With the cost of living, many people are opting for do-it-yourself car maintenance. Cleaning a transmission in a car may not be easy for all, but for ones who do try to clean their own transmission, following the below steps can help then successfully do so.
Drive the vehicle around for a couple of minutes before starting. By driving the vehicle around gets the it to its normal operating temperature, allowing for any buildup sediment to come off easier. This make clean up not so much of a hassle.
Put your car up on jackstands. Make sure the jackstands are very sturdy and secure. Use jackstands over regular regular car jacks. Jackstands make for easier access to the transmission and other parts of the undercarriage. Jackstands are also more reliable.
Place the drain pan underneath the transmission oil pan. Carefully loosen and remove the oil pan bolts from the front and the side. When you get to the front bolts only loosen them. Pry the pan down carefully and allow the fluid to drain into your drain pan.
Remove the front oil pan bolts. With one hand hold onto the transmission oil pan, and with the other hand remove the bolts. Pour the rest of the transmission fluid into the drain pan.
Check the contents of the poured out transmission fluid. Look for foreign particles such as metal in the drained out transmission fluid. Metal in the fluid can be an indicator of transmission failure. This deserves immediate attention.
Clean the transmission oil pan. Use solvent or a putty knife to remove residue from the pan without scraping it. Remove the bolts that hold the transmission filter and reinstall a new one.
Apply gasket sealant around the mounting surface when all bolts have been put back into place. Press the gasket back into place firmly and put all of the bolts back into the transmission pan diagonally.
Lower the vehicle off of the jackstand. Open the hood and remove the transmission oil dipstick. Using a funnel, add a little bit of transmission fluid into it continuously checking the level. When the fluid registers on the dipstick start the vehicle and let it run idle for two minutes. Check for any leaks. Gradually add more fluid while checking levels and for leaks. Fill until you get to the full line of the dipstick.
