GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Hello,I have an '07 Vibe with 109,000 km on it. It has never had a transmission flush.I know there is some debate on whether to have a transmission flushed or just change the filter and and more ATF.Most of the sites I've found regarding this topic are for Ford and Chrysler cars, so I'm just wondering what is the opinion of most members here.Thanks!

Welcome to GenvibeMost will tell you to do a drain and fill.I personally do drain and fill.

I agree with Keith. A drain and fill is sufficient.

What do you do with the used tranny fluid?

Recycle it. Find a place that will take it from you. Some auto parts stores will take tranny fluid. Just be sure that you tell them it is ATF and not motor oil.

for a simple drain/fill and then another one after a few thousand mi/km.AutoZone took mine twice, only problem was one person said no at first but then another said "yeah, we take that!" I brought it in with some oil, separate containers. My local solid waste district office takes hazardous household liquids, if all else fails, check to see if whatever the equivalent is in your area accepts this stuff.

Welcome to Genvibe. Drain and fill at 70K Miles. AMSoil is a good product and some use Redline and others. Just make sure you get the right flavor for you car!

At 50K, 54K & 58K miles I did drain & fills w/OEM Type-IV (got it for $3.50/qt at the dealership). By the final D&F, the fluid was a very nice cherry-red color again (not that it was really all that dark looking at 50K). It's so easy to do on this car...easier than an oil change...that there is really no good reason not to be proactive w/ATF drain & fills.As for disposal, my local refuse station took it. Keep in mind though that if you take it to O'Reilly's, AZ or similar, don't dump it in their oil tank: ATF in their oil tank is considered "contamination" and they'll get dinged by their recyclers.

I've done drain and fills, but you need to do three of them to get an estimated 88% of the old fluid out, doing them a week apart of so. This is because with each drain you only get about half the fluid out. So by the time you do that, you are at about $75 in fluid alone. My time and not having the hassle is worth something to me, too. So, I did one flush at the dealer for $180 a few years ago. Then last year did a drain and fill and added some Lubegard red bottle (great stuff). A year from now I plan on taking it to the dealer again for a full flush, with another bottle of LG red.

Quote, originally posted by Cougar Vibe »As for disposal, my local refuse station took it. Keep in mind though that if you take it to O'Reilly's, AZ or similar, don't dump it in their oil tank: ATF in their oil tank is considered "contamination" and they'll get dinged by their recyclers. Funny,... at my local AZ the manager said "Yeah, we take it, just mix it in with your oil"Oops....

I know there are horror stories of tranny flushes, but my '97 Civic with about 115k on it had some gear hunting issues and slow, sloppy gear changes. (I had previously done a drop pan and fill but it had no effect). So I took a chance and had Jiffy Lube do the ATF transfer process. As I understand it this is not the kind that forces gritty stuff thru to clean it out, but just a fluid transfer that supposedly changes the fluid 100%.It has worked great - we are now at 133k and the tranny works much better than before. The gear changes are much more crisp and respond to throttle inputs and engine load so much better.

Go with a drain & refill. As stated above about $50 in fluid. One drain & fill will be 3.3 quarts, then you have to do it 2 more times to totally replenish all of the fluid. the 1st drain & fill I did one weekend, then the next the 2nd and the 3rd on the following weekend. Shifts were smoother & peace of mind that I did it myself. Easier than a oil change cause there is no filter involved. Good luck! All the info you will need is here on GenVibe. I used the Toyota T-IV fluid. $4 a quart at the local dealer.