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Transmission Filter/Fluid Change DIY (pics)

129K views 58 replies 30 participants last post by  andyg 
#1 ·
So I've been wanting to do a transmission filter/fluid change in my 03 T&C 3.8L because the tranny seemed a little hesitation in shifting. So I did it last night and snapped some pics and I figured I'd share; I know this is a pretty simple DIY, but there were a few points that might be useful for people wanting to dive in themselves. Here's a parts/price list:

-Filter/gasket set ($9.99 Autozone)
-5 quarts AFT +4 ($25 Coastal, also Autozone)
-10mm socket
-Fluid collection pan
-Hammer
-Flat screwdriver
-Scraper/putty knife
-Rags (bunches)

So anyway, the total cost here is $35 and takes 1.5 hours (I still consider myself an amateur so you may get it done sooner). A lot better than the dealership cost of $150ish, so for anyone who wants to save $115, here goes:

I had just changed my oil so I had the van already jacked up, but I honestly don't think you'll need to do this. There seems to be plenty of room to work with the van on the ground, but I suppose that depends on what sort of pan you'll be using to collect the fluid. Remember that you'll want to warm the transmission up by driving around for 10 minutes or so.

Remove the 14 (??) 10mm bolts. Notice the bulky wiring harness pack right next to the pan. It just pulls out of a hole on the edge of the pan (might take some wiggling etc).

I took all of the bolts out right away because I could not get the pan loose with some of them still in, but it's probably a much better idea to remove half the bolts and only loosen the other half.



Getting the pan off was a little tricky. I used a very small sharp flat screwdriver and wedged it between the tranny and the pan in several locations. Tap the screwdriver in with your hammer and try to be patient...this took me several minutes.

Once you get a couple places worked loose from the tranny, carefully wedge the pan away and the fluid will start pouring out. Hopefully you remembered to put your catch pan down or you'll be lying in a rather large puddle of red stuff that smells like fermented urine. Nice.



Let it drain for a good long while, then take the remaining bolts out and remove the pan. Ew, mine was pretty mucky, but not a huge amount of metal which is good.



Ok, now pop the filter off, it takes a pretty good jerk to get it off.

Now its time to clean the pan and get the old gasket off the pan rim. I used a putty knife, but you need to be careful not to gouge the rim...it didn't give me too much grief. NOTE: You'll need to do the same for the tranny side of the seal, though mine didn't have much gasket residue on it at all.



ANNNNND clean out out the gunky stuff including the magnet to collect shavings...presto cleano! Again, this pic doesn't show the magnet in the pan, BUT DON'T FORGET TO PUT IT IN after you clean it off.




Install the new filter. BE SURE TO PUT THE O-RING ON THE FILTER INLET. This required a surprising bit of muscle to seat in place; you'll hear a distinctive click when it's seated correctly.




Ok, grease the rim of the pan with some tranny fluid and place the gasket over the rim. Then put several bolts through the gasket to hold it in place (you may actually want to put them ALL through the gasket). The gasket is fairly tight and will hold the bolts in place when you hold the pan up to the tranny.

Tighten the baby down! I put all the bolts in till they were snug, then tightened them by half turns in an alternating pattern (like tightening a tire rim) about 4-5 times. The gasket was squeezing out on the sides of the pan slightly but not a whole lot. This part will be much easier if you have a torque wrench and just torque them to spec (somewhere around 120 INCH pounds, verification?), Unfortunately I don't have one...

So there you have it! Voila!



My fill took about 4.5 quarts of ATF+4. Put three quarts in, start the van, put the 4th quart in, then drive it and check the fluid level to determine exactly how much you need. Monitor the pan for leaks after your next few trips...as for me, no leaks, and it seems to shift a little smoother as well.

Should be good for another 30k miles...

Cheers!
 
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#5 ·
I'm with you. I want to get a fluid extractor before I do the next one for sure...but that doesn't help with the filter change...

Torque wrench definitely preferable...I'm getting one from Harbor Freight next paycheck hopefully. $15 lifetime warranty, can't beat it.
 
#6 ·
Absolutely! I thought about drilling and tapping one in mine, but I was scaredy cat...:) Have to get a fluid extractor before I do it again.
 
#7 ·
Thanks for the nice write up.

I quit doing mine, as I had to keep paying Chrysler for a $90.00 relearn for the transmission after each fluid and filter change. I bet it has been three years since I last did it, though I am very tempted to do it now.
 
#8 ·
Very informative, thanks.

