mike5.9

I plan to do a running tranny flush in my 93 ES300. I have a couple of questions. Does anyone know of a write-up that details the procedure? It's no problem with my Jeep, but this will be the first time in the Lexus.

Also,
What is the correct torque for the tranny pan bolts?

What is the deal with using the toyota fluid instead of dexron II that is recomended by my manual?

Thanks!

meZoom!

i don't know of a write up that is already done for the es, but it pretty much should be the same as any other lexus/toyota.
the tranny pan bolts are to be torqued to 36 ft/lbs.
as for what type of fluid, i really don't have any authoritative answer, as everyone here has different opinions and experiences w/ dexron and/or toyota.
i noticed you have another thread regarding your ES tranny that i haven't checked out yet....
when you (or if you) take out the tranny pan, try to see what kind of gunk is actually in there...clean the magnets at the bottom and see what's stuck.
this is the pic of the ES tranny screen (filter) that came off of my car. i'm throwing this in here cuz the poor picture has no other chances to appear.

Lexmexico

If you are referring to Toyota fluid, you are probably referring to Type-IV. This is a synthetic, whereas Dexron is not. I have had much better transmission performance since using the the Type-IV. You could also not go wrong with Mobil 1.

Nick T

Mike5.9 ,
Are you taking your car in for "tranny flush" service? From your other questions it seems you plan to do the work yourself. The only "real" way to flush your tranny is with a machine that pumps new ATF in from the return hose while dumping old ATF out the intake hose of your tranny cooler. This is the only way to remove ALL old ATF from the tranny, but it's also a costly service $60-120.
I haven't worked on a ES300 personally but the easiest way to flush out your tranny is 3 consecutive tranny oil changes with 10-15 miles driven between each change. If the ATF comes out dark red or black, you might want to change your filter twice. Once after the first flush and again after your last flush/change. Don't bother using those "tranny flush" bottles they sell at Pep Boys etc. ES300 uses Dextron II so your cost would be $20 or less for 3 complete drain and fills.

Luck

meZoom!

seems like he is gonna do a at-home running tranny flush. It is pretty effective in flushing out the system as opposed to just a simple drain and fill, but it will take about 4-5 cans of ATF (each can approx. 1 gallon). BananaGS has a DIY article on how to do it on a GS. Doing 3 consecutive tranny fluid changes would probably be pretty effective, but are you going to remove the drain pan every time too? There is quite a bit of "black solid stuff" at the bottom of a "driven" ES. Most of the other gunk is stuck in the torque converter anyway, which is a pain in the butt. The tranny filter is not really a filter on the 1mzfe, rather a screen. It is a serviceable part, meaning you take it out, clean it, inspect, and put it back in, so you don't have to replace twice in a short period. Despite what the parts dept. guy told me, i insisted on replacing my tranny screen instead of just cleaning and putting it back in. I sort of realize now why it's so. Anyway, the parts guy said he only sold 1 of these the whole year, and it was me.

BananaGS

>The tranny filter is not really a filter on the 1mzfe
yes, you don't have to replace these, almost never. just wast of time and money.

mike5.9

mezoom is correct, I'll be doing an "at home" flush. I'm pretty sure the system is similiar to that of my jeep. Fluid goes from the pan to tranny to torque converter to oil cooler to pan. So, if it's anything like the jeep, it gets all of the fluid out.

I haven't inspected the filter I purchased. That is pretty interesting that it is a servicable part, but heck, the replacement gasket and filter were only $15.

I still haven't been able to find a dry fill ATF quantity anywhere. Does anyone know? If not, I'll just guess 12 to be sure.

Thanks again.

Nick T

BananaGS,
Do you have a link to your article? The only thing I found was a howto drain and fill. I'd like to know how you can flush the tranny at home.

MeZoom,
Thanks for the info, Guess you don't have to replace the screen just clean it. Most Japanese cars have a drain plug for the tranny, My SC400 does... V6 Camrys I worked on do. No need to pull the whole pan each time just the first time to clean the screen and if you are **** the last time you drain and fill. My 3x drain/fill comes from my Acura days and was reccomended by Gil ****ason an Acura Tranny Guru ( just giving credit to the right person here) . It's the quickest easiest way to remove as much as the old ATF and dilute any leftover ATF with new fluid. It's not that time consuming if you have ramps or a lift. I would not disconnect the tranny cooler lines and run the engine unless it was hooked up to a flush machine as disconnecting them w/o the machine runs the risk of emptying your tranny of ATF. Even at idle tranny fluid is 100-150psi on the intake line to the tranny cooler.

mike5.9
MeZoom mentioned there's a alot of "solid black stuff" on the bottom of a "driven" ES. If this is true even a complete flush is NOT going to remove all of the gunk in the converter. If your fluid is dark red or black, I would suggest a simple drain and fill with EACH oil change until it starts coming out red.. at which point change every 15k miles or if you're **** like me every 7,500miles ( once before summer, once before winter )

BananaGS

posted on my site, look under complete flush tranmission #7 DIY

meZoom!

well, the tranny screen IS dirty, but I guess the theory behind cleaning and re-installing it is because the used screen is not a cause of poor tranny performance...it's an effect of it. and yes, the ES300 does have a drain plug for the tranny (if the V6 camry has something, the ES most likely shares it too, yay), but you can drain as much fluid as you can from the little hole for minutes on end til it almost doesn't drip anymore. Then try removing the pan....quite a bit more fluid comes out, along w/ the stuff stuck at the bottom.
Just to give you an idea of how messed up my tranny was, the fluid got black again after 1,000 miles!!!!!!!!!!

Nick T

meZoom,
Did the CV boots on a 93-94? ES once, when I pulled the axles out of the tranny, the fluid was so black I thought it was differential or engine oil. Agreed that w/o pulling the pan you are not getting as much fluid out as possible, however the procedure was to run the engine a few miles which should pull more gunk out of the torque converter. Once it's reasonably clean 3-4 drain/fills you can then pull the pan and clean the screen, replace with new ATF.

Mike5.9
I just read BananaGS' procedure for the tranny flush and by looking at his website I have immense respect for his knowledge and help, agreed it will flush alot of the old fluid but unless you are adding fluid from the oil cooler RETURN line to the tranny, you are still bypassing certain parts of the tranny. Then there's also the fact no pressure is on the return line ( the other line is now draining into a bucket ). ATF can drain back out of the return line, or air can be sucked in with the engine running causing loss of pressure to certain parts of the tranny and no fluid in those parts. I'm just not comfortable risking tranny failure due to that. It's safer and just as effective doing a 3x drain/fill since you won't be opening up the system and each drive frees up some more gunk for the converter to be drained out. Obviously BananaGS has used his procedure and I imagine others on the forums as well without ill effects. I'll leave it up to you to decide what you want to do.

Regards