Oro

Yes. Moderating auto forums and asking people why, spontaneously at ~200k, they decided to get that service. Then learning it was because they did nothing until then, and started having problems.

You would be wrong, unfortunately. What you say is very logical. But it is not how most people work. You may be one of those very few who are REALLY logical and intellectually honest. And it sounds like you might be. But that is NOT 99.8% of the human population. They look for the cheapest, easiest solution. If told they need a new transmission, they will go get a flush to see if it cures it for less. Then they will blame the flush. THIS is how people really work; the vast majority of them. Myself included at times. It is human nature. And when their hopeful solution fails, they blame others. And it's not just cars, it's how people treat their bodies. It's how health care works. I hate to say it, but the first rule is, people lie. I hate to say it, but it's true. I am going to refrain from detail, but I have literally seen people kill themselves through denial because they did not want to admit they had a problem, even when they couldn't walk any more. If someone on the internet told you a flush killed their transmission, please get the facts before believing it.

See above. These are savvy companies who understand tort law. They only have to service the car to 60k, 90k miles and you can push it out that long w/o a warranty issue. After that, caveat emptor. If I were a car dealer, I would service what I had to until warranty and then do no more, unless the customer had been coming in for regular service. If a customer showed up with a 200k car that I had no history on and they couldn't prove, I wouldn't do a regular service and take on the liability. In a regular world of normal decency, I would do so. In our world of blame and liability, I would not. It's not because it isn't good for the car, it's because it isn't good for the car company, given our legal system. There is a way to fix that, but one political party refuses to entertain that reform and blocks it from the ground up.

I am sure there are lots of opinions on this issue. But please, before you say I don't know what I'm saying, do what I have done. Drop a dozen or so pans and look around, study a few ATSG manuals, rebuild a few transmissions,* survey a few hundred cases, and tell me I am wrong.

I am also sure it's easier for this thread to die than bring up issues that are uncomfortable. Delaying maintenance isn't wise, ignoring advances in material sciences is foolish, and relying on old advice and conventional wisdom from the internet is not always the best. This is really uncomfortable in a lot of ways. And I'm "that guy." I've been wrenching for 40 years, I like to come home to stability and the same thing, be able to turn on Monday Night Football and not have it be a f(&k fest of superficial, stupid political stunts. God forbid I can just see football painlessly. But the world isn't that way and I have to really work every minute to keep up to date, use the best knowledge and evidence to work for the best solution. And even on the internet, where I could anonymously be different, retro, or antagonistic, I still try to keep the same honest and progressive mindset it takes to be helpful and effective.

* I have never had to rebuild an Aisin transmission. With proper care most of them work tirelessly, entirely unlike transmissions from GM, ZF, Ford, etc.