Prius C Tranmission/Transaxle/HSD Oil Change

You need a new mechanic......hum fluid change at $100 bucks vs. and rebuilt trans $1000 plus.......

 

I appreciate what you guys are saying, but keep in mind that he has nothing to gain from telling me not to change it. He's also known for his honesty (he's even RepairPal certified).

On top of that, my car has been driven mostly highway miles, gently in the city, and rarely exceeded 55 MPH. Even my tires were still good at nearly 100,000 miles.

 

Its your car and your money, but it just does not make any sense not to change fluids early.....

 

I would prefer to change it early, just to be safe, but I want to make sure I won't be doing any harm to my CVT. While many people endorse doing this, I'd need professional advice before doing so. I'm still researching it, and I may call Luscious Garage again about it. Right now, it seems to be more of a peace of mind thing, rather than a proven way to extend the life of the CVT.

 

I can confidently say, and with absolute certainty, that your mechanic is full of shite! Time to find a new mechanic.

My Post #473 in the link below contains info and pictures that will enlighten you.
ATF fluid changes ARE Required. | Page 24 | PriusChat

• Picture of old ATF-WS fluid (after 15K miles; absolutely nothing pinkish w/ this low mileage fluid) vs NEW.
• Study link to Bob Wilson & Professor Eddenberg transaxle oil analysis.
• Picture of super strong aftermarket transaxle drain plug w/ all kinds of ferrous particles on it; Gen 3, Cs, and vagons don't have a magnetic transaxle drain plug. All those abrasive wear particles floating around and probably wearing out the components faster.

Do you believe fluids last forever? Engine oil? Transmission Fluid? Brake Fluid? Coolant?

The CVT dying after an ATF change might be a fluke. Or more importantly, what was the maintenance history of the car upto the failure? Was the owner complaining of any drive ability issues just before the ATF change? Maybe the car was shifting erratically?

Can your mechanic explain why some people experience a transaxle failure when the ATF-WS fluid had never been changed? Mine was beginning to go bad at 99,114 miles and ATF-WS had never been changed. There are others who experienced this too.

Can you or your mechanic explain why Toyota gives contradictory maintenance schedules? Brake fluid replacement for 2007 Toyota Highlander Hybrid vs 2007 Lexus RH400h (a hybrid too). No mention for the Highlander. 36mos/30,000miles change intervals listed for the RH400h. Pretty much identical vehicles, just a different badge and price. Your mechanic surely doesn't believe brake fluid lasts forever?

All manufacture maintenance schedule is a minimum. Manufactures want cars to die; going above and beyond their maintenance schedule is bad for them. Toyota's definition of lifetime is going to be far less than your view of lifetime.

EDIT. I wouldn't put my complete faith/trust in Repair Pal. Are the shops being charged a fee to be listed on Repair Pal? I wouldn't be surprised if this is the case. You might be familiar with their business model if you have used Yelp; business who pay Yelp, get pushed up at the top of the search results w/in Yelp, and negative comments get pushed down.

 

The only reason I can think of why his transmission oil is still good is "speed" and "load". He's driving rarely more than 55 MPH on "highways" and probably no passengers. Even his tires lasted 100,000 miles.

 

I am a Mechanic of 3+ decades and I can tell you that your mechanic may be a nice guy and know how to do some things...but on this one he is either full of it or does not know what he is talking about...and how does he know what it looks like without draining it. A finger dip tells you nothing. Respectfully, it's your car and your decision. I/we wish you the best.

 

Just had my fluid changed at 29k miles...purportedly looking dark brown according to the dealership mechanic. Probably would have been a good idea to dump it at 15k!

 

I had the oil changed in my Gen 2 at 60k miles and it was very dark in colour compared to new. My mechanic said there is no such thing as lifetime oil and I agree. I will do it agin at 100k miles and depending on its condition will decide when to change it again. It's not expensive and I feel that I am giving the car the best chance to last longer.

I had the gearbox changed in my 2002 CR-V last week at 100k miles and looked to be in very good condition. In saying that, I'll do it agin in another 20-30k miles, which could take 3/4 years as it doesn't do big miles. It costs less than €50 to do it and if that prolongs the life of the gearbox, it's money well spent imo.

