Sounds like your Sedona works the same as my 02 Sonata & 09 Kia Rondo & there is NO PAN TO DROP & NO FILTER TO CHANGE.
Changing the fluid is as simple as removing the drain plug/draining the old fluid/adding fresh fluid.
When I did this for the first time (at 40K miles & every 40K miles since)) on my wifes 02 Sonata
I simply drained the fluid & measured how much drained (5 Quarts in my case) and poured that much back in. Done deal & the car now has 161,000 miles with no transmission problems at all.
I dont know how this thread has gone on for so long over such a simple procedure.
You say you have a trusted independant mechanic, have him do as I just described. BUT you supply the fluid from the Kia dealer.
I am kinda shocked how there seems to be two very different views on this and how strong each believes their side is. I didn’t start the thread to get people angry or upset, but to get view which I have. I have limited resources and just want to do the best I can with the funds I have.
Whatever you do, make sure to get the fluid from Kia. I had a 2003 Sedona, and I had to get the fluid for my mechanic to use when I had him do the 30K service. It’s some weird kind that you cannot get elsewhere easily.
See if you can get it done at the dealer and get a loaner. It’s more $, but less than losing a day’s pay.
Transman is dead on about how it’s supposed to be done and also the reason WHY a flush only is done. It’s a labor time issue.
A shop can do 3 or 4 flushes in the time it takes to do a flush/pan drop so which do you think they would rather do? It’s flat rate generation.
The other thing about dropping a pan, if applicable, is that it provides insight into what may or may not be going on in that transmission.
With the pan off one can see if there is an abnormal amount of metal shavings or sludge (which is friction material), etc. If this kind of thing is present then it lets someone know that it’s nearing decision time on a transmission repair and that it might be a good idea not to stray too far from home with a shaky vehicle.
This is often followed by adding fresh fluid and trading the car off. The unaware dealer sells this used car which then has a transmission failure and then receives the blame for screwing the buyer…
It seems like the main problem with this thread is confusion over terms like “flush”, “pan drop”, etc. An earlier commenter pointed out that, in fact, this Kia has no “pan” to “drop” in the first place. So why did the dealer tell the OP that they would charge $120 to “drop the pan?”
Second, the OP mentioned that his manual and the dealer recommended a “flush,” when it appears likely that his manual recommends a “drain and fill,” not a true “flush” as other people call it. Apparently what most people call a “flush” is using a machine to pump cleaning fluid through the trans. And Honda further confuses the issue when they do a “flush” not by pumping in cleaning fluid, but by running excess quantities of trans fluid through the system, somewhat like an “exchange”, which was also described by a previous poster.
So let’s summarize what we’ve learned:
This Kia has no “pan” to "drop"
The manual and dealer probably recommended a “drain and fill”, not a "flush"
A “drain and fill” will replace a portion of the fluid, but not all of it
A “flush” involves pumping cleaning fluid through the trans (unless it’s a Honda)
A Honda-approved “flush” uses no cleaning fluid, only Honda AT fluid, similar to an "exchange"
An “exchange” involves pumping out all the old fluid while pumping in new fluid
Geez, we need a dictionary now just to change some danged transmission fluid…
what would happen if by chance you say put in the wrong type of transmission fluid? Not a lot, less then maybe 1 cup as I was unaware of the type issue and add a bit to my transmission as it was just a tad low.
Well i called the kia dealership close to me again they said for $100 they will do a straight drain via removing the drain plug and then a refill of the fluid loss and is what they recomend you do every 30,000 miles. They said for $170 they can do a complete flush which will clean out the entire transmission of all it’s fluid and do a refil of clean fluid. They stated there is no pan to drop or filter to change on this model. My independent mechanic who had never let me down will do a flush for $90 but said the transmission fluid he uses is a Dextron which does match the one listed by kia, but I am not sure on that. He will do a drain for about $40. So will have to think this one out…
OK, that’s making more sense. I can’t comment on Kias, but Honda specifically recommends AGAINST a “flush” using cleaning fluid, which I think a previous poster pointed out can end up pushing gunk into places where it can do more harm than it was doing before the flush. If the transmission seems to be working OK now, and you’re just doing recommended maintenance, I’d just do the drain-n-fill with the Kia-recommended fluid.
