My 1999 Tacoma P/U has been a very reliable utility vehicle since I bought is used with 70K. It now has 188K and I recently had the transmission fluid changed. Once done, whining noises began emitting from the general vicinity of the transmission, especially when accelerating, and also upon start-up (especially on cold mornings).
Did this “power flush” operation shake particulates loose into the system? I have heard that it might help to “drop the pan” and change/clean the filter screen, which I presume would mean changing much or all of the fluid again. Can a transmission specialist scope the problem? It was all fine until the fluid change.
Yes, the power flush could have moved particles around. It should have been drained rather than power flushed. Older vehicles should be drained rather than flushed to prevent particle migration, especially if they haven’t had their transmission fluid changed regularly.
Is there a physical remedy? Will dropping the pan and attempting further maintenance help? A assume that the symptoms sound “classic” with regards to the particles moving after a power flush? Thanks!
Those power flushers should be outlawed.
BTW even though it likely was not listed in the owner’s manual, nearly all of us here will recommend changing the fluid and cleaning the filter every 30-40,000 miles.
Who did the power flush. Dealer, local mechanic or quick oil change place?
You should never ever even turn into the parking lot of a quick oil change place. Dealers are OK but more expensive than most independents.
Jiffy Lube. Can I go to a transmission specialist and have them drop the pan and refill? any suggestions on remedies? Or is the transmission gone (sooner than later)?
Jiffy Lube offers 2 fluid change options: power flush and a simple drain. The power flush is $100 IIRC, and the drain and fill is $60.
The problem now is that the particles relocated and got stuck somewhere they don’t belong. It’s not clear to us whether they can be removed, since we don’t have the truck in front of us. I’m not sure of any other way to remove the debris than disassembling the transmission and cleaning it. With 188,000 miles on it, it might just make sense to drive it until it fails.
Thank you very much for your help.
Too late now, but if you’d have asked about Jiffy lube servicing your trans before having them touch it you’d have known that Jiffy Lubes and similar quick change places are not at all popular with those who frequent this forum.
They do bad work, have poor quality of help, and problems are often reported here including loose oil filter, loose oil drain plugs, stripped out drain plugs, motors burning up because the oil was either never put in or leaked out, and yes power flushes on transmissions that do more harm than good.
One problem with the transmissions is they use generic fluids that aren’t up to spec. In your case I’d advise you to take the trans to a Toyota dealership and have the pan dropped a new filter installed and ask them to drain as much of the Jiffy lube fluid as they can. If they can drain the fluid from the torque converter for a few more dollars have them do that too. They will refill with Toyota specific and branded fluid and perhaps your trans will be OK. You’ll only know until you try it and see. It could be the generic fluid is a big part of the problem.
You can go to a trans specialty shop for this service as well. But, don’t use a chain shop like AAMCO, or Cotman. They tend to recommend trans rebuilds to just about everyone. Whoever does the service I’d still recommend they refill it with Toyota brand fluid. Since most shops don’t stock Toyota fluid, that’s why I’d go to a Toyota dealer for this service. Good Luck.
Thank you for your help. I’ll give it a try. It cannot hurt more at this point.
Jiffy Lube uses kids right off the street and trains them. That’s why they can do oil changes for so little cost. Once the young mechanics learn enough, they often leave for a better-paying job. The JL I use is managed by an owner-operator, and he seems to train the employees well. Just like any shop, work quality is directly related to how well it’s managed.