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DIY transmission fluid change related questions

Discussion in 'Prius c Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by z80, Oct 21, 2018.

  1. z80

    z80 Junior Member

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    Hello!

    I was inspired by the forum to DIY transmission fluid change. However, now I have a few concerns about that. I would appreciate if one could help me. The car is "2014 Prius C One" with ~63'000 miles.

    1) Due to fill plug is above right cv-axle and drain plug is in front left corner I slightly tilted the car to the left to be able to get under it. I used one car ramp under the right wheel for that purpose. However, I was able to drain only ~2.6 liters of fluid. I didn't find any wet regions under near the transmission or anywhere around. Manual says there should be 3.3 liters. What can be the reason for that?

    2) When filling up it was exactly 3.3 litters of fluid came in when it started coming out of filling hole and I put fill plug back in it's place. Can it be that missing 0.7 liters is still somewhere inside and I actually overfilled it? Can it be very unhealthy for the car?

    3) Drained fluid is still pink (or red) but is not transparent anymore compared to the new one. But it is very far from being black or brown. As for it's smell it smells exactly the same as the new one I've put in. I've read a few posts in the Internet where people reported the worn out fluid out of transmission should smell differently. Did I change it too early? (If it matters, the car is 63'000 miles but I normally drive ~110 miles/day every work day with about 75% of that on a freeway).

    I'd appreciate any advice!

    Thank you!
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    sounds like you were down .7 liters

    can't change it too early, since toyota doesn't have a schedule for it.
     
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
  3. z80

    z80 Junior Member

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    I drove the car for one day (about 110 miles) and was curious to check how transmission fluid looks like after this short usage.

    On a napkin bottle sample and transmission sample look exactly the same. But if I look through a glass with transmission sample it is as pink as new but is almost totally opaque. What is it, micro air bubbles?
     
  4. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Let the sample sit overnight? Regarding the level, I'd say the same as @bisco, it was low before, and you got it right now.

    A lot of discussion on Toyota ATF WS here:

    Suitable substitutes for the Toyota ATF-WS transmission or transaxle fluid? | PriusChat

    And mention by @Elektroingenieur of this TSB:

    https://attachments.priuschat.com/attachment-files/2015/10/96203_T-SB-0006-11.pdf

    One thing that caught my eye in that TSB, since I've had a half-used bottle of the fluid sitting, for a few years now:

    upload_2018-10-23_17-55-39.png

    It's maybe fine, but guess I better recycle that 1/2 bottle.