I have an RX330 AWD with 59,500 miles on the odometer. The owners manual suggests servicing the transmission at 60,000 but with a footnote that this is only required if you tow or use a car top hauler. This repeats at various intervals up to 120,000 miles. It basically does not want you to service the transmission unless you operate under heavy duty conditions. I have contacted 3 different Lexus dealer service departments and have asked "What is the correct frequency for this service"? They have all told me it is 60,000 miles. I am grating on this as it seems that their service department just wants the business. What are some of your experiences with this? I am the original owner and this RX has never seen heavy duty usage.

I change mine every 60K miles and I use synthetic ATF fluid. Fluid and service is cheap versus a new transmission

it wont hurt to change it at 60K but make sure you are using the correct fulid.....

WW50th,
you may find this tread very helpfull:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...ds-change.html

Last month I did fluid changes in rear diff, transfer case and the transmission. I've done the drain and refill X3 method and did not take off the transmission fluid pain (cost was just under $100 for a case of fluid - 12 qts, and crush washers for transmission, transfer case and rear diff. I understand it is a good idea to change the tranny filter, clean the magnets and the bottom of the pan. It is up to you whether you pay the dealer to do this, or do it yourself - takes 1/2 day if you're not in a hurry (assuming you go for a nice 15-20 minute drive in between fluid flushes to run the fresh fluid through the tranny).

Check out the thread I suggested - lot's of good info there and do the search for other treads on the topic.

Good luck and keep us posted!

Heat and time will takes its toll on all of the fluids in your RX330. It is time at least for a drain and fill on the transmission, to check on the quality of the fluid at a minimum plus to get some new quality fluid in there, and you should consider changing out the rear differential fluid as well being you have AWD. A few dollars and a great deal of peace of mind.

If expense is an issue, any Toyota shop can perform this service for you as well and they will use the same fluids as your Lexus shops for a fraction of the price.

I have a transmission fluid exchange done every 30K and also change the transfer case and differential fluid at the same time. Cost for the automatic transmission fluid exchange with Toyota Type-IV fluid is $129. Regarding the transmission, I followed a similar interval for our old 88 Camry and at 351k, it was on the original transmission, so I prefer to change the fluids more often than most, but my wife keeps her vehicles a long time.

I do mine once a year (aprox. 15,000 miles). Keeps the fluid nice and red.

Really?! Have you tried doing it twice a year? ;-)
After 7 years (and 160,000km) did drain and fill @ Toyota, and still think it was a waste of money...

I guess it's true that habits are hard to change.

I have to disagree, gusar. Fluid change is a much cheaper alternative than running a risk of a transmission failure. For those who own RX300 and some of the Honda products will agree with me, Preventitive maintenance is a good and cheap (if you DIY) piece of mind, especially if you are not the original owner and did not drive/maintain the car from day 1.

Yeah right? Hahahahahaha!!

Yup, it costs me $24 to change my ATF every 15k miles. It's cheap insurance, much better than paying $4k for a transmission. Sure, the environmentalists will be upset, considering the fluid in my RX comes out looking like new, cherry red and all, but I'll do what I need to in order to ensure that my transmission won't fail.

Well, there at least are two things:
1. Manufacturer recommends only to inspect/check the fluid (under normal conditions of driving). Change if fluid doesn't look good;
2. Changing fluid - is a bit messing up with the transmission, if done improperly (wrong level or damaged by flushing) - could cause problems which you are trying to avoid...

I see what you are saying, gusar, but I do not mean flushing the transmission with the machine and chemicals - I mean drain and refill as per service department and manufacturer's recommendations. There is a dipstick (just like for an engine oil) to check the correct level, and generally, if you measure the amount you drain, you can fill it with the same amount and check the level again. If it's too much - drain a little until the correct level is achieved...etc. Always, always, always use the recommended Toyota Transmission fluid!

If one is not comfortable doing DIY - take it to the shop.

Either way, to answer the thread's main question, 60,000 miles is a good milestone to evaluate the condition of the trans fluid. If it looks, smells like new or lightly used, then skip the service until 90,000 miles, the next one will be at 120,000 and so forth...

Well, thank you all for the replys. I must admit that I should know better than to post anything about any oil subject on any automotive forum. I belong to many forums as I have had, and still have, a variety of vehicles. Lexus RX330, 2008 GS460, C6-Z06, 2005 SSR, 34Chevy street rod. Any oil subject brings out fanatical replys on any forum. My basic question was on the frequency of change, as the owners manual, that I have read, doesn't request you to replace the transmission fluid. To support this position, the transmission dip stick is placarded to tell you the same thing! " It is not required to replace the ATF unless this vehicle is operated under extreame conditions". I was looking for any information from individuals that had followed this advice and had adverse results. IE I followed the owners manual recomendations and under light driving conditions had a transmission failure. Old habits are indeed very hard to break, however, if you drive your vehicle 12,000 miles per year under very light conditions and you change your oil 4 times, you are surely wasting your money, regardless of what type of oil or filter you are using.