I was checking the dipstick today, in anticipation of a DIY route for an ATF change fairly soon, when i noticed that the fluid level was all over the stick -- whereas the oil dipstick is quite good about at least giving me an idea of where the oil level is.

I wiped it and re-inserted several times and the ATF is still smeared all over the stick. It was a nice clear red though (like new).

Is it possible this was overfilled by the dealership when i last had them do a complete machine flush 30k miles ago?

I was going to do a regular drain/refill, but if this is overfilled, i'm not sure how much i'll have to refill with.

Or, is a regular tranny pan drain guaranteed to get me 5 quarts regardless? I will not be performing the complete drain utilizing the hose leading to the radiator.

Thanks for any input and guidance, guys.

 

Sorry for the early bump, but some help here would really be appreciated. Thanks guys

 

Had your car been warmed up when you checked level? Had it been driven recently? Did you go through the gears a few times while parked?

With regard to the drain and fill, your best bet is to catch & measure exactly how much you drained out, then put the same amount back in. Our ATs are finnicky when it comes to fluid level so you want to make sure you're in the correct range. Are you planning to do just a drain & fill, or will you also cycle some fluid through the stock ATF cooler?

 

^ mike will only be doing the drain and fill, no cycling through cooler pipe.
@mike: like bigc said your best bet is to measure the amount that comes out and refill with the much.

With all atf level checks iv done on my previous cars, i have had similar experience where the fluid seems to be all over the stick however i was able to see the dense red within the given range apart form the splashes.

Also as per the FSM you should check the level when the car is warm and running which i guess would satrt running the fluid through the system and your reading should be within the required range.

 

In case there's any confusion, when you're checking your ATF level, the TRANNY should be fully warmed up; starting the car and letting the engine warm up does nil for the tranny fluid temp. Then, as mentioned above, (while holding the brake) cycle the trans through all the gears a few times and then come to rest in neutral. Set parking brake and then check fluid level while idling in neutral. When the fluid is fully warmed up, it should drain down the tube fairly quickly so that once the stick is removed and wiped, it should go in again and come out readable.


(Note: this is the procedure I have used for every automatic I've ever owned, but I am only assuming it is the same for the G. I've got a 6MT, but after checking the manual, I see it says that having the dealer check/change fluid is recommended.) Sorry if this is all remedial.

.02

 

Mike, I was in the same situation when I did my ATF drain and refill. But like the others said, give it a 5-10 minutes warm up, the fluid will go to the correct level. As for the amount of fluid that came out, it varies. Somebody got 4qts, some got 3qts while I got 2qts :-|

 

Guys, thanks so much for the responses!

I had tried it both ways, "cold" after the car sat overnight and "hot" after the engine was idling for a few minutes. I'll give it another try using the recommendations here. My initial preference was the cold setting because of the finicky nature of the ATF and Infiniti's strong recommendation of confirming temps via CONSULT.

Did you guys turn the dipstick the other way around when taking measurements, per the FSM? I found that i couldn't insert it properly that way.

If i can at least verify that the tranny if properly filled, then the rest of the drain/refill process should be pretty easy

 

Mike, this is the part that concerns me. Your tranny temps will NOT be at their normal operating temp after just idling the engine for a few minutes. You just can't warm up the tranny fluid while stopped. You need to do your checks after the car has been DRIVEN for a 1/2 hour or so.

 

Alright, so i did the first part of the drain/refill today. Drained right about 5.25 quarts.

Anybody notice that when you torque the drain bolt back down (with a new crush washer) that the washer doesn't compress much when the wrench clicks? The old washer that was on there was quite flattened by comparison.

 

I use German Torque on mine...


I recommend at least pulling the trans cooler lines so you can empty out the extra 1.5 quarts in there. That way you can get 6 quarts of fluid out.

 

^ he decided not to do it, he's gonna stick with doing couple of drain and fills to get most of the dirty fluid out.

@mike: as i said i didnt use the new washers so cant answer taht question but my GUESS would be that a crush washer should crush completely leaving no gap in between, however as long as you have torqued it to specs of 26ft-lbs you should be fine, i recommend putting a piece of clean bounty paper underneath the drain bolt overnight after a drive to confirm no leakage.

 

Thanks for the responses guys. kool, you read my mind I'm about to check it this morning! Thanks!