So I've been wanting to do a transmission filter/fluid change in my 03 T&C 3.8L because the tranny seemed a little hesitation in shifting. So I did it last night and snapped some pics and I figured I'd share; I know this is a pretty simple DIY, but there were a few points that might be useful for people wanting to dive in themselves. Here's a parts/price list:

-Filter/gasket set ($9.99 Autozone)
-5 quarts AFT +4 ($25 Coastal, also Autozone)
-10mm socket
-Fluid collection pan
-Hammer
-Flat screwdriver
-Scraper/putty knife
-Rags (bunches)

So anyway, the total cost here is $35 and takes 1.5 hours (I still consider myself an amateur so you may get it done sooner). A lot better than the dealership cost of $150ish Cheers!

Very informative post. I gives my an insight what the task looks like, as I haven't done it yet. Thanks.


Bulldog Van
 
#11 ·
I've never done a quick learn and never had any problems from not doing it.
Hank
 
#12 ·
I called my local 5 star yesterday and they told me 10 dollars for the filter and dodge does NOT make a gasket for the pan. He said that they use gasket maker junk and that is what dodge says to use. He said he would sell me that for 5 dollars. So is it ok to get the filter from auto zone and does autozone make a gasket for the pan.
 
#16 ·
Ditto to 2002CaravanSE.

From what I learned about gasket dressing, I would NOT use it to create/dress this transmission pan gasket. There's a slight possibility of the dressing getting into the fluid and while your filter would catch it, I wouldn't want any more foreign stuff in there that doesn't have to be.

That said, I do believe the factory seal was gasket dressing and not a rubber gasket...hm don't know then.

At any rate, the Autozone set for $10 comes with a rubber gasket, filter, and filter o-ring.

Just so you know, this is a simple job, I'd go for it if I were you! ;):thumb:
 
#17 ·
Dear Tranny guys,
I have had many of these same transmissions and I would like to pass on a couple of suggestions that may help some of you who are asking some great questions.
1. Drain plug: You can go to AutoZone, etc. and in the Help! section you will find a transmission drain plug that requires only that you drill a 1/2" hole in the pan. I would put it in the back side, so it does not get hit, not on the bottom. It works with the principle of a Wellnut (these are also great little things to know about, at Lowe's in the screw section.) You insert the part into hole and tighten, the neoprene shell has a nut in it that tightens and seals all around. A center screw comes out and drains. Alternatively, you can buy a fluid hand pump and go down through the fill tube and pump it out pretty quick. (5 bucks on sale this month).
2. Another way: Go to Napa and buy the NEOPRENE gasket for this transmission. You can drop it and retighten it 100 times. Also, buy two other things that will make this job a snap, a 10 mm long socket and a cat litter box, square. It is perfect for draining the fluid, it is square and catches everything. Once you get the original RTV gunk off the pan and transmission, don't put anything back on but the neoprene gasket, it needs no gasket cement or anything. The nice thing about this gasket is that is designed to hold the bolts also. Just start them all through the pan and it will hold them while you get them all started.
3. Torque. I have done this job so many times I can't tell you and never used a torque wrench, but with the rubber gasket, you don't really need to since you don't do it real tight. If it needs tightening later (a slight leak) you can tighten it a little more. The way I always did it is to tighten the all just to the pan in the criss-cross pattern described. After this, (I have a stubby 3/8" for this) I hold the head of the socket wrench in my palm (not using the torque arm of the wrench) and tighten it about a 1/4 to half turn, till you start feeling some resistance in a criss cross pattern again. Then go around in reverse with a snugger just to make sure you did not miss one. As I mentioned, if it leaks a little somewhere, you can always tighten it a little bit. Just don't over torque, it is a finesse job. The pressure is about like you would use to open a door in the house with the head of the wrench in your palm. The key is the neoprene gasket. It is so good, you'll never go back. They are going to ask you how many holes the pan has (count the bolts, mine has one more hole than bolts (I think they hang it from this hole when they paint it).
3. Removing the old gasket. The best thing to use is a slightly used semi flexible putty knife and some mineral spirits or naptha.
4. If you strip a bolt, don't panic. Measure the depth of the hole with a nail. Compare with the length of the bolt. You can go to Lowe's and get a 1/4 or 1/2 inch longer bolt of the proper thread (take yours they have a device to tell you the thread pitch, it is metric) just make sure it is not longer than the hole depth. There is more thread up above the part that is stripped.
5. On changing the oil. If you buy a case of transmission fluid, if you change the oil 3 times (a case) with a hundred miles or two between changes, you will replace all but one quart of the oil in the transmission. (1/2 of 8 is 4, 1/2 of 4 is 2, 1/2 of 2 is one, you get about half out each time. Cheaper and safer than a flush.
6. To make the smallest mess: remove all but the corner 4 bolts. Loosen the 2 at the lowest point now and the oil will start to flow, when it stops, lower all four about a half inch and slosh the oil out the low point into the pan, move it up and down. When you remove the bolts, there is very little oil left in the pan. With a low cat litter box, you don't get a drop on the ground.
7. On the Napa kit, the O ring was not the right one. Save your old one just in case. But this is a part I would just buy at Chrysler. You will get the right one and be sure before you leave it has the o ring in it.
8 and final. The death of these transmissions for me has been burnt out fluid and clogged coolers. BAck flush the oil cooler in the radiator with clean fluid with air pressure till clean. Better yet, bypass it altogether with the copper tube after market one, 3/8" tubes visible thru the fins. It will not clog and let contaminants get to the pan and filter.
Happy camping
Terry
 
