Lexus changed my transmission fluid about a year and a half ago. (so they said). I gather they do a cold drain as they said they get only 20-30% of the fluid. Recently, I went to an independent shop who drives the car first to heat the engine up and he said he gets 80%. But when he drained it it looked like sludge and it had only been 10,000 miles old. He also drains the transaxel fluid. This is a 1995 ES300. Which is correct ? Also, after the independent repair shop did it, I started noticing a sluggishness and a lack of shifting from 3-4th gear. This has not appeared since the car cooled. I live in Phoenix, Arizona so the ambient temperature now is about 100 degrees.. How much fluid does the car hold or how much is usually added after a cold drain? Has anyone else experienced the sluggishness after a warm drain where there is some crud still around???????
Tsuku

 

The only true way to get 100% of your fluid changed is to have it pumped out and new put in. If you drop your pan you get most all the fluid out, you also get to change your filter. I've had 60K miles on my trans fluid in other vehicles and it still looks the same. If your fluid looked like sludge after 10K miles then you're gonna have something big on your hands. If your fluid looks like sludge then you probably have heavy wear in your transmission and the "sludge" is actually metal shavings from the clutch packs.

 

tsuku, welcome to ClubLexus! From the transmission fluid question you posed above, it seems that you're looking for one correct answer, so it may not be necessary to put up a poll based on your question ("Are there any problems after a hot (full) tranny fluid flush?"). The nature of your question is going to permit many different answers since people have different experiences when it comes to flushing or draining their transmission fluid.

To avoid any further confusion from other members, I will close the poll. In the meantime, carry on with your feedback posts and questions

 

Yes a powerflush of the whole tranny will get better results than just a fluid flush/refill.