My mechanic changed my automatic transmission fluid.
10-24-14, 06:06 AM
#1
My mechanic changed my automatic transmission fluid.
I took my 2008 IS250 with 120k miles for the 120k mile service that Lexus recommends. I usually goto this guy to do my oil changes, and brakes.
He told me he knew the official Lexus 120k mile service requirements. Anyways, first thing he told me when the car was done was that he changed the automatic transmission fluid.
I read the 120k mile service bulletin from Lexus. It's here if anyone wants to read it.
http://www.lexus.com/pdf/service/MY1...S_250C_WSG.pdf
I heard the transmission is life time and sealed and should never be opened. Am I screwed? I drove the car once already, it felt fine, but should I worry? This guy said he did it in an hour....
Anyways he also didn't change my drive belts, and I read somewhere it should be changed.
He changed my rear differential fluid with hopefully the right stuff because on the receipt it's the only fluid that doesn't specify anything about what fluid it is.
I did my smoke check and passed with my only mod at the moment, Injen SP cold air intake.
He said he will do this intake cleaning thing, and I told him in the beginning to not touch my intake because it has like 2000 miles on it and its clean. On the receipt it says, "Recomm Intake Induction Service ---- API, GL-5." Anyone know what that means and what service he did?
My intake sounds a lot quieter now, at full throttle.
Lastly he changes my oil with 5w-30 oil, but on the PDF bulletin I linked, it says to use 0w-20. Has my mechanic been using the wrong oil viscosity the whole time??
ANY feedback and info would be GREATLY appreciated. I'm seriously worried at this moment.
He told me he knew the official Lexus 120k mile service requirements. Anyways, first thing he told me when the car was done was that he changed the automatic transmission fluid.
I read the 120k mile service bulletin from Lexus. It's here if anyone wants to read it.
http://www.lexus.com/pdf/service/MY1...S_250C_WSG.pdf
I heard the transmission is life time and sealed and should never be opened. Am I screwed? I drove the car once already, it felt fine, but should I worry? This guy said he did it in an hour....
Anyways he also didn't change my drive belts, and I read somewhere it should be changed.
He changed my rear differential fluid with hopefully the right stuff because on the receipt it's the only fluid that doesn't specify anything about what fluid it is.
I did my smoke check and passed with my only mod at the moment, Injen SP cold air intake.
He said he will do this intake cleaning thing, and I told him in the beginning to not touch my intake because it has like 2000 miles on it and its clean. On the receipt it says, "Recomm Intake Induction Service ---- API, GL-5." Anyone know what that means and what service he did?
My intake sounds a lot quieter now, at full throttle.
Lastly he changes my oil with 5w-30 oil, but on the PDF bulletin I linked, it says to use 0w-20. Has my mechanic been using the wrong oil viscosity the whole time??
ANY feedback and info would be GREATLY appreciated. I'm seriously worried at this moment.
10-24-14, 06:19 AM
#3
Here's the exact maintenance manual for my 2008 IS250.
http://drivers.lexus.com/t3Portal/do...is25008smg.pdf
http://drivers.lexus.com/t3Portal/do...is25008smg.pdf
10-24-14, 06:20 AM
#4
When are you supposed to replace the drive belt? And how often should we replace our cabin air conditioning filter? Also, how often do really need to do an oil change? 5,000 miles w/ synthetic oil seems a bit unnecessary.
10-24-14, 06:39 AM
#5
was he able to take out all the tranny fluid? my lexus mechanic told me you can only do 3 litters at a time and it takes like 8 litters. so he told me to come back in few months to do the tranny fluid again. Rear differential fluid was apparently pretty easy to do and cost much less than an oil change. For oil, I use regular oil so I change it every 5000KM, but I'm not sure about synthetic. For the air cabin filter, just do it yourself, its a piece of cake to do (I do it every 50000KM). I haven't heard anything about drive belt though ( does that apply to 350 as well)
Thanks for the quick response. Now about the automatic transmission fluid...
When are you supposed to replace the drive belt? And how often should we replace our cabin air conditioning filter? Also, how often do really need to do an oil change? 5,000 miles w/ synthetic oil seems a bit unnecessary.