If it ain’t broke - don’t fix it! Save the money and buy lottery tickets. It’s not like its under warranty. On the other hand, we need to secure American jobs so go spend your money.
nothing to fix, just time for general maintance. Although my one friend can’t figure out why I am worried about it if it is running just fine. He says never in his life has he ever changed out transmission fluid and he has usually had cars that have lasted up to and past 200,000 miles, so who knows…
If your friend bought used cars that were well maintained and had about 120,000 miles on them, yes, he could drive them to 200,000 miles without transmission maintenance. If he bought those cars NEW, which I doubt, he is probably lying. In polite society we say he has a “rich imagination”.
By now you will likely have learned that those friends are as factual about their cars as they are about their romantic prowess. A friend was shopping for a truck to pull his camper. A RELATIVE was selling his early 80s Dodge Ram and told him the truck got 35 mpg. I had to tell him that it would only get that mileage in the Rockies going DOWN all the way!
I once had a beer in a roadhouse and listened to a “discussion” about the patrons’ cars. It would have made Hans Christian Anderson (the fairy tale author) jealous!
The cars he has owned he usually bought around the 70-80,000 miles on them and he ain’t lying, he never does anything to his car outside of oil changes and that only happens on average about twice a year. his view is it’s all a sham, and he just drives them till they die. His last car was a saturn 2 door, bought it with about 68,000 miles, sold it for scrap 10 years later with a little over 200,000 miles on it. Had brakes done 1 time, and a few oil changes, he is a scrudge when it comes to spending money on his car.
Now that we know what kind of person and driver he is, yes, you can nurse a car from 80,000 to 200,00 miles with some luck without having a transmaission failure. The older style transmissions on rear drive cars were very rugged.
Your friend is straddling the area between frugal and cheap. Frugal drivers make wise decisions, while cheap ones play “transmission roulette”.
Still the normal elapsed mileage for a modern transmission to bite the dust without maintenance is about 150,000 miles of easy driving. So, a good used car can maybe scrape through with just oil chnages. Very few spark plugs last 200,000 miles, so the first owner must have changed them. And so on.
No one on this board will recommend to you to copy your friend’s car ownership style. However, if money is the only thing that matters, (damn the environment and safety), there is a lot to be said for buying a well depreciated and well maintained used car and “driving it into the ground”, as they say. As a consultant, I often see this methodoly in developing countries.
Your friend appears to care little for his or his loved ones’ safety or the environment.
If you continue to follow this board for a free edcuation in car ownership from experts without a personal agenda, we will be glad to keep informing you what makes “responsible sense”.
My 2002 Sienna has 174,500 miles, shifts smoothly. I drain 3 quarts and add 3 quarts of synthetic fluid. I do it often, probably a lot more often than 30,000 miles. The fluid looks clean.
The first time I paid the dealer like $89 to flush it, then they raised the price way up, so I started the drain and fill.
I have been told my Sienna has only a screen, no filter. I do not know. I plan on keeping on with this plan.
I know a service writer from McAllen’s Toyota dealer, and he said they have very few transmission failures, and I assure you they do not recommend dropping the pan.
I am not going to say my Toyota experience applies to other makes, and in fact I do think there is probably a difference though I don’t know how much or which direction. Honda’s problems make that clear.
The problem with OP’s car is it looks like it has some really old fluid in it, which definitely makes a difference. Except for the alleged fact his car doesn’t even have a pan, that would in most other cases indicate the pan drop and filter change, at least in my non-professional mind. I tend to think drain and fill is best only when it has been done from new to keep the fluid in good shape.
IF he does drain and fill it would seem as if he should do it several times, over a very short time period, to ‘dilute’ the fluid until it is mostly new.
With no pan that sure sounds like a throw-away transmission, but that is just my feeling.
I just looked at Haynes for my Sienna. It gives two options. It tells how to do the drain and fill. But, it also says it is a good idea to PERIODICALLY, whatever that means, CLEAN the strainer with solvent to remove accumulated dirt and metal.
My quasi-libertarian view is owners who care will study it out, make their own decision on which way to go, and then do not whine if it fails early. You make the decision; you pay. That is my attitude towards my Sienna. If it breaks early, whatever that means, I will be paying.
What I do not like is those who do nothing, then whine, though in many cases the owner’s manual does not give much guidance. Though it has been quite a while since I looked at mine, with 174,500 miles on it, I just keep on with my original plan.