#20 ·
When I did this last year my transmission did not act any different before/after the fluid change. I think the transmission learn is only in the case of your fluid change making a noticeable difference in the fluid itself (because the transmission must be able to tell something is different). So, if you do this regularly there should be no transmission learn.
 
#21 ·
Sounds reasonable to me. In my case, my previous change, some years back, was a "flush" :)eek:). Maybe that accounts for some differences in the transmission fluid, that the transmission had to adjust to.
 
#22 ·
I did this every year for 4 years and only 1 of the 4 it didn't require the re-learn flash. I was thinking it was due to living in CA, and December is much warmer there than here in IA. I always did it in December.

As for automatically allow it to relearn: I drove it for 2 weeks allowing it to attempt to relearn on it's own and couldn't take it anymore, so I took it in. Seems awful harsh on the transmission to wait for it to automatically relearn shift patterns.
 
#23 ·
I did this every year for 4 years and only 1 of the 4 it didn't require the re-learn flash. I was thinking it was due to living in CA, and December is much warmer there than here in IA. I always did it in December.

As for automatically allow it to relearn: I drove it for 2 weeks allowing it to attempt to relearn on it's own and couldn't take it anymore, so I took it in. Seems awful harsh on the transmission to wait for it to automatically relearn shift patterns.
How much did the dealer charge to set up the quick learn?
 
#24 ·
I did this job today on my van. Used a Mopar filter and Mopar ATF+4 fluid. It was surprising easy. I first removed about 10-11 of the 14 bolts, and loosened the remaining ones so the pan wouldn't fall. I then used a rubber mallet to whack the pan several times and it came free without too much fuss. A dealership had done the previous filter and fluid change so I had to contend with RTV sealant. This time I used a rubber gasket from a generic filter kit purchased from Advance Auto. I didn't want to mess around with RTV. All pan bolts were tightened very carefully to spec using a torque wrench. So far, there are no leaks.

I was also pleasantly surprised at how little was attached to the magnet in the bottom of the pan. The fluid and filter replaced had been on the vehicle for 113K miles. Now, with 200K miles on the van it should be good to go for another 100K. I guess the question is whether everything else, including the tranny, will stay together that long!

As for "re-learning", I took it for a drive for 10-15 minutes and brought it up to speeds of about 60 and it shifted silky smooth, upshift and downshift. I've heard some folks say a common problem is that downshifts may be a bit harsh until the tranny's electronics and settings are adjusted. Knock on wood, I don't have a re-learn issue here.

Overall, I am happy I did this job for about 1/3 the cost a dealer or another shop would have charged. I know what filter and fluid were used, and I know it was done right. There's always satisfaction in that.
 
#25 ·
Congratulations on the good work, the satisfaction of doing it yourself and knowing what was done.
 
#26 ·
#28 ·
Chapter 7 ;)

Thanks for posting these links...great stuff. Having read these though, I'm not so sure the CVI is what we're really discussing when we reference "quick learn"...CVI is more of a troubleshooting index it seems. Isn't the actual TCM responsible for the smart shifting?
 
#29 ·
As far as upshifting/downshifting, I do believe it's a little smoother, but it wasn't shifting really that bad to begin with. I only bought the van a couple months ago, so my impetus in getting the fluid changed was mainly to get the van "current". One thing that is quite noticeable though is the shifting speed when going from drive to reverse...much quicker and smoother.
 
#35 ·
The only reason a person would have to go through quick learn after changing the trans fluid and filter is the trans was not full of fluid completely before the first time it was put into gear.

If the trans is to low on fluid the first time you put it into gear and there is no fluid to the clutches the computer ask for more and increases the CVI fluid demand and more pump volume/pressure once that happens it always looks for the larger volume of fluid so it will shift harder and down shift harder etc. and the only way to coorect that is to have the trans go through quick learn with a scan tool.
 
