Date:         Thu, 13 Jun 1996 16:16:57 -0400
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         SyncroHead@aol.com
Subject:      Re: Help: Vanagon Automatic Transmission Service

In