i have a 2000 mercury grand marquis with 105,400 miles on it. I‘ve been wanting to get the transmission fluid flushed and replaced. Should i do it? i bought the car used in two months ago, and i don‘t know if or when the transmission fluid was replaced. What else should I have it looked at? Will this hurt or damage my engine in any way? After i get it flused? Should I get Meineke to do it? Are they reputabile?
Have the shop drop the trans pan first and inspect it for worn clutch plate material and possibly metal grit or flakes--if there's a lot, the trans may be on it's last legs anyway and not worth spending the money to flush.also, check the fluid and see if it smells burnt--like toast.another indication of a trans on the way out. Otherwise, flushing and filter change should be done---not just a fluid change-- to get out the old fluid in the torque converter, lines and trans cooler and uses the trans pump to flush with so no extra pressure is involved.
I build transmissions everyday, and I always recommend changing the fluid in your transmission, especially if you don't know when or if it has ever been changed. The only problem that can happen is, if your fluid is dark and deteriated, normally your seals are worn and when you refill with fresh fluid, the new fluid is much thiner and the fluid will leak past the old worn seals causing you to lose all function of your transmission. But if it was to happen, all you have to do is put old fluid back in and transmission would slowly start working again. This is usually a good indication that your transmission need overhualing. Also, make sure when you have your transmission flushed, that they change your filter also. A lot of lube places i've found don't do this, they will only change the fluid. Which is like taking a shower and putting your dirty underwear back on, It doesn't make any sense! after you do get it changed, make sure you change it after that every 15,000 to 30,000 miles to get the most out of your transmission. You've got the AODE or 4R70WE Transmission and they have a problem with burning up the overdrive clutches. So make sure that the fluid is changed and is full regularly. Hope this helps!
I have seen more transmissions fail doing this. If you don't know when it was changed do not flush it. Just change it. flushing at times blows the seals apart from the intense pressure. Just take to any decent shop and tell them to change the fluid but do not flush. Pep Boys has a company policy not to flush older cars for this reason. They don't want to be buying you a transmission. Meineke is a franchise owned by an independent business person. One could be good and one could be bad. if you do not know a decent shop, ask a neighbor.
