gr8fulRed

zero chance the fluid will be red at 180k miles. Mine was dark brown at 75k.

Here a pics of OEM drain in a clear plastic pitcher...

Steve2424

That's my other thought on whether going the independent route is worth the cost savings as opposed to taking it to a Lexus dealer. I would assume that with the dealer I would have the backing of Lexus Corporate if they messed up the service, am I right to think this? My concern is the fluid top off procedure more than anything since the drain and fill process should be a no brainer

gr8fulRed

there are knuckleheads techs....everywhere. Just last week, a poster here had a thread about a transmission issue that showed up AFTER he had the fluid changed at a Lexus service dept. Turns out they had not put back the proper amount (about 1/2 qt low) and that was the issue. This was a LEXUS service dept that failed to do the job right.

tsiripong

Agreed... after the trans service done on my car I feel that my car shift smoother... My local lexus dealer told me that they never see any lexus service at the dealer gone pass 100 without fluid flush... I had mine 09 GS done at 60K and my 11 RX done at 84K.... so far so good... no regret.

One thing to look for is make sure that they verify the fluid level if you do the flush... My GS was 0.6 quart low on tranny fluid after the flush.... good thing that I caught it pretty quick and the dealer took care of it....

XxGoKoUxX

Exactly what gr8ful said, not necessarily knuckleheads, but everyone makes mistakes.

Some more often than others lol.

You WILL have Lexus to back up on if there are problems persisting AFTER your service lol....

IMO.... service at Lexus is just for peace of mind.




FWIW: You can get your service done at Toyota also. I remember someone saying that..... I also remember inquiring about it at the service dept at Toyota and they were willing to do a D&F for me using Redline fluid (aftermarket) at my own risk, for $120-130ish.

pman6

That's all that came out during draining ???


Drain and fill (not flush) is most likely harmless, but I think sometimes we over-medicate.

For example, you need to step out of the 80's and come into the 21st century with the warm ups. We don't need to warm up the car in Park. Drive it gently and the car will warm up just the same, and faster, with less waste.

gr8fulRed

that was the FIRST drain cycle. About 3 to 3.25 quarts come out each time. Since the trans holds about 9 qts...you have to (or at least should) do 4 drain and fill cycles (driving the car some between each one to move the fluid around) to remove the majority of all the old/original OEM fluid.

pman6

That sounds very costly.

4 fill jobs = how much cost and labor?

gr8fulRed

I did it myself (labor), thanks to the nice tutorial on this site.....so I was only out the 13 qts of Toyota WS ATF which was $132, plus a few $$$ for the drain plug gasket.

xbladex00

I have a GS 350 07 AWD, I believe none of the fluids for the tranny and diff's were changed.... I'm noticing my tranny is a bit sluggish on 1st and 2nd gear.... SO theres my opinion... Oh and its at 80,000 miles

krava

Going to get mine drained and replaced on tuseday after 180K

gr8fulRed

report back after the service to let us know which process the shop uses....and your results.

warandcar

getting mine flushed today. with diff device… hope all goes well. i have 50K on it...

Steve2424

But...I was born in the 80's lol

It's just a habit of mine to warm up my cars -- mostly in the winter months since it's brutal here in NY.


To the gentlemen that are doing their service soon/ within a few days, let us know if any noticeable differences exist after the service. As far as the mutlitude of drain and fills -- seems costly, but might as well do it right if it's going to be another 60K miles before another service like this.

krava

Will let you know, car drives fine just some idle issues nothing major