I was going to take my 2006 I4 Sonata to the dealer for a transmission fluid change and was told they use one of those machines to exchange the fluids. I called several dealers in the area and they all do it the same way - with a machine. I generally do my own upkeep to save money and know it is done right - oil changes, antifreeze flushes, tire rotations, etc. - but I have never done a tranny drain 'n fill on a vehicle. I understand the basic procedure involved: drop the pan, drain the fluid, change the filter, and fill 'er back up. My buddy, who owns an Accord, states his tranny has a drain hole which is opened by a 3/8 socket wrench and he does not need to drop the pan for a fluid change. I'm sure there are others on this forum who have done this basic procedure on their I4 and would have some answers.

- does the I4 have a drain plug for the trans or do you have to remove all the bolts?

- is there a filter in the I4 trans? (according to the dealer there is NOT, but I take everything they say with a grain of salt)

- how many quarts did u end up needing? I realize you don't get all the fluid out doing this, so the total capacity is not a good guide.

- I am using genuine SP III Hyundai trans fluid from the dealer so there won't be any issues of compatibility.

- this maybe a stupid question, but do you just leave the vehicle off and transmission in park while draining?

Any other advice for this procedure?

thanks!

This post has been edited by John_: Oct 8 2008, 08:28 PM

What I do with my old Altima is just take drain bolt out, let it bleed, then add same amount of ATF from measuring hole. So far it worked. It's not a recommendation tough. I just heard there was a lot scary tales after they open and close AT cover.....

Why not do a search with our searchbox. There are hundreds of posts

from current Sonata NF owners :liebe011:

Do the flush. It will give you clean fluid throughout the tranny.

:beer: :beer:

Hello there "John_";

:00000732: to Hyundai Forums.

DYI Tranny flushing is not that hard. You just need times and good workspace.
I started building myself a kit to do it on my 07 V6 transmission.
My plan is to.....
Used the cold fluid return line from the cooler/radiator
Remove the OEM rubber hose on that line
Install a long enought PVC clear hose from the cooler/radiator to your dirty fluid receptable (should be 15 litres or more and graduated in litre (quarts in US))
Install a small battery operated pump (got it at my local Canadian Tire store) which is going to pump my new fluid from the 4 litre jug to the inlet steel tubing on the transmission cassing.
With the help of my lovely assistant (check out my picture in my profile), she will start the car, shift in neutral and let the car idle, while I start my little pump and control the fluid flow, by keeping an eye on my dirty fluid receptable level and the 4 litre clean fluid jug.
I will need 3 jugs of 4 litre to do a complete fluid exchange.
My tranny has a filter which is inside the tranny cassing (accessable via the front pan removal, and the hydraulic valve body removal.) I am investigating the feasibility of filter removal.
Hope this help, let me know how it turn out with your Saturday afternoon project.

TheIceAge05

:beer: :beer:

It would better if you paid the Hyundai Dealership to do it, even though i like to do things myself i would rather the dealership to be responsible for transmission if something goes wrong.

There is NO Human in your profile. :whistling: Watch your 'assistant' will drop the Sonata

in Drive and wreck the elaborate setup. Hey I thought the Filter is not to be

replaced. What is that little pic on the right of the screen?

This post has been edited by MiamiLX: Oct 9 2008, 04:51 PM

Hey there "MiamiLX"

I somehow mist the point where I would jack up the car on all four jackstand!!! :grin:

Never ever replace any filter on your car and see if it will last as long as any other car you had where you changed the filters regularly??? :whistling:

That little pic is my lovely assistant and Moi at Talladega Speedway October 2007!


:innocent: :thumbsup: :innocent: :thumbsup: :bwekk: :innocent: :thumbsup: :innocent: :thumbsup:
TheIceAge05

Just HAVE SOMEONE do the flush man. Forget the milk jugs to catch the fluid. PAY someone to do it. You'll feel a lot better in the end.

She's beautiful now that you enlarged her! :thumbsup:

Hey there "craigbrooks";

I also agree with you, but you should mentioned that if you let someone else do it for you, that it must be a Hyundai Service Dealership.
If you take your Hyundai to any other service centre (Midas, Minute-Lube, Wal-Mart) you take as much chances if not more, than doing it yourself.
You cannot garantee what type of fluid you will end up with and if they use a pump-flush machine, you cannot garantee what kind of delivery pressure/flow this machine will put in throw your filter.
So, do it yourself or have it done by Hyundai, stay away from other service center.

My 2 cents.

TheIceAge05.

whilst I agree that you shouldnt necessarily take it to your local "cheap-o service center" (jiffy lube, etc), if you have a local guy that you use who takes "better" care of your car when you bring it in, I am pretty sure that they wont f*ck it up... i know my guy is very thorough and particular when servicing my car and if I asked him to flush my tranny (or even a drain & fill), he would actually look up the required fluid that needed to be used..

for some people, going to a Hyundai dealer isnt as practical (my closest one is 40 minutes away, i certainly wouldnt go there just for basic maintenance items) and usually WAY more expensive than necessary...

just my 3¢

my 2 1/2 cents worth of question for your plan. What flow are you controlling with the little pump?

On the couple cars I have done my own flush it worked as this. When you start the car the pump in the tranny will force the fluid out at whatever rate it feels like. If you block this flow you might cause damage. On my Sequoia what I did (and many others) is start the car, let it pump out about 2 qts, refill 2 new qts through the dipstick fill, start car and do it again until you see the newer cleaner fluid pumping out. You could use your pump for this if you know the rate to match and fill it at the same time. Basically that is how the dealer machines do it is it draws from the fluid machine reservoir at the same time it pumps out.

Dealer warranty is always nice but some people actually like to do their own maintenance. Other times (like my Toyota Dealer) they added an additive that made my tranny feel wierd and shift slow/soft. Tok 4 more flushes within a monthe to get that additive totatly removed and shifting normal again.