Over the summer, I did some maintenance on the ole beast. I
changed the transmission fluid, which I believe will greatly increase the
longevity of my little home. The transmission has only 37,000 miles on it,
which includes all of the pervious owner’s driving and all of mine. The fluid,
conceivably, is as old as the vehicle, though. That means it was due for a
change.
Changing transmission fluid on an automatic transmission was
new to me, as of this summer. All of my other vehicles are manual, so the procedure
is quite different. Manual transmissions have a drain plug and a fill hole and
it’s easier to change than the motor oil. The auto trans is a little more
involved, but I learned a ton of invaluable details about the history of my
transmission, which will help me to project its future.
First, the transmission fluid had never been changed and the
transmission is original, which is great. It’s also the heaviest-duty model
that comes with the Chevy 454 engine. That could make for expensive repairs in
the future, or better longevity with infrequent use.
Second, I learned that auto-part stores sell garbage parts
that you should NOT put in your auto transmission. For example, the OEM Chevy
gasket is heavy duty, reusable, with metal grommets to prevent smashing, and a
well-sealing rubber inlay in some kind of hard core plastic. The ones that come
with filters at the auto parts stores are either rubber or cork. They are
horrendous and are why so many American transmissions leak endlessly. The OEM
one won’t leak a drop if installed properly. The filters available are also
sketchy – some are not the same quality as the AC Delco (OEM). So, I had to
scrounge through numerous filters until I found one that was likely made by the
same people as the AC Delco (many auto parts are reboxed). The filter in a
Chevy auto trans is on the INSIDE and it’s there for many miles or years before
replacement, so this isn’t a part I wanted to mess around with.
Lastly, I learned that my transmission has been well cared
for. Upon pulling the pan off to clean it and the magnet that catches metallic
clutch slurry material, I learned that the clutches are likely in good shape.
There was not excessive sludge on the bottom of the pan or on the magnet. That
is a beautiful thing.
To insure a strong future, I changed the fluid over to a
full-synthetic Valvoline product that is GM-Approved, which should exceed the
factory fluid specs. That’s a great way to make a vehicle last. The icing on
the cake was knowing that I torqued the bolts of the drain pan in the proper
order and to the exact recommended torque setting and cleaned everything up.
Cheap insurance for a multi-thousand dollar transmission, which I hope to never
put enough miles on to worry about it. I just want to save myself, or the next
owner, from ridiculous failures brought on by careless maintenance. I spent
about $150 all said and done and hopefully saved thousands over the course of
years. Win.
