Is200 Transmission Fluid / Oil

[GME]

Hi All!

Has anyone had any experience with this fluid??

Castrol ATF

http://www.opieoils.co.uk/p-77376-castrol-atf-multivehicle-automatic-transmission-fluid.aspx

I have also attached a PDF file by Castrol - on page 2 is a list of recommended manufactures and specs compatible with Castrol ATF JASO 1A.

pds_ImportMV.pdf

[clifton 94]

hi I just get the oil from lexus when I change mine then you know its the right one and not really much in price difference

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

If this is for your auto box I'd strongly advise you go buy Toyota ATF from Lexus or Toyota dealer.

Never mix different ATF fluids in your gearbox and even if doing a drain you'll not get all the old out so you don't want to mix 2 different types.

Very common reason for auto box failure is using the wrong fluid.

[petayV8]

Toyota Type 4 i believe. just use the Toyota stuff, any Toyota or Lexus dealer will stock it. the other makes of type 4 spec seems hard to get hold of in the UK and prob not much cheaper anyway....

Its pretty expensive stuff but cheaper than a busted tranny down the line. Im debating whether to do mine at next service

[petayV8]

btw are you going to do it yourself? because i was, seems pretty straightforward

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

Has yours ever been changed Pete?

I'm going to tell you what Lexus Bristol told me... I'm still undecided as my 300 has never had an ATF change.

If you are experiencing no automatic transmission problems such as fault codes from the transmission, no slipping of gears, no severe hesitation and the oil isn't dark brown and smells burnt then we do not recommend you change the oil in your gearbox if your car has never had an ATF change before. The reason being as ATF gets old it gets thicker, also little metal shavings run through the oil from wear and tare and draining these out and replacing with thinner fresh oil can lead to auto box problems and/or failure. Basically the old fluid and metal shavings hold the box together. Also you must use Toyota ATF, any other fluid is asking for trouble.

Now you can see why I'm reluctant to change mine even tho everybody who's opinion I respect tells me I should! Lol...

[petayV8]

Thats the thing, there is no evidence to say its ever been changed. Its at a 108k now and was looked after by Lexus Stockport up to about 90k including its 75k service. When i bought the car it was a dark red going to brown which is a sign it needs changing. now 2 years later its a almost definitely brown and does have a burnt smell so is a good time to change it. No signs of slipping or clunking and shifts are smooth and responsive. I have heard ppl say that before about a transmission but only on cars with high mileage. I really dont know if i should now though

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

The advice I got given on a US forum was to drain very little, a quart however much that is, then drive for 2 weeks then change another quart.

[GME]

This Castrol ATF Multivehicle JASO 1A is apperantly approved being the Toyota T-VI fluid. Read somewhere that Castrol has put their badge on it.

This is the IS200 Manual book attached saying that JWS3309 can be used too!