word to the wise: although the fluid is termed as "lifetime", it would be proactive to change it every 60k or so.

discuss

 

did my gear box and rear diff at 80k

 

agreed, and that includes the tip tranny.

 

I have been thinking of this myself, not sure if it is better to leave the 'lifetime' fluid in there because there isnt any problems or go ahead and change it...BTW I have a 6spd

 

iv always kinda wondered about checking/changing the transmission fluid since there is no dipstick for it. how would you know if the fluid was bad or low? i assume it wouldnt go low if ya dont have a leak?

 

yes, it's a sealed tranny with no dipstick. i have no idea how the dealership checks it. nowhere in the owners manual (maintenance booklet) does it show that the fluid should be changed but it does say it should be "checked".

they call it "lifetime" but they really mean during the powertrain warranty. a $500 fluid change every 60k will hopefully prevent tranny problems in the future that could cost thousands.

 

For what it's worth, I just changed my trans/diff fluid @ 98k. I am aware that this service is overdue relative to other claims on this forum. With that said, when I drained the spent fluid the color was similar to honey, slightly darker, and there was no trace of contaminants, moisture, etc. There was no burnt odor that I could detect. Basically did everything but taste it.

I don't see any reason to do this sooner. However, purchasing 6 qts at ~$17 per qt. (~3.5-3.7qts 75W90 for trans and center diff, they share the same fluid, and ~1.6 MT80W90 at the rear diff [redline fluid]) why not. Only took a couple hours.