Is it a slow agonizing death or is it catastrophic? (assuming you don't drive it like you stole it or slam it into reverse at 70mph on the interstate) The van has 143k miles on it. We will replace it in 6mos or so. I figure ~ 10-12k more miles on it. I have no indications of problems with it but am trying to decide at this point if a transmission additive is going to make a difference.
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David
The chief cause of failure in this life is giving up what you want most for what you want at the moment. -
Don't mess with an additive. Any gunk that it will clean out, will end up in places in the fluid paths you don't want...Please like and subscribe to my YouTube channel. Please check out and subscribe to my Workshop Blog. -
I don't think most additives are really any good. Most rodding guys opinions equate most of 'em to snake oil.
For automatics, a drain and filter change, filling with a good fluid would go much farther that any additive. If it's getting a workout with heavy loads, hilly terrain etc., an add on cooler will do lots of good. Since it's going away in 6 months, I wouldn't even bother with a cooler.ErikComment
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I have to stick with my original post on this matter. TALK TO A TRANNY SHOP AND VERIFY MY STATEMENT!!!!
You do NOT want to disturb an automatic tranny that has a ton of miles on it with neglected fluid and filter changes... That is just begging to be left by the side of the road...Please like and subscribe to my YouTube channel. Please check out and subscribe to my Workshop Blog.Comment
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You didn't say if it's American or Japanese. In my experience (n of 2), American minivans with 140,000 to 160,000 are not long for this world. My Plymouth gradually died, while my Ford caught fire--rather dramatic, nobody hurt fortunately.
I have read that more recent vintages are better made, but I'd be interested to hear other opinions.Jeff
“Doctors are men who prescribe medicines of which they know little, to cure diseases of which they know less, in human beings of whom they know nothing”--VoltaireComment
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Van is a 2000 Plymouth Grand Voyager. No problems as of yet. The fluid was changed last December so it only has about 20k miles on it. It was also changed 2 Decembers ago (not much choice there, a leak in a hose drained most of it out). My mechanic looked at today while I was getting the axles (bad CV joints) replaced and said the color on the fluid that leaked out was good. We have one more big trip to Indy in December before the van is replaced. I just didn't want it to leave us stranded.
I guess I won't do anything except hope for the best and plan for the worst.David
The chief cause of failure in this life is giving up what you want most for what you want at the moment.Comment
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That's a totally different story. Sorry but the vast majority of minivans with 120+ K miles on them are usually well neglected.
If you have been keeping up with your maintenance you should just keep going with that routine. Get any leaks you may have fixed, and follow your owners manual / maint guide for recommended intervals...
I would still leave the additives out though. Just make sure you keep the fluid good and clean, with a good filter...
Automatic transmissions fail, like other machines, in several ways, some are quick and dramatic (pump blowing out, line busting, bands snapping, torque converter shearing the bolts off the flex plate etc...) or slow and agonizing such as clutch packs wearing out, or valve bodies getting slowly plugged up.
You wouldn't believe how many folks would bring in older cars with 100+ K miles on the odometer and want a transmission fluid and filter change with pitch black ATF... We always turned those down, with the explaination that we were not going to be responsible for blowing out their transmission....Please like and subscribe to my YouTube channel. Please check out and subscribe to my Workshop Blog.Comment
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We've had two trannys fail on two different cars. Both times there were warning signs which began with occasional hard shifting that gradually worsened to bumping into gears. Then a few occurences where the car would not shift at all, had to come to a complete stop. One of the two finally failed to the point where it would only go up to second gear, but I was still able to limp it to a tranny shop.
With good maintenance, only 140,000 miles, and no warning signs, I would not be scared at all. I suspect many so called catastrophic sudden failures had warning signs the owner was not mechanically inclined enough to recognize.- Chris.Comment
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I had something similar happen 30 years ago when I was a senior in college. My car was a 1967 Chrysler Newport. It started shifting hard, so I took it to a transmission shop. they wanted a pile of money (at least it seemed like a lot) to fix the transmission. During the inspection, they cleaned and reinstalled the filter, after which the car performed much better.
For a while. It died as I was parking it to interview for a job some months later. I bought a slightly used car to replace it shortly thereafter.Comment
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