I think I heard that some 4runners dont have a tranny dipstick anymore. Is this the 5 speed auto? Does that mean the new tundras wont have a tranny dipstick? This is not a good move by Toyota. My '02 Malibu does not have a tranny dipstick and believe me its getting to be a royal pain in the arse. This basically means you cant change your tranny fluid unless you have a lift in your garage.

anyone? no one has a 4runner or LC with this tranny? I heard it has no dipstick. Which woudl make it hard to re-fill the tranny without a lift in your garage.

On the '04 with auto transmisson a ATF level detection mechanism has been adopted. Details can be found in the thread 2004 4Runner New Features (http://www.tundrasolutions.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18376)

My wife's 2004 4Runner with the 5 speed has no tranny dipstick.

My wife's 2004 4Runner with the 5 speed has no tranny dipstick.

Argh!!! Toyota is shooting itself in the foot. Auto-ATF sensors? Sounds like one more thing that could go wrong. Im severely disappointed.

You can still drain it and check levels,but in order to fill the trans you will need a pump...I learned that the hard way when I didn't pay attention to what year GX470 I was servicing :eek:

They also use a new transmission fluid,it's no longer Dexron/Mercon or the Toyota Type-T stuff.

You can still drain it and check levels,but in order to fill the trans you will need a pump...I learned that the hard way when I didn't pay attention to what year GX470 I was servicing :eek:

They also use a new transmission fluid,it's no longer Dexron/Mercon or the Toyota Type-T stuff.

How do you check the levels.

alan

How do you check the levels.
Drain it into a 5-gallon bucket :D

If you don't have a red oily puddle under your truck where you park it, you don't have a leak.

It has a way to check the level. Look for a plug on the side of the case, or somewhere. This is the correct level just like your differential with the truck level. (VWs & Audis have a standpipe with a plug at the top of the standpipe accessed from underneath. That's a pain.)


Ken

[QUOTE=Eddie]You can still drain it and check levels,but in order to fill the trans you will need a pump...I learned that the hard way when I didn't pay attention to what year GX470 I was servicing :eek:
QUOTE]

So there is a drain plug at least? Is there a plug on the side of the tranny for filling? And its full when the fluid dribbles back out like on a differential or manual tranny?

That wouldnt be so bad, if theres at least drain and fill plugs.

And whats with all these darn fluid changes? Give the synthetic companies time to catch up so I dont have to pay $4.00 a quart for dino at the dealer.

If you don't have a red oily puddle under your truck where you park it, you don't have a leak.



It's mostly true but my Mom had a 1980 Cutlass 231 V-6 tends to burn transmission fluid after a minor rebuild by a local "low-price" transmission shop(polish clutch plates, bands, flush...). It has no leak anywhere nor contaimination in the coolant. It consumes about 2 qts between Houston and Lubbock.

To answer all your questions:

Yes there is a drain plug,still on the pan like a "normal" transmission. There is also a second plug on the pan that uses a small hex socket to remove (more on that later)

Yes there is a fill plug on the side of the case for filling.

But you cannot just fill it until it dribbles. You're most likely overfilled. The fluid has to be at a certain temperature range,any hotter will require shutting it down to cool off. You then remove that second plug and let it drain until it dribbles.

Checking fluid temp requires a scantool. I don't know if generic OBD2 scantools can access that data.

thats really stupid of toyota. why not make it user friendly and more people would keep an eye on their fluid levels.

OR at the very minumim they should have made it so you can check the fluid when cold by removing the plug(like manual trans).

i guess they are hopin the fluid lasts longer with the extra gear....some companies(BMW and i think some fords) have totally sealed 5 speed autos. fluid never needs changed(i dont believe it, but who knows)

It's mostly true but my Mom had a 1980 Cutlass 231 V-6 tends to burn transmission fluid after a minor rebuild by a local "low-price" transmission shop(polish clutch plates, bands, flush...). It has no leak anywhere nor contaimination in the coolant. It consumes about 2 qts between Houston and Lubbock.
That's not being "burned"... at least not by the trans... and 2qts for that run is WAY excessive.
I would strongly suspect that what you have is a small perforation in the diaphragm of the vacuume modulator. This is allowing the fluid to be sucked into the intake manifold and burned by the engine.
Pull the line from the manifold and hit the inside with a Q-tip... betcha' 5 bucks (Paypal won't allow one buck) it comes out pink.

If a trans is not actually leaking, there is nowhere else for the fluid to go. It doesn't evaporate, and can't burn away into nothing. There is no direct fluid connection between the TC and engine.