Metal particles in transmission fluid, what to do?

[krypto Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close krypto]

While fitting my transmission cooler I used an oil tray to catch all the oil that I used to first flush the new hoses and transmission cooler, and also to capture the overfill when I checked the transmission after topping it up with 1.2l of WS. The transmission fluid looks and smells ok.

When I emptied the oil tray it had a few very small metal particles in the bottom of the tray. I checked with a magnet and they appear to all be very fine slivers of aluminum, or at least not steel.

I'm not sure if they came out when I pre-flushed the new cooler or whether they came out of the transmission when I checked the level after filling it. I would imagine that they came out of the cooler as the check plug for the transmission releases oil from the top of the sump and not the bottom, but I'm not sure.

I rang Toyota about getting a transmission flush, they quoted me $370 which seems reasonable when you factor in 11-12l of oil, parts and labour. But they said not to worry as this is probably from the transmission manufacture, which seems a bit strange as I image the transmissions would be cleaned before assembly.

So any thoughts on what to do?

[LeighW Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close LeighW]

I wouldn't worry about it, there is a filter before the pump, those silvers won't get
through.

Cheers
Leigh

[Foxy48 Member Find all posts View Profile Close Foxy48]

Hi ,Just to add a thought. I added a filter equivalent to a Z9 from K&N. I placed it with,a temp gauge, on the outline from the trans to the radiator because from past experience when a trans lets go (dies) pieces of metal can enter the radiator which then may need to be replaced as well .Once bitten twice shy. I intend to flush my trans at 50K myself as I have done previously on my old 4X4 It can be easily done when you know what to do. I also do a fair bit of caravaning so I have added a fairly large cooler on the return line from the radiator to the trans. I have found the returning oil is quite cool even when towing up a long hill (Newell HWY NSW) No warning lights.
Keeping in mind the killer of trans is heat. This is just something to consider as we intend to keep our girl for some time Cheers foxy

[Davros Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Davros]

How was the dealer going to "flush" the system?

It is a bit of a job to do properly, and I doubt they would would really do it properly for an all up price of $370.00 which is what a lot of dealers charge for a filter and fluid change.

[sbclover Member Find all posts View Profile Close sbclover]

Just a couple of slithers. I wouldn't worry about.
You should see what I pull out of new earth moving engines after fifty hours of work, sometimes ait is a bit concerning but always clears up.

Sean

[matt150 Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close matt150]

Yeah I am with Sean on this one. The alloy shit could be from the valvebody or most likely the torque converter.

Just get the filter and oil changed, do it again in 20,000km and see how it is.

[Foxy48 Member Find all posts View Profile Close Foxy48]

Krypto,mate ,I'm with Matt on this one .I would suggest doing what he said. It is too risky having floaties floating around inside a trans because you would only see a fraction of what is actually there. They could play merry hell inside . Some would have settled but just waiting to come up and bite you especially if you do some heavy work at some stage. Prevention is better than the cure, Cheers foxy

[krypto Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close krypto]

Thanks for all the advice. Unfortunately someone ran into the back of me last Thursday so now because the car has been in for repairs I won't be able to do anything until I get back from my trip up north.

I used to look after the maintenance of fixed plant gearboxes in my previous job and what I saw in my gearbox seemed pretty minor. Like I said I don't see how it could have come out of the check plug as this drains from the top of the oil and these slivers would settle to the bottom. So it probably came out of the new cooler when I flushed it.

Roo, how does the check plug make it easy to change out fluids?