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Water in with Transaxle fluid??

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by tommymommy, Mar 7, 2014.

  1. tommymommy

    tommymommy Member

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    Took my 2007 Prius into the local Valvoline where they said they could drain and refill the transaxle fluid. The guy undid the bolt a bit and said he got fluid mixed with water, no odor. He closed it back up and refused to further service it due to liability.

    I think he opened the drain for the inverter coolant, not the transaxle fluid drain plug. When I called them back, the guy said he used a standard wrench to remove the bolt...NOT a 10mm hex key.

    I drove the car home about 3 miles, but now I'm concerned about possible damage to the engine, if I drive it further to deal with this. I have no idea how much fluid he let out, but the inverter coolant tank appears full.

    Any thoughts...other than I was stupid to take it there to start with??? Patrick Wong?? Any thoughts?
     
    #1 tommymommy, Mar 7, 2014
  2. tommymommy

    tommymommy Member

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    Took my 2007 Prius into the local Valvoline where they said they could drain and refill the transaxle fluid. The guy undid the bolt a bit and said he got fluid mixed with water, no odor. He closed it back up and refused to further service it due to liability.

    I think he opened the drain for the inverter coolant, not the transaxle fluid drain plug. When I called them back, the guy said he used a standard wrench to remove the bolt...NOT a 10mm hex key.

    I drove the car home about 3 miles, but now I'm concerned about possible damage to the engine, if I drive it further to deal with this. I have no idea how much fluid he let out, but the inverter coolant tank appears full.

    Any thoughts...other than I was stupid to take it there to start with??? Patrick Wong?? Any thoughts?
     
    #2 tommymommy, Mar 7, 2014
  3. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    The inverter/transaxle coolant drain plug needs a 24 mm socket to remove it vs. the transaxle ATF drain plug which needs a 10 mm hex key. So you are probably right. No harm done if the inverter coolant reservoir stays at the full level and you see fluid turbulence within the reservoir when the Prius is READY.
     
    #3 Patrick Wong, Mar 7, 2014
  4. tommymommy

    tommymommy Member

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    Thanks, Patrick. I'll check it out further to make absolutely sure. He said he used, don't quote me here (menopausal brain), a 7/8" socket. Either way, it certainly wasn't a hex key.

    Patrick,

    The coolant reservoir looks to be above the low level, but not quite at the full level. I know there's concern about getting air into the system. Is it possible to add just an ounce to the reservoir without causing problems?
     
    #4 tommymommy, Mar 7, 2014
  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    stay away from the valvoline store.
     
    #5 bisco, Mar 7, 2014
  6. tommymommy

    tommymommy Member

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    Thanks, Bisco....Figured that out already.
     
    #6 tommymommy, Mar 7, 2014
  7. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    The SAE size closest to 24 mm would be 15/16". 7/8" is probably too small.

    Yes, by all means use Toyota SLLC to fill the inverter coolant reservoir to the full level.

    Also, pls make sure you see fluid turbulence when the Prius is READY. If you don't see this then you will need help to get air out of the coolant system.
     
    #7 Patrick Wong, Mar 7, 2014
  8. tommymommy

    tommymommy Member

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    There was turbulence when in READY mode. It was just a tad lower than the full mark within the reservoir.

    I honestly don't remember what size the guy said the wrench was, but he assured me it was not a hex key. They asked me if I had been driving through deep water because the fluid had water in it. What was on his hands was very light in color, which also leads me to believe it was coolant, not transaxle fluid. I'm kicking myself for even going there. Live and learn...
     
    #8 tommymommy, Mar 7, 2014
  9. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    The good news is that the Valvoline mechanic had sufficient awareness to notice the pink fluid was not ATF, and stop the drain process. It would have been worse if he had drained the coolant without realizing what had happened - or what if he put ATF into the coolant reservoir.

    And for that matter, did the Valvoline store have the correct Toyota ATF WS?

    So all in all, you escaped without much trouble compared to what might have happened...
     
    #9 Patrick Wong, Mar 7, 2014
  10. tommymommy

    tommymommy Member

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    Well...Yes...and No. He thought he had ATF mixed with water. But, you are absolutely correct that it was good that he realized there was a problem and stopped. Thanks for your help. I was seriously wishing I had a direct phone line to you this afternoon when he was describing what he saw.

    Guess I'll be doing the ATF change at home. I admit I really didn't want to tackle it since I always have to ask my hubby for his muscle to get bolts loose. He's a big guy and doesn't fit well under a vehicle unless it's on a lift. Guess what I don't own? :) Maybe in my next life...

    Thanks again for your input.
     
    #10 tommymommy, Mar 7, 2014
  11. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Well, it may not be practical for you to have a lift in a home setting, but you can certainly use a hydraulic floor jack and jackstands to provide plenty of room for DH to get under there and loosen the fill and drain plugs (make sure he loosens the fill plug first.) The reason for that is that you don't want to drain the ATF, only to find the fill plug is stuck.
     
    #11 Patrick Wong, Mar 7, 2014
  12. tommymommy

    tommymommy Member

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    Biggest problem is my garage has two doors with a beam down the center. Makes maneuvering around the vehicle tricky because it's such a tight fit around it. I had read on one of the forums it needs to be level all around. Is that the case? If so, I might be able to use ramps on the front and jack it up level on the back.
     
    #12 tommymommy, Mar 7, 2014
  13. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    Yeah that would be 100% certain that he started draining the wrong fluid. The drain plug for the coolant is just a few inches away from the one for the ATF. As already stated, you need a 10 mm hey key for the ATF drain and a 24mm (15/16") socket or wrench for the coolant drain.

    It's a pretty easy job, not really much harder than just a regular (engine) oil change. Just make sure you've got a clean funnel with a few feet of clear plastic hose attached. My local parts store had funnels with hose packaged together for a few dollars, so it must be a fairly common maintenance item.

    The other thing is to make sure you've got a large enough socket or wrench to crack open the ATF filler plug, which from memory I think was 24mm - the same as the coolant drain plug. Always make sure you can remove the filler plug before removing the drain plug. If you drain the ATF first and then discover that you can't budge the filler plug then you're screwed. :)
     
    #13 uart, Mar 7, 2014
  14. tommymommy

    tommymommy Member

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    Vehicle completely level or can it be done just with the front up on ramps?
     
    #14 tommymommy, Mar 7, 2014
  15. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    This might not be ideal for everyone, but for easy jobs like this (and oil changes) I don't need a lot of working space. I just drive the front up onto a couple of thick planks of wood, not suspended or anything, just sitting flat on the concrete. It's easy and pretty safe too, there's nowhere it can really fall. I literally just stack two short 9" by 2" planks on top of each other, place them next to the front wheels and drive straight onto them. I do always chock the other wheels as well. It's not a lot of space, but I find it enough.
     
    #15 uart, Mar 7, 2014
  16. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    The vehicle should be level when you are filling the new ATF. You could use ramps on the front and a hydraulic floor jack at the center rear.

    If you look under the rear of the car you will see an inverted "tower" sticking down. That is the center rear jacking point.
     
    #16 Patrick Wong, Mar 7, 2014
  17. tommymommy

    tommymommy Member

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    Cool! That I can do.
     
    #17 tommymommy, Mar 7, 2014
  18. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    Yep. I probably should point out that my garage has a slight gradient, so the small front only 4" lift I use actually helps level it. :)
     
    #18 uart, Mar 7, 2014
  19. tommymommy

    tommymommy Member

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    Changed the fluid in both cars this evening. Not hard at all.
     
    #19 tommymommy, Mar 13, 2014
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