twhite

I had a transmission flush 20,000 miles ago. My fluid looks fine but I have a burnt odor when I smell the fluid on the dip stick. I did not change the filter for the last two fluid changes.

What causes the burnt smell? I generally don't change the fluid until I get between the 30,000 to 40,000 range. I have never had the bands adjusted. I have 384,000 on the transmission, half of which is towing.

Thanks

Tim

paulb

Mileage isn't always a good indicator of when to change the trans fluid. Most trans fluid is good until about 225* (varies a lot, please don't flame!), and then is lubricity decreased by about 50% for every 25* increase. It does not completely recover after getting hot. Install a trans temp gauge and if you get it hot (usually backing up heavy loads...), then change it as soon as possible.

Now more directly to your question... The smell is usually a combination of the fluid getting hot, and clutch material. If the fluid is clear then you may not have much clutch material in it. I change the filter and adjust the bands at every fluid change. During racing season I change mine about every 10,000 miles. No doubt overkill, but it lets me keep an eye on things.

Hope this helps...

twhite

I have a temp gauge. I never let this get hot. I wonder if, after putting so many miles on this tranny, that this is an indication that it is about to go.


Tim

j-fox

Good job keeping a stock trany going!!
384,000 miles on a 02 is a good deal of driving.

I say change the fluid soon and again in 5,000 miles to see what it looks like. Inspect that filter too, as it may plug up sooner with that many miles on it if it is slipping.
The smell is from the heat. Did you change brands of fluid?

twhite

All that driving is highway interstate. Half my driving is towing and the other half is empty. The truck has never been abused. If anything, I baby the beast to much. I never let the tranny shift from 3rd to OD or from OD to 3rd; i always do that manually.

The tranny flushes are done commercially. The last one, 20K miles ago, was done at a Dodge dealer. I didnt ask what they were using. I am not changing the filter when I have the flush done. Should I have the pan dropped, filter changed, and then the flush?

Tim

J BODY

You might want to smell some new ATF +4, it has kind of a "burnt" smell to it new. Accoding to the "info" on the +4 odor and color have little to do with the fluids condition. (that's what it says, and no I'm not comfortable with that either, I change mine quite often).

j-fox

My truck always gets the filter changed with the fluid.
Last year I took my mini-van ( sorry I had to admit that ! ) to a service center for the tranny fluid. The guy was sure it didn't need the filter changed. I asked how much it would cost to get it done before the flush, he quoted a price and I gave permission.
Later when I picked it up, he said it wasn't going much farther with that filter. Then showed it to me. He said it really opened his eyes to the need for filters to be replaced.

AAmeeting

I am changing my fluid every 12000 miles. I do the exchange which gets most of the fluid. I hope to get as many miles as you without too many problems.