looks a lot darker in a jar, than it does on the dipstick.

 

The case might be aluminum, but all the gears are made of iron and steel. That's where the particles come from.

In suspension, the particles are either the same or harder than the gears and parts rubbing each other.

Removing them from the stream of fluid reduces wear.

I made them, because I wanted one, and $20 is worth the price. It's cheap insurance.

I'f I had a car like the CVT Altima, I'd put a disc magnet on the steel pan. My old 1998 Mazda MPV has a ceramic button magnet there. It catches quite a bit of iron-steel there.

 

I see no point in leaving the original transaxle fluid in that long, per the OP.

I did a change at the one year mark, about 10,000 km: the drained fluid was quite dark. Did a second change at 3 year mark, around 30,000 km: the fluid looked pretty good. Based on that I've resolved to change it every 3~4 years, down the road.

Letting the original fluid sit in there for over 100,000 miles is the worst thing you can do, imho.

It's a pretty cheap and easy chore, my last bill:

Four Liter Toyota ATF-WS fluid: $37.28 (Can)
Two Drain/Fill Bolt Washer: $3.98

 

I think so too. Most of the wear has occured after few ten thousand miles, so change then and it stays much better.

 

I always do a transmission oil change 12k miles or so with a new car. By that time, the gears and parts have "worn in" and the rough pieces have entered the fluid stream.

Since I found NO magnet in the OEM plug, when I changed the fluid at 13k, I installed the magnetic plug.

200 miles later, I quickly swapped plugs with another, and already found metal particles on the magnet.

I lost 3-4 ounces of fluid in the plug swap, but it was easily replaced from the left over fluid from the four quarts of WS used in the fluid change.

An early change and the addition of the NOT SUPPLIED magnetic plug is definitely WORTH IT from my 40+ years of experience on working on cars. That is, unless you only keep a car for 100K miles or less from NEW.

 

How about slapping a very strong neodymium magnet on the outside of drain plug? Then the whole drain plug becomes magnetized, much cheaper than buying a magnetic drain plug.

 

I tried that, didn't pick up anything to speak of. Nothing actually.

 

Having the magnet in direct contact with the fluid is the only way to get it to work correctly.

Since the available magnets are larger then the diameter of the OE plug's cavity, the plug must be precisely milled to the correct diameter and "glued" into the socket with a two part epoxy or a special green Loctite sleeve and bearing holding compound like 640.