I don't see any advantage to not changing it as the cost is so low.

I generally change the brake fluid in my cars every two years too, although I might leave it a little longer in the Prius as ithey was only done last year and the brakes don't get as much use as a "normal" car

That's my 2c, it's your car, so your call

 

Thanks again for all the posts and information, everyone. It seems that I am seeing an argument of one person vs. everyone else w/ data and personal experience with their ATF changes. I've always been in favor of preventative maintenance, but the ATF change just worried me because it was going against Toyota's recommendations, and the horror stories I got from my shop.

Considering that both our C and CT are long-term cars, I think I will have the ATFs changed on both at the dealers, just to be safe, to make sure the work is done right and backed.

 

I'm all about preventative maintenance and the cost associated with it is usually a lot less than replacement of a part that has failed due to lack of maintenance.

When I was trying to get the ATF from Toyota Ireland they told me it doesn't need to be changed. I said, that's great, thanks, but can yo order me the fluid, thanks again. they had to order it as a special order from the Eurpean parts centre on Belgium and ship it here!

 

I'm almost to 30k miles at this point and after realizing the quality of the transaxle fluid, I'm likely to drain the factory brake and coolant fluid very soon as well.

 

Is a magnetic drain plug worthwhile, btw? If I follow the 30k, then every 60k thereafter ATF change routine, is it useful?

 

Drain/fill on a regular basis is most important. A magnetic drain plug will help reduce wear.

Did you not click on my Post #473 in this link (ATF fluid changes ARE Required. | Page 24 | PriusChat)?
There is a picture of the Gold Plug magnetic (transaxle) drain plug w/ all kinds of ferrous (iron/steel) particles on it. The magnet reduces wear, by reducing the amount of metal particles circulating in the fluid, by capturing the particles onto the magnetic tip. All the while, the fluid is lubricating the gears.

Gen3, C, and "vagons," lack a magnetic transaxle drain plug. The Gen2's had a weak OEM magnetic drain plug.

 

Gen2 coolant change interval is 100K miles, then every 50K miles.
Gen2 brake fluid no mention what so ever.

Art's Automotive (Berkeley, CA) makes some compelling points on brake fluid, coolant, and ATF-WS.
Prius 30k Service

I did a complete brake fluid flush a little after 100K miles (~7 years). Took a little over a gallon for a Gen2. After Art's suggestion, and the contradiction of a Toyota Highlander Hybrid vs Lexus RX400h, I'll stick to 36mos/30K miles now.

 

I did look at your post. I wasn't sure if changing the fluid on a regular basis took care of all that metal or if the plug was important.

 

No magnet, all those metal particles would be floating freely in the ATF-WS fluid helping to wear down the gears faster. With the magnetic drain plug, the magnet captures and holds onto the metal particles, reducing the amount of metal particles floating freely in the ATF-WS, thus reducing wear. The picture showing metal debris apparently wasn't compelling enough for you.

How much wear will be reduced? Only a comparison of two transaxles driven the same mileage, having the same interval of transaxle drain/fill procedures performed, lastly tearing the transaxles apart to examine the difference in wear. Obviously one transaxle would have a magnetic drain plug, the other would not. This would be a costly experiment that I won't perform. However, I am confident that the transaxle w/ the magnetic drain plug would have a longer service life due to the magnet reducing wear.

Should you decide to get a plug, you could put the plug onto your next Prius. This assumes you hold onto the OEM plug and the next Prius has the same diameter and thread pitch as the old plug.

At the very least, you seem to have been moved to get regular drain/fills performed on the transaxle. This will be a good thing. Better would be adding a magnetic drain plug.

But, your car, your wallet, so do as you please.

 

I wouldn't call changing the transaxle fluid at 140,000 miles early.

 

I think the best thing to remember right about now is that the transmission is not a real CVT. It's got gears and lube. No filters, no fiber clutch packs, no pumps. None of the usual things we associate with failed high-mileage transmission failures.

 

I still say an external filter would have been wise. YMMV