Read the manual and it really did not give any info on an interval. Just said in most cases other than severe, it should not need to be changed. Im always leery when a manual doesnt have a good interval for an auto tranny.

 

there is no interval, the dealer said they check and fill when needed. i plan on doing mine at or near 30k, whidch will be in the next week or so. i think most are doing it around 20-30k.

 

Yeah, I just dont see not changing it. If anything, do it at 50k.

 

most ford cars do it between 35 & 45. I'm planning on doing my wife's car at around 50

 

It appears the 08's and 09's have Toyota Genuine ATF-WS, which does NOT require a change. It also is not compatible with other fluids so be careful. Im guessing this is why the maintenance guide says to "inspect" every 30k miles.

"Toyota ATF-WS (World Standard) Automatic Transmission Fluid used in certain 2004-2008 vehicles is NOT compatible with Toyota T-IV or Dexron ATF. WS ATF was introduced to reduce maintenance costs and increase the mileage between scheduled maintenance checks. The recommended maintenance interval for INSPECTION is 100,000 miles; ATF-WS does NOT require any flushing or changing during the life of the vehicle. "

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Is_Toyota_...ota_T-IV_fluid

 

nice to know, thanks! I'll just keep an eye on the wifey's car.

 

I did mine at 17k and will do again at 30. Every 20k after that. It's so easy why not.

 

I did mine at 17k and will do again at 30. Every 20k after that. It's so easy why not.

 

Its like running a good synthetic oil like Mobil1 or Pennzoil Platinum and changing every 3k miles, thats why.

The WS is a premium fluid, no good reason to change that often because you are wasting money and adding to used oil to the environment more often than needed.

 

whats the cost of a filter kit ?

 

When inspecting the tranny fluid, how can you tell if you need to change it? Since the maintenance booklet doesn't specifically tell you when to change the tranny fluid, it could be 30k, 60, or maybe even 100k. Mine is at 50k right and I don't want to unnecessarily change the tranny fluid.

 

Dealers have a way of telling by shade of color, I think.

 

I did mine at 17k... Its half the work of an oil change. Just remove the bolt, let drain, and refill with 3.5qts. I plan to do it every 15k-25k or so because its so easy, and keep refreshing the fluid.

 

15k is a little bit early. Depending on how you drive, I would change it between 30k and 50k miles. I used to change the tranny fluid (M/T) on my tC every 30k miles.

 

I agree, this is just about as bad as changing your oil every 1k miles, just because its easy.

Granted, its not hurting anything, but its only helping to lighten your wallet and increase the amount of used oil you add for disposal.

 

Honestly, changing it cost me like $15... It was $3.xx something at my dealer per quart, only need 3.5qts of the WS fluid. I wanted to get out some the initial "break-in" out. I will do it again at 30k, then probably every 30k after that. I have seen ATF Analysis with the WS fluid and wear metals are not low enough, IMO, to let it go 50k+ without at least doing a drain/fill. Why not.

 

I think there is nothing wrong with 15k the first time, because you could have some break in/wear debris. After that, 50k seems to be fine. I run oil analysis, so I'm prob give this WS fluid a test around the 20k mile mark.

 

http://www.lifeautomotive.com/pdfs/History_of_ATF.pdf

If you read near the end of that, it kinda explains WS. I dont think its as lifetime as they would like you to believe, appears to be more for fuel economy. I still think the 30-50k interval is best, and what I'll stick with.

 

Yeah, from the analysis I saw, somebody dumped it at like 20 or 25k and although the wear metals were in balance, they mentioned sealers/materials in the sample from break in. So why not drop it out early and then run a longer interval.

 

I read that if its purple it needs changing. just changed mine it was black purple 44.000 but i do alot of stop and go .
atf ws made by moble along with all toyotas oils.