I was wondering if anyone can help me. I just purchased a 2004 Stratus R/T. Its has the 3.0 engine and autostick transmission. I have 63,000 on the odometer and read its about time to change the trans fluid. Has anyone every changed the fluid on these transmissions and can someone tell me the easiest way to change it? I thought there may be a drain plug on the trans pan, but I did not see one. How do I change it?

 

I have 2002 dodge stratus 2.4l DOHC engine with automatic trans. I had the pleasure of doing my pan several times during a period of several months in an effort to rid myself of old and wrong type of fluid in my trans. My girlfriend had some gas guy put something other than ATF4 in it. It also had a small leak. Pain in the whole it was...

Try to work as cleanly as possible. Have good clean rags around and maybe some old cardboard to put under your pan. I would also have more than one pan. This way you can swap out the full one for an empty one when your working. That stuff pretty much stinks. You don't want to inhale those fumes. It also kind of lingers around. Make sure your well ventilated. I would close all the windows of your car so that you don't stink it up. Try to empty your fluid in maybe a clean white 5 gallon bucket with a lid so that you can see any tell tale debris floating around in it.

I would start by jacking the car up on both sides so that you have plenty of clearance to maneuver underneath. Also you may have to remove the front bottom inner wheel well covers to get better access to the pan. Don't jerk around make sure you have clearance! I purchased a tranny kit at my local advanced auto that came with a seal and filter.

I would crack all the bolts on the pan. I used a quarter inch drive with an extension to do this job. I didn't want to take the chance of over torqueing those bolts and ruining them some how. I wanted to feel how much pressure I was applying to them. After you crack them don't remove them. Undo a little more the ones closest to the back of the car. When you do that you may want to gently tap the pan with a rubber mallot. Don't pry a screw driver in there you could ruin the pan. If your lucky you should see fluid start to drain out the back side of it. When you see fluid undo some more those rear bolts now u should see it start to pour out. Let it drain for a few more minutes. then undo it some more until you finally can remove the pan. Make sure you count your screws and put them in a ziploc so that you don't loose them.

Drain your pan into your bucket and make sure you look at the bottom of the pan to see what type of debris is down there. Big metal chunks obviously no good. But you will see some normal sludge down there. It should all be accumulated around the deepest part of the pan where there is magnet made to catch that stuff. Clean your pan and magnet well and make sure you put your magnet where you found it. Set it aside.

I would then remove the filter. Pay attention to how much force you used to remove. When you put your new filter in those things kind of snap rite in. I made the mistake of removing one after I installed it to see if it was on there rite. I wasn't sure if it was on there rite. After I did that it would not snap back in properly. I wore down the plastic edge were it snaps in. I had to buy a new one. So the lesson here is when you feel it go in and snap in place dont remove it but tug on it gently to see if its on there good.

When your ready to put your seal on. I think I used just lil bit of grease on the pan to hold the seal in place. Your working now looking up at the pan from underneath. I hand tightened a few bolts to get it going. May sure you use a criss cross pattern when tightening. Like a said earlier I used a small ratchet with an extension so I knew how much torque I was applying.

If its the rubber gasket it can be a pain in the whole to stop a leak if you have one. I had to do it over a period of about 3 to 4 weeks. I would get down under neath the car and torque the bolts a lil bit every other week. The gasket when it gets hot starts to mold itself to the pan forming a better seal but you will need to tighten those bolts again when it starts to do that. You will see after a week or two how those bolts you thought were tight can take that extra turn! It took a lil while for me but my pan was beat up a bit in the rear.

One last thing. Try to pay attention also to how much fluid you removed. If you put your spent fluid in a white 5 gallon bucket you can see how much you removed. Dont over fill your tranny. Apply all but the last quart when filling. With your foot on the brake cycle through the tranny from Park to Drive before you take her for short spin. You gotta let the juices flow. Take her then for a short spin around the block and let her warm up. Park her in a level place and check your tranny dipstick. If shes low apply some more fluid. Repeat process until you sneak up on the rite fluid level!

Good luck! Let us know how you make out!!

 

Now wait a minute. I just jacked my car up and my transmission pan is vertical side up. Are you sure you even have the same transmission as me?

 

He a completely different car. Your car is a Mitsubishi, his is Chrysler.

http://tearstone.com/shop/2000-2002-...ce-Manual.html

Ive done it once, but its been a while. The filter isnt serviceable, but you can do a flush. It might be easier just to get it done.
I recall pulling the transmission line that runs though the radiator to do this. Hopefully you can find it in the service manual above.

 

Yeah I figured that out when I had the transmission pan removed. It was actually a pretty easy job to do. I just drained out at much transmission fluid as I can. I put the car in neutral and let it run for a few minutes. I got most of the fluid out, and replaced it with fresh. Wow, it must have never been changed because it was a thick brown colour. I noticed its been shifting better already. Do you think the flush is pertinant or just changing the fluid may be enough for now?

 

LOL! You mean I wrote that for nuthing!

 

Not necessarily... a sedan owner a few years later might use it lol. It is nice to see people helping others out though. Im sure it was appreciated.

Not everyone knows the 01-05 Stratus and Sebring Coupes are identical to the 00-05 Mitsubishi Eclipse... The coupes share absolutely nothing with the sedans, as they were built on the same assembly line as the Eclipse.

 

Actually Just a few months later! I have a 2004 Dodge Stratus Sedan that I have over 110,000 miles on and I have never done anything to the transmission! Im starting to think Its time to do something and Thanks to your advice and how to's I believe its possible! I will slowly start to gather the things needed to do this (because I am poor) haha