Transmission pan filter change at 159K miles

[SparkYellow]

The first fluid drain/fill was at 153K miles. Two more rounds of drain/fill were done before 155K miles. Decided to replace the filter and reseal the pan because there was a leak from the corner seam. What took me the longest was to scrape off the pink RTV residue from the transmission and pan. It was easier on the transmission because the surface is flat. The fluid kept dripping onto my hair and clothes though. The pan, on the other hand, was a pain. Much of the residue stayed with the pan, and the surface has indentation. The cheapo putty knife scraped off the thick part, and a piece of steel wool took care of the rest.

The fluid was all grey. Mostly blue Aisin FZ, with some traces of red Idemitsu Type M and old OEM. Collected a sample to send to the lab for metal contents. There wasn't too much junk at the bottom of the pan. The magnet collected shavings like baby hair.

 

[SparkYellow]

Additional pics. Once the 16 bolts came off, I sprayed them with degreaser in a cup and let them soak. Took 3 rounds until the fluid became clear. Then I had to dry them and remove the RTV residue as much as I could. I know the book says use new bolts.

The rubber o-rings in the new filter got lubed with some fresh ATF in a cap. The two bolts securing the filter are longer than the pan bolts.

Old fluid looks brown in my black drain pan, but it is actually grey when dipped in white paper towel.

 

[SparkYellow]

This picture shows how much of the old fluid remains in the pan while the draining was down to a slow drip. This is quite a bit, maybe half a quart?

 

[SparkYellow]

This picture shows the oil pan. No leaks around the seams. The drain valve is at the rear so when I put the front wheels on ramps at home, it helps getting the oil out. Did the 159K oil/filter change a few days ago, only paid $53 for oil and filter. While waiting for the RTV to cure, I rotated the tires and adjusted the pressure. That's $40 saved from going to the tire shop. Will wait until the end to torque-tighten the lug nuts.

In half an hour I will fill the transmission, turn on the engine, and check for leaks. Then another half hour to put everything back. Shop closes at 8 pm.

 

[SparkYellow]

This is the most difficult task that I have attempted on the CX-3. But after changing the valve cover gasket on my MINI in early August, I started to feel a bit more at ease. It is pretty much the same procedure, just upside down, and with RTV instead of rubber gasket. Still felt anxious like I was about to take an exam.

The lift/bay/tools rental for 8 hours today plus fluid disposal cost $220 (with early bird discount since I booked in late July). OEM Filter from OEMparts, Aisin fluid from RockAuto, shipping altogether was about $100. I plan to return next week for a half-day ($150) follow-up to check for leaks.

I am not saving a lot of money. I remember reading fellow members' write-up here and the cost by a proper mechanic/shop wasn't much higher. It is the clarity that I need, i.e., knowing what was done, how it was done, no matter how poorly done.

 

[SparkYellow]

The bottom of the air box is out. To start the engine and check fluid level, I can just connect the top part of the box to the air pipe. The panel air filter is held to the top by a bungee so it won't fall out.

 

[SparkYellow]

To take the pan off, I pointed the putty knife at the seam and hit it with a rubber mallet. The knife cracked as a resilt. I then used a flat head and mallet. It took only a few light hits at that spot to release the pan, didn't have to go all around the pan. But the flat head nicked a spot where the arrow is pointing. My bad.

 

[SparkYellow]

I rolled up a piece of shop towel to prevent any debris from going in the fill hole, it wasn't necessary at all since the pan was coming off. The drain is at the front. The small port on the filter is closer to the front. The large port on the filter is further down/out, that is where we get to see the paper element through an opening on the bottom. I should probably cut open the used filter to see what's inside.

 

[SparkYellow]

I rolled up a piece of shop towel to prevent any debris from going in the fill hole, it wasn't necessary at all since the pan was coming off. The drain is at the front. The small port on the filter is closer to the front. The large port on the filter is further down/out, that is where we get to see the paper element through an opening on the bottom. I should probably cut open the used filter to see what's inside.

View attachment 343995

Considering how short the dipstick is, when the pan is bolted on and properly filled, everything in this picture is immersed in the fluid. The level would be up above where the bottom of the shop towel is. The only access to the internal components of the transmission is through the two ports via the filter. The opening on the bottom side of the filter allows fluid to enter. There may be a pump inside the transmission to draw fluid through the filter? It most likely works the same way as the oil filter. The smaller port is where the fluid exit from the internals and drain into the filter and then pan.

When I took this pic, the pan and filter had been off and the fluid had kept dripping for over 4 hours. I only wiped and cleaned the mating surface with the pan.

 

[SparkYellow]

A few more notes before I forget. When my putty knife wasn't effective at scraping the thinnest layer of RTV off, I asked the shop owner/mechanic for help. He handed me a bag of steel wool. He recommended using it with WD-40. It was very fine steel wool, thinner than my hair. He also mentioned plastic razors which he didn't have. I only used one piece of steel wool for all the residue with a bit of the used ATF. The steelwool (grade #0000) didn't leave any scratches that I could see. When I tried a dish scrub on the bottom of the pan, I saw scratch marks right away. If I have to do this again, I will remember to get plastic razors, steelwool, and sufficient lube, whatever kind works best.

