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Transmission Fluid Change

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DarthRambo

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
Hello everyone,

I recently purchased a 2015 RAV4 Limited with around 90k miles (mostly highway miles). Everything runs great, transmission shifts smooth. I know the transmission fluid is technically labeled as “lifetime” however many posts and videos suggest changing it (different intervals on each post it seems). A friend turned me on to Scotty Kilmer videos. Many people say (including Scotty) that the friction in dirtier fluid helps the gears. Many say that changing it at higher mileage can actually be detrimental and cause the transmission to start slipping. I do not know if the transmission fluid was ever changed prior to me owning it (as it’s labeled lifetime I tend to lean toward no). At 95k now, is it a good idea to change the transmission fluid or since I have no issues, just leave it? Is there more risk in changing it at this higher mileage or more risk in simply leaving it as is?

Thank you for your time and help. I’m new to the forums, first post, and want to get this right. First Toyota and really want it to make it to at least 200k. Please let me know any other information that would be helpful in answering this question, still learning lots of the basics.

Thanks again.
 
#2 ·
DarthRambo said:
Hello everyone,

I recently purchased a 2015 RAV4 Limited with around 90k miles (mostly highway miles). Everything runs great, transmission shifts smooth. I know the transmission fluid is technically labeled as “lifetime” however many posts and videos suggest changing it (different intervals on each post it seems). A friend turned me on to Scotty Kilmer videos. Many people say (including Scotty) that the friction in dirtier fluid helps the gears. Many say that changing it at higher mileage can actually be detrimental and cause the transmission to start slipping. I do not know if the transmission fluid was ever changed prior to me owning it (as it’s labeled lifetime I tend to lean toward no). At 95k now, is it a good idea to change the transmission fluid or since I have no issues, just leave it? Is there more risk in changing it at this higher mileage or more risk in simply leaving it as is?

Thank you for your time and help. I’m new to the forums, first post, and want to get this right. First Toyota and really want it to make it to at least 200k. Please let me know any other information that would be helpful in answering this question, still learning lots of the basics.

Thanks again.
Click to expand...
A lot of people change the fluid at 60,000 miles. This would be a simple drain and refill not a flushing of the system which many feel could cause problems. Here is a video showing the way to do a drain and refill. No fluid lasts forever.

 
#3 ·
Good video! I would continue with the drain and fill until the excess fluid color ran closer to the color of the new fluid - more bottles of fluid would be required of course. I would also change the filter, but that's a bit more challenging of a job. ;)
 
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#4 ·
I discovered a similar video, I hope it makes things even easier to understand.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="
" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
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#6 ·
Also, i just bought a 2013 myself with 70k. I dropped the pan to change the gasket and filter. It's pretty easy, Torque with a decent bluetooth ODBII reader can read the temp (find the custom PID in google). Worked great.
 
#9 ·
Just had mine done this week, only has 45,000 miles, had an independent Toyota mechanic do it. He told me that around 60-80,000 miles would be fine. However, when he did it, he said he was surprised at how dirty it was given the mileage. I plan on doing it every 45-50,000 miles.
 
#10 ·
I plan on doing mine in a few weeks after successfully performing this service on my 4Runner. We’ve got 55k on our 2015.
Some tips..
To find a good price on Toyota WS ATF...
Go to the Toyota parts website Toyota Parts and Accessories - Official Online Store
Search for the part you’re looking for - in this case 00289-ATFWS
Enter your zipcode to find the nearest participating dealer with a decent price, most won’t ship fluids so I often make a stop at a dealer 100 miles away a part of my road trips.

I got tired of pumping fluids with those shampoo type pumps so I looked for a better solution and found this YouTube vid.
I made my own pump and it works great. I bought a Motiv fluid pump as well but I really didn’t need to.
160043
 
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LanEvo
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