When are you supposed to replace the drive belt? And how often should we replace our cabin air conditioning filter? Also, how often do really need to do an oil change? 5,000 miles w/ synthetic oil seems a bit unnecessary.
10-24-14, 06:46 AM
#6
was he able to take out all the tranny fluid? my lexus mechanic told me you can only do 3 litters at a time and it takes like 8 litters. so he told me to come back in few months to do the tranny fluid again. Rear differential fluid was apparently pretty easy to do and cost much less than an oil change. For oil, I use regular oil so I change it every 5000KM, but I'm not sure about synthetic. For the air cabin filter, just do it yourself, its a piece of cake to do (I do it every 50000KM). I haven't heard anything about drive belt though ( does that apply to 350 as well)
I asked him how long he took, he said about an hour lol. Oh well it drives fine, so I'm not complaining. I hope won't have to in the future.
BTW, saw your sig mods, What you think of your Invidia midpipe and the F-Sport steering wheel dampener?
I have the Invidia midpipe and axle back and that dampener waiting to be installed.
10-24-14, 08:01 AM
#7
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To answer your questions, your mechanic was right to suggest replacing the transmission fluid. Even if the fluid is marketed as lifetime fluid, the clutches inside the transmission wear out with use and it creates waste which clogs the transmission filter over time.
Also our transmissions aren't "sealed" in that the transmission doesn't need to be removed and dismantled to replace the filter. (i.e most hondas) The oil pan is easily accessible from below the vehicle.
If your transmission was serviced correctly it should have a new filter, gasket, and fluid (I always recommend dealer fluid for lexus/toyota)
If your transmission was "flushed" i recommend you take your car back ASAP and have them replace the filter as well since it is likely clogged from the process.
Btw 120k miles is a long time to wait for a transmission service. I'll do my first at 60k and then do them every 15k miles. Hope this helps!
Also our transmissions aren't "sealed" in that the transmission doesn't need to be removed and dismantled to replace the filter. (i.e most hondas) The oil pan is easily accessible from below the vehicle.
If your transmission was serviced correctly it should have a new filter, gasket, and fluid (I always recommend dealer fluid for lexus/toyota)
If your transmission was "flushed" i recommend you take your car back ASAP and have them replace the filter as well since it is likely clogged from the process.
Btw 120k miles is a long time to wait for a transmission service. I'll do my first at 60k and then do them every 15k miles. Hope this helps!
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10-24-14, 08:37 AM
#8
As long as they used Toyota WS lifetime transmission fluid, you should be fine. In Canada, the manual actually states to have the transmission fluid replaced. Some dealers have a proper machine to get all the fluid out, others don't and need to do a few litres at a time.
10-24-14, 09:05 AM
#10
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That could very well be the case but having seen the amount of transmissions that get damaged and come with lifetime fluid... I'll take my chances and service my transmission 
10-24-14, 09:23 AM
#11
One guy on our forum recently changed the transmission fluid and took a sample of the old fluid to a lab for testing and the result turns out to be excellent. Search around for the thread and you will see it. For the peace of mind, I still recently changed mine at 95k miles on the 06 IS350.
I think the thread is here https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-...-analyzed.html
I think the thread is here https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-...-analyzed.html
Last edited by FSportIS; 10-24-14 at 09:30 AM.
10-24-14, 11:40 AM
#13
10-24-14, 12:06 PM
#15
Guys I shall post up my receipt shortly. Please tell me what he did or didn't do. He charged me $297, which from 2 google searches I saw people paying $700-1300 for this service.
Let me know if I should be using 5w-0 or 5-w20 or what he's always been using: 5w-30. And how often do I have to change the oil given the fact that it's synthetic. He sets it so it's every 5k miles. Seems excessive, but I would like to know the truth of how often I should change my oil and get the most for my money.
Let me know if I should be using 5w-0 or 5-w20 or what he's always been using: 5w-30. And how often do I have to change the oil given the fact that it's synthetic. He sets it so it's every 5k miles. Seems excessive, but I would like to know the truth of how often I should change my oil and get the most for my money.