GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I am a bit over 30K miles on my 2003 pontiac vibe....I understand I need to do a Trans Flush with a special synthetic...is this true? What can I expect to pay, etc.? Thanks in advance Joe

Is it for a manual or auto trans?

its auto

It's not really a Synth fluid, but it is different enough from DEX3 that you need to make sure it is done with the "TF" Toyota fluid.....

thats what the dealer was saying..I just wanted to make sure....to see if he was not pulling a fast one on me I have a bit over 30K miles..about 31-32 on it. You think its time to do it now?I'm prob going to do it at the dealer.

According to your user's manual, 60k is the recommended interval for the auto tranny under severe conditions. A "check" is the only thing recommended @ 30k miles. Manual tranny change is recommended @ 30k miles under severe conditons or every 24 months. This is coming from the short trip/city intervals scheduled maintenance log on page 7-6 of the attached.EDIT: Bah! Why can't I attach a 3mb PDF? :/

Quote, originally posted by Psychobroker »According to your user's manual, 60k is the recommended interval for the auto tranny under severe conditions. A "check" is the only thing recommended @ 30k miles. Manual tranny change is recommended @ 30k miles under severe conditons or every 24 months. This is coming from the short trip/city intervals scheduled maintenance log on page 7-6 of the attached.EDIT: Bah! Why can't I attach a 3mb PDF? :/I'm lost as well. One Pontiac dealer said I have "special" tranny fluid that's over $10 a bottle. The other dealers say they use GM...which is much cheaper.

Yeah,cuz it's Toyota fluid.

Ya, it's Toyota Type-T IV. If you get it done at a GM dealer it'll be like $15 a bottle because they take the Toyota fluid (around $8) and re-badge it. I had mine done at about 50k miles and used AMSOIL Universtal ATF (about $12). I bought the fluid from a store and brought it to a mechanic and they charged about $60 for the actual flush. The 2003 had several TSB for Tranny Solenoid issues and I thought the tranny shifted like crap, that's why I got it done. It still shifts like crap but at least I know that's because it was engineered that way and not gummed up.

Quote, originally posted by kevera »Yeah,cuz it's Toyota fluid.I asked the dealer what kind it is and they won't tell me. They say the Vibe takes "special" fluid. What do I do about the filter? As of now, I don't know when it was changed before I bought it, but it's still full and red. Not dark red, but red. Knock on wood, all is OK, but I wanted to do it before something hapens.Do I go to a Toyota dealer for the flush, or just for the fluid?

If your fluid is red then it should be OK.When it needs to be changed it will darken to a brownish color.You can do what Petrucci said or if you still have a GM warranty,then it's best for them to do it,Toyota is much cheaper than GM.

Quote, originally posted by Psychobroker »EDIT: Bah! Why can't I attach a 3mb PDF? :/Perhaps one of two reasons 1. Although the File Attachment part says "You may attach a file to this post. The file cannot be larger than 2000000 bytes." the last time I checked it seemed like it didn't like anything over 1 MB, maybe not even that, but 3 MB is even over the advertised limit on attachments.2. Maybe there is some fancy AI at work, won't let you upload a copy of the owners manual when they are all available for donwload in http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=1010The auto transmissions have been pretty reliable, I recommend going with the Toyota fluid. A Toyota dealer can do the flush for you, but you might have to "remind" them that it is the same as a Matrix with different sheet metal.

Quote, originally posted by kevera »Yeah,cuz it's Toyota fluid.My manual says to use only AC Delco T-IV Automatic transmission fluid. GM Part Number: 88900925This is the same thing as the Toyota fluid you're talking about? Geez, any way GM can make a buck! You know, if I buy Mobil 1 at Wal Mart or a part store, it's $5 a quart. The Pontiac dealer charges close to $12 per quart for Mobil 1!Do you think I should get the filter changed or does the machine flush, as they say, "eliminate the need for the filter to be changed because it thoroughly cleans the filter too" ???

The AC Delco is the re-badged Toyota fluid. As long as the fluid in Type T-IV certified then you're fine. The only ones I found to be that way are the genuine Toyota fluid and the AMSOIL Universal ATF. The filter is a metal-grilled filter. It'll get cleaned from the flush.