#37 ·
The only reason a person would have to go through quick learn after changing the trans fluid and filter is the trans was not full of fluid completely before the first time it was put into gear.

If the trans is to low on fluid the first time you put it into gear and there is no fluid to the clutches the computer ask for more and increases the CVI fluid demand and more pump volume/pressure once that happens it always looks for the larger volume of fluid so it will shift harder and down shift harder etc. and the only way to coorect that is to have the trans go through quick learn with a scan tool.
So, how to eliminate this?

When I changed the fluid in my trans a year ago, I filled it up to the FULL line, started the engine, and shifted it into Drive, the Reverse, a couple times. Then I topped-off the fluid, took it for a drive to warm everything up, and checked the level in idle as recommended.

I got the abrupt 4 - 3 downshift and it took about two weeks to "learn" to shift smoothly again. :ask_wsign
 
#40 ·
Change trans filter and reinstall pan
Fill it up.
start engine, check fluid (top up)
shift to neutral, Check fluid (top up)
Drive around the block a few times, shift selector to all positions, make sure OD engages.
Recheck fluid level in neutral (top up if necessicary)

Never had a problem or set any codes this way
 
#41 ·
One member wrote:

Great job illustrating the process! I still wish the manufacturers would install a drain plug on the transmission pan to alleviate the mess of the initial drain.

Yes, it would be alot easier but I think they don't do it for a couple of reasons. First, the transmission pans are usually pretty flat and at the lower part of the drivetrain above the road. If they would put a drain plug, they would have to have it pointing down and possibly in the way of road debris, which MAY cause damage to the plug/pan area. Now that MAY sound far fetched, but after being under many cars up on the hoist, I have seen deep scrape marks in many tranny pans that you would not believe.

However, I think that the main reason, and one that I understand well (because I have encountered it many time from people who should NOT have been doing maintenance on thier vehicle) is that people don't pay attention to what they are doing. I have PERSONALLY SEEN people who have bought vehicle that had tranny drain plugs put in by the previous owner. I know of two, myself, that have changed thier oil, and then added the 4 or whatever quarts of fresh oil to thier engine and away they went. The did not get far because they had DRAINED THIER TRANSMISSION FLUID, but put the REPLACEMENT OIL INTO THE ENGINE. Transmission fried and engine possibly damaged because of overfill. Yep, I SAVED MONEY BY CHANGING MY OWN OIL. I didn't know what the heck I was doing , but I did it. That is why I ALWAYS tell people to have qualified people work on thier vehicles and or have someone with you who KNOWS WHAT THEY ARE DOING, at least the first time you do a repair/service.
YEA, Not EVERYONE is this STUPID , but if the manufacture put the plug there, YOU KNOW IT WOULD HAPPEN many more times. Putting a plug in after the first time you drop the pan is a great idea, FOR YOU.
People do not read directions and/or think they know it all. Just like the ones who would pull the drain plug on the side of the manual transmissions on the earlier Ford Mustangs. PROBLEM IS, it is not a drain plug. YEP, IT LOOKS LIKE ONE, but is IS NOT A DRAIN PLUG. When they take that bolt out, it lets a gear drop inside the transmission. THEN THEY ARE REALLY IN TROUBLE. YES, POOR DESIGN, but how many other POOR DESIGNS do we see on our vehicles.
I know that many people will not agree with this but this is the way I see it.
BEEN THERE, SEEN IT.......
 
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#43 ·
Check the dip stick before you drain it. If on the marks, measure what you drain out and put the same amount back.
 
#45 ·
I have never done the quick learn and never had a problem.
 
#47 ·
Take out all the bolts except for three!



I took all the bolts out except for three. Then I loosened one bolt on the corner to near out and removed the other two corners. This lets the pan down on a corner angle so the fluid is drained from one corner, not all the way around. Once the most of the fluid is dropped then remove the last bolt. Then you don't have to worry about spilling it.
Just a thought for those with slippery fingers.
 
#48 ·
I took all the bolts out except for three. Then I loosened one bolt on the corner to near out and removed the other two corners. This lets the pan down on a corner angle so the fluid is drained from one corner, not all the way around. Once the most of the fluid is dropped then remove the last bolt. Then you don't have to worry about spilling it.
Just a thought for those with slippery fingers.
WOW great idea!!! If I was gonna do this more regularly like I should, I would tap in a drain plug. I need to do this soon.
Nice tip :thumb:

-Slyder
 
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