I just bought a 96' Camry. The maintenance schedule on Edmunds says to change the transmission fluid filter. But the car runs smoothly and is mint condition for a 96'. Do I need to change the transmission fluid filter yet or should I wait? There's 102K miles on it.
Thanks in advance!

Got 194K on my 95 and I had the filter changed around 100K and the mechanic said it looked fine. I just flush the fluid out every 50K or so and haven't had any problems. I would go ahead and do it this time.

The filter is just a wire mesh screen.
Transmission fluid should be flushed immediately.
Draining the pan changes 20-26% of the fluid in the system, depending on which car & transmission you have. Simply draining the pan doesn't cut it. Takes about 10-12 quarts to flush it.

Once flushed, you can either flush it every other year, or drain the pan & refill every oil change. (5,000-10,000 miles)





90% of transmission failures are caused by worn out & low fluid.
Every time transmission fluid overheats, it's lifespan halves.
Transmission fluid temp rises linearly with transmission RPM when accellerating/loaded down.



Buying 5' of 5/16" fuel/oil hose, 3 hose clamps, and a stacked plate cooler / used cooler from a junkyard & installing it after the stock transmission cooler will cut the chances of early transmission failure by more than 90%.

What he said :)

Got 194K on my 95 and I had the filter changed around 100K and the mechanic said it looked fine. I just flush the fluid out every 50K or so and haven't had any problems. I would go ahead and do it this time.
So - buying a new filter is not necessary?
I can R&R the one in my '90 Camry and just clean it?
Also , the Haynes recommends "washing the pan with solvent",
and I've heard/read that Simple Green does a good job and ain't
carcinogenic like most of the stuff out there.
What's your opinion

It's a metal mesh screen. Looks like a screen door, just built with wire.
You just wipe the stuff off it.
I would clean the pan, that way next time the pan get's dropped, you can see if there is anything bad on it like shavings & particles.


Simple green works pretty good. It's not as strong as some stuff, but I like it. Smells better.

If it's really ahrd, take one of those cleaners and add an oz of acetone &/or striaght isoproply alcohol. Just make sure you don't use it on a rubber seal! That'd be big trouble hahaha!