I bought a 96 2500 5.2 a couple months ago and do not know if regular maintenance was performed on the tranny! I have heard that if regular maint. is not performed on a tranny that flushing and replacing the fluid will ruin the tranny. Some have said that it is because of metal shavings that collect in the fluid that the tranny becomes accustomed to it and uses these shavings for grip when shifting and if removed the tranny will begin to slip. Has anyone else heard of this and is this Fact or Fiction?

 

Yes. That's true. What happens is the clutch plate loose there friction and gripping ability, so the shavings and other stuff take it's place. As soon as you flush it, then all the "gripping ability" is gone. Do a fluid/filter change, just don't flush it. Sorry I couldn't be more "scientific" in my explanation...

 

What you have described is a complete myth perpetuated by individuals who do not understand how an automatic operates. Unfortunately, there is no shortage of people who fall into this category.

Drain your fluid, drop your pan and inspect for metal, broken snaps rings ect. Let the fluid drip from transmission for several hours if you can.

Replace filter and pan and refill. Check level with engine idling in neutral.

If you want to flush something, flush the cooler assy and lines AFTER you have dis-connected them from the trans! Also flush fluid through in the opposite flow direction ofr normal flow.

Personally, if the fluid and pan is reasonably clean, forget the flushing.

The valve body in these transmissions is a finely machined series of intricate hydraulic valves and passages, check valves, *****, springs. Metal to metal clearances of less than .001" which rely on the transmission fluid for lubrication.

Someone, please give me an accurate description how the valve body continues to function sevicable while the fluid is so full of metal contamination that that contamination is actually providing enough friction in the clutch packs and bands to transmit hundreds of ft lbs of torque from the crank to the diff?

Anyone that truly knows an automatic will get my drift.

 

I was simply speaking not only from my experience, but also what I've learned from our resident tranny expert MonteC.

 

Someone please offer an accurate description ..........

 

I will.

You should service your crappy dodge transmission every 1-2 years and/or about every 15-25K miles.

If that service is not regularly done, then the eroded clutch materials will develop a heavy layer of stationary sludge on every internal part. This is bad, but normal and not catastrophic yet. There generally are not any pieces of metal or chips or any other BS in the oil. Sometimes there is a broken snap ring or fallen off band anchor. (this is also bad).

When a long overdue service is performed, the nice new fluid that's chock full of detergents loosens the sludge and causes it to move around. After a short period of time, maybe a month or so - it stops up your new filter. This is extra bad. Overheating and transmission failure follow.

A solution to the problem of overdue service is to perform 2 oil and filter changes, about 1-2 weeks apart. I wouldn't run up a lot of miles between them. Maybe 200-300 or so.

I don't think its necessary or desirable to pay a shop to do a flush.
Its a lot easier to drop the pan and change filter and fluid yourself.
Do install a drain plug to make it easier next time.
Don't adjust the bands unless you have the proper tools and know how.
Use ATF+4 only, and nothing else. no additives or substitutes.
repeat regularly, and you give your crappy transmission its best chance to live on.

also - avoid neutral drops and don't tow in overdrive.

 

keepitrunning...

Ive seen many cases after working in a garage for some years, and hearing others stories, that flushing (with the machine) can damage the trans....ive seen a RAM come in that was shifting perfectly fine.....flushed it with a machine, and boom, hesitation between gears, and the TC would slam going into 3rd.....

Flushing with the Machine is bad, UNLESS it has been done regularly to the truck...alot of people neglect trans fluid, diff fluid, coolant, power steering fluid and brake fluid....what i have to say to this is you change your oil right? well the other fluids are the same thing, just working different parts of the vehicle.

Dropping the pan wont damage the trans....i took on water last year, and my trans wouldnt come out of 1st, and was slipping bad...couldnt get above 15 mph......i flushing it by filling and dropping the pan 5 times, and my trans is perfect still to this day....if i would have used the machine it would have pushed the water into all the ports in the trans, making it even harder to get all the water out. So its the same thing, the machine will push all the gunk around in the trans, and will cause more damage the benifit....

All in all

Dropping the pan=good
Flushing with machine=bad

 

I fail to see how flushing your own transmission can damage it. Dump pan. Replace filter and gasket(no sealant). Fill up pan. Disconnect discharge line from the cooler. Aim at bucket. Pump pan empty. Fill pan. Rinse and repeat.

 

Folks are talking about machine flushing it. Machine hooks to cooler lines, and circulates fluid/solvent thru the trans, to clean out all the crap that is normal accumulation in an unmaintained transmission. Basically, if it hasn't been done regularly, doing it to a high mileage trans is pretty much guaranteed to cause trouble.

When I worked at the dealership, we did NOT recommend this procedure. In fact, we TOLD customers it was a bad idea, and there was the real possibility it would screw their trans, and if it did, we would NOT cover the repairs under warranty. On the older 700R4's, simply changing the fluid and filter would sometimes cause the trans to fail.... especially one that hadn't had it done in a long time.....

 

Thank you all for the knowledge!