 

[SparkYellow]

This is the corner of the pan where I believed was leaking from the seams. All the other bolts on the pan were clean. Bolts in this corner are not as easy to access. Because of the depth of the pan, I used a 10mm deep socket with the ratchet, sometimes with an extension. This is the corner where the ratchet was kinda thick for the space. If I used an extension, the extension would be at an angle.

During the final check, I touched the seam at this corner with a piece of baby wipe and caught some black soot and clear oil residue. I didn't freak out at the time, because the fresh ATF is definitely blue. If I caught blue traces on my wipe, it means I need to redo it. I have no idea what that clear oil residue was. It looks like fresh motor oil, but no way it should be in that corner. It is too far away from the engine oil fill hole. Besides, my current batch of engine oil is purple, not civilian purple, but royal purple. It is dark as black.

Hopefully I can make sense of this in a day or two. It's true that you get what you pay for. I paid for an amateur who is doing this for the first time. Neither "peace of mind" nor "job done right" is included in the package.

 

[SparkYellow]

After getting this done last Monday, I didn't have to drive very far for work during the week, only up to 45 minutes each way. The ATF temp was up to the 202. Yesterday during my 150-mile trip down south, the temp was over 200 and went as high as 212. It was 90+ outside and over a section of a steep climb at 70+ mph. The temp came back down and I figured out what might have been the cause. This morning I added some fluid before making the return trip. It was 75 degrees out. The ATF temp stayed below 200 for the most part and only climbed to 206 over the steep section.

When I added the fluid, I also checked the pan seam for leaks. The front part that I could reach was all dry, and I could feel the sealant that got squeezed out had formed a barrier. If that is all around the pan, then I wouldn't have to worry about leaks. The material felt like a rubber gasket.

 

[SparkYellow]

I should have cleaned the plastic cover after resealing the pan. The upper right corner is roughly where the pan is. The wet spot towards the bottom is where I spilled some fluid when topping off on Saturday.

There's nothing wet all around the pan and at the seam. However, because I didn't clean the area above the seam on the wheel side, I can't tell from the wet soot if it is new.

When checking the level properly, i.e., with the engine running and ATF temp at 122, the level is low. I have added 4 quarts already, did I drain more than 4 quarts out?

If there are obvious signs of leak, I will redo the whole thing. As of now, I will monitor the level more carefully. I can check the level at home.

 

[SparkYellow]

Aisin FZ from RockAuto will arrive on Wednesday. They are 10% off right now. 4 quarts, taxes, plus UPS at $11 is $45 total.

I recall one member here mentioning a $985 quote for the filter job. I probably have spent that much already on the lift rentals ($220+$180+150) and 4 rounds of D/F (3 before the filter job). If I had a trusted mechanic, it would have been handled with zero efforts on my part.

My deepest fear is that a shop charges me $1200 (higher because I look gullible ) and returns the car to me with everything untouched. I can't handle that. Checking for leaks and topping off when needed is more manageable.

 

[SparkYellow]

The Car Scanner Pro app is $5 off Google Play store. One retired phone now serves as the OBDii display device. The BT dongle (Viecar) is good enough to show a lot of info, but not enough for serious code reading.

 

[N7turbo]

Aisin FZ from RockAuto will arrive on Wednesday. They are 10% off right now. 4 quarts, taxes, plus UPS at $11 is $45 total.

I recall one member here mentioning a $985 quote for the filter job. I probably have spent that much already on the lift rentals ($220+$180+150) and 4 rounds of D/F (3 before the filter job). If I had a trusted mechanic, it would have been handled with zero efforts on my part.

My deepest fear is that a shop charges me $1200 (higher because I look gullible ) and returns the car to me with everything untouched. I can't handle that. Checking for leaks and topping off when needed is more manageable.

Have them just do a complete replacement by pumping all the old stuff out with the machine and run the new stuff in. You will save hundreds and many hours of your time. Unless of course you just really like spending time under the car. . I can understand that.

 

[SparkYellow]

Have them just do a complete replacement by pumping all the old stuff out with the machine and run the new stuff in. You will save hundreds and many hours of your time. Unless of course you just really like spending time under the car. . I can understand that.

That would work if I have a trusted shop/mechanic. Much of what I do is out of necessity.

I do think pumping is a viable alternative at a lower cost. Instead of doing three rounds of drain & fill, do pump & fill. A hose with the right diameter and length (2+ ft) can enter the dipstick opening and reach the bottom of the pan. It will get more out than draining.

It looks like we just need to place a large enough container in the cavity in front of the transmission (where the bottom of the intake would be) and use a pump to transfer fluids. The container will be sitting slightly higher than the lowest point of the pan.

This is the pump that I found to be the most promising candidate:

 

[SparkYellow]

This is the hand pump that I use for ATF refill. The straight suction pipe goes into the one quart container. The tip (and only the tip) of the bendy discharge hose fits in the dipstick hole and I have to hold it in place. The hose opening is shown to be of 0.47 inch diameter.

To get as much fluid out as possible from the pan, we need a suction hose to bend and reach the bottom.

 

[N7turbo]

Interesting approach. I'll be following to see how it goes.

 

[SparkYellow]

Interesting approach. I'll be following to see how it goes.

But I won't have to get anything out for at least another 30K miles (1.5 years). When is your ATF due for a refresh?