Change the transmission fluid

Tiny
STACY171
  • MEMBER
  • 2002 MERCURY COUGAR
Transmission problem6 cyl Two Wheel Drive Automatic 96,600 miles

I recently got my oil changed in my car, and the mechanic said that I needed new transmission fluid because its starting to change colors. But I was also told by another person that if you do change the transmission fluid it can somehow ruin your car. I dont know what to do. I know nothing about cars, and I dont want to do anything to harm my car in any way. Who is telling me the truth?
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Tuesday, August 12th, 2008 AT 1:37 AM

3 Replies

Tiny
MHPAUTOS
  • MECHANIC
  • 31,938 POSTS
Hi there,

You should service the transmission as per the manufactures recommended schedule, not changing the oil will cause more harm that changing it.

Mark (mhpautos)
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Tuesday, August 12th, 2008 AT 1:46 AM
Tiny
JEFFCJ
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
Hi Stacy171,
I think what your well meaning friend may have been referring to is this: if your transmission is old and has a lot of wear, it is sometimes not recommended to FLUSH the transmission, which has been known to sometimes cause failures in those situations. However if your fluid is changing color then it is losing its effectiveness and should be changed (but leave it to an experienced transmission mechanic to determine whether or not it should be flushed).
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Thursday, August 31st, 2017 AT 10:59 AM
Tiny
KEN L
  • MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
  • 42,468 POSTS
Great addition to this thread! Please feel free to help out whenever you are on the site :)

Cheers, Ken
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Monday, September 4th, 2017 AT 11:55 AM

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