dicer

I stopped at a very highly regarded transmission shop to see what kind of fluid they use when doing a transmission service.
He said Valvoline Max Life, it sounds like its their one size fits all fluid, even for Mercedes.
And they are the one sticking out their necks for failures and their reputation doing it.
So I don't know what to think. Anyone else on this one?

aptoslexus

That's what I put in my Lexus.

johnnyg66

I used Toyota for years than last year i switched to Red Line D4. Did a complete drain and fill per LexLS. Been running great since. I do drop 2 plus qts every 6 months during my oil change. Is a bit more $$ but i think worth it. Right now all fluids are synthetic.

dicer

The big problems is, yes Valvoline says it meets and or exceeds all quoted vehicle specs, but as far as I know they never tested in some of those vehicles nor does Lexus or Mercedes approve it in their transmissions.

python

iTrader: (4)

might wanna do a little more research dicer..ur off base here

dicer

I did and I'm just repeating what others have said.

aptoslexus

Unless they have some kind of direct business relationship with Valvoline, why would they approve it? Recommending a competitor's product probably isn't what many companies are going to do.
And if it isn't "approved" by Toyota, why doesn't the use of Valvoline void any warranties? I find it difficult to believe that if using something other than Toyota type IV was detrimental to your transmission, that Toyota would be willing to pay for the damage.

mappo

I use MaxLife in my LS. Either it meets the Type IV spec or it doesn't, and Valvoline says that it does. Toyota has never said that it doesn't, AFAIK. I vac and replace a couple quarts at each oil change and have had no problems.

jaaa

How long have you been using it? First thing I did was replace my trany fluid with MaxLife. The old fluid smelled bad and who knows how long it had been in there.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

"Compatibility" to meet or exceed the spec is what we're looking for. Valvoline or any of the others that meet the spec would be fine. I remain with the Toyota Type IV because I get a good buy on them in case quantities.

dicer

I could see using a different fluid if it was done with fresh parts in the transmission. So 1 there was no mixing of types of fluid, 2 the friction materials were all originally soaked with the new stuff.
If there is a noticeable shift change using the different fluid like smoother shifts that would be caused by a different friction modifier package with in the new fluid. And that is not a good thing, smoother shifts means more clutch pack slippage, more slippage means more wear. And with all the talk of performance on this site slushy shifts is something you don't want from a performance transmission. In the past the cure for slushy GM transmissions was to use Ford type F in them.

KJG92

I just had the transmission rebuilt in my '63 Pontiac Catalina and when I asked them about the fluid for our '92 LS400 they said they would use Redline. I stopped by the Toyota dealership last week and bought 4 quarts of type 4. It was $5 a quart and I figured since it is readily available i'll just use it. The 2 quarts that came out was pretty nasty though. Will do it again after about 1k miles.

Yamae

I stick to Toyota T-IV. There's no reason to use others that are not approved by Toyota. I also have seen several failed Aisin transmissions at shops where I visit to help. According to shop owners, all of those failed were in use of ATFs changed at gas stations. In Japan, gas stations often offer customers to change liquids / fluids but I make it a rule to say, "No thank you".

KJG92

Kind of like the quicky lube places here. They tried to get my wife to change out her air filter for $65. The car has a K&N. I'm glad she told them no thank you.

dicer

In the long run you don't save a thing using non approved fluid.