2004 envoy with 116,000 miles....should I change the tranny fluid?

[Hollywood260]

I have heard different stories where people change out their tranny fluid and it kills the tranny. I just bought this truck and I'm alittle hesitant to change the tranny fuild. I am doing a full fluid change in the truck, including...brake fluid and power steering fluid. But the tranny is the one thing I'm nervous about changing. I don't know the maintenance history of it. But with the issues I've had with it, I'm pretty sure maintenance was not high on the list of things to do to it. What is everyone thoughts? I see other guys on here changing theirs without much hesitation. your thoughts and insight would be nice.

 

[GrizzlyDippah]

I'm not all that experienced in mechanics but... if it so happens that it did go after the fluid change what makes you think if you don't change it that it won't break down eventually anyway.

And if it is good, leaving the old fluid in the tranny could cause troubles in the near future.

I would say go ahead and change it, most people who say that their transmissions went after a change had problems before and didn't realise it.

First thing I do with any vehicle I pick up is change the fluids. I use Lucas transmission fluid whereas its recommended by all the tranny shops in my area, never had a problem.

 

[MAY03LT]

most people who say that their transmissions went after a change had problems before and didn't realise it.

True that. In some cases, they did realize it, and when the cheap "fix" didn't fix it, then it was the flush that ruined the trans and not their lack of maintenance.

I've flushed some of the most decrepit trans fluids known to man, and haven't had an issue. But, I also do what is necessary to make sure that there isn't a preexisting condition so they can't come bitching to me when the flush doesn't fix their cooked clutches.

 

[KNBlazer]

I would change it, just start saving money for a rebuild, kinda like a transmission fund....just incase it craps out, you have funds to drop it off at a shop.... my transmission shop suggested I change the fluid and filter every 25-30k miles, not the GM recommended 50k miles

 

[The_Roadie]

Proper maintenance isn't that expensive. But some owners are just too cheap.

And they come up with all SORTS of urban legends to rationalize their cheapness. What flapdoodle.

 

[Hollywood260]

So, with 116,000. What would the symptoms be that a tranny is failing? I suppose I'll just have some pennies saved in case it takes a shit on me.

I love this truck and I want it to last well over 200,000 miles and in all reality. There's no reason it shouldn't as long as I fix what's wrong with it now and stay on top of maintenance.

 

[The_Roadie]

Bad shifts are a big clue. Shifts that take too long; shifts that allow the RPM to flare between gears; slippage; too tight, snap-your-head shifts; inability to lock the lockup clutch and achieve the final RPM reduction when cruising in flat conditions; losing a gear including reverse; overheating if you have the scan tool and software to be able to look at it. Functional sorts of things.

 

[signalnc]

I have heard different stories where people change out their tranny fluid and it kills the tranny. I just bought this truck and I'm alittle hesitant to change the tranny fuild. I am doing a full fluid change in the truck, including...brake fluid and power steering fluid. But the tranny is the one thing I'm nervous about changing. I don't know the maintenance history of it. But with the issues I've had with it, I'm pretty sure maintenance was not high on the list of things to do to it. What is everyone thoughts? I see other guys on here changing theirs without much hesitation. your thoughts and insight would be nice.

I waited until 120k to change mine. I had no issues before and no issues after. I'm at 141k now

 

[Mark20]

Proper maintenance isn't that expensive. But some owners are just too cheap.

And they come up with all SORTS of urban legends to rationalize their cheapness. What flapdoodle.

And vehicles are significantly more reliable these days, people tend to forget about preventative maintenance. No reason you shouldn't get 100,000 out of any vehicle today as long as you do the maintenance.

 

[DocBrown]

Heat is the transmission's mortal enemy. Does the fluid have a nice color? In other words, is it the red you expect or dark? Does it smell burned? Even a little? If so, that spells trouble. How long the transmission lasts has as much to do with how it was driven. Even if they didn't do maintence, if they didn't beat on it, chances are there is nothing wrong with the trans.

I'd change it anyway. Use Dexron VI, not Dex III. Dex VI was released in 2006 and is recommended for the older transmissions. Its full synthetic (Dex III is not) and is supposed to run cooler. Its all I used in my old 2003 TB after 70k miles. I just sold it, and it had 160k on it and the transmission was as strong as ever. This was critical to me because I tow a travel trailer.

Shifts that take too long;

Ahh, that's a tricky one. Long shifts can indicate worn parts in the valve body, worn valve springs, cracked and damaged accumulator pistons (they're plastic after all!), or a badly worn seperator plate (the check balls can really beat on the plate). Any of these conditions can cause overheating and eventual failure, but if they are caught early it can save you a lot of money.

If you are on the higher end of DIY and are comfortable, you might even want to take a look at your valve body, and maybe even add a shift kit (which also replaces worn springs) and change the seperator plate. Dropping the valve body and inspecting the accumulator pistons will also give you some idea of the overall condition of the trans.

Here's a thread I did from last year describing my experience with this. There are how to links from other members in the thread also.
http://gmtnation.com/forums/topic/8182-4l60e-upgrades-shift-kit-and-new-separator-plate/

EDIT: My 'new to me' '08 Sierra has a 4L60E trans. It has 85k on it. I have no idea if the fluid was changed, but I do know the guy towed a utility trailer. I'm going camping in a couple of weeks, then changing the fluid shortly after.

 

[Revans381996]

I would change it... I changed my tranny fluid for the first time at 145,000 miles then I did it again exactly one year later. All it did for me was help shift quality. So at 116,000 miles you should be fine changing it. I also would recommend throwing in a bottle of Lucas transmission stop slip, the second time I changed my tranny fluid I put in a quart of stop slip in place of one quart of tranny fluid. It worked wonders for my transmission. It fixed a had 1-2 shift when cold.

 

[The_Roadie]

....the second time I changed my tranny fluid I put in a quart of stop slip in place of one quart of tranny fluid. It worked wonders for my transmission. It fixed a had 1-2 shift when cold.

You might also consider troubleshooting the deterioration in the tranny to the root cause and putting in new solenoids and something like the Transgo SK-4L60E shift kit. If you want to dig deeper.

 

[chethro]

I changed mine at 96k and I'm now at 114k.

 

[KNBlazer]

If your tranny is gonna go, it's gonna go... my 4L60e lasted 189,000 miles, busted sunshell, burned up 3-4 clutch pack, and damaged pump, all common in our early year trucks.. the last fluid/filter change was done at 175,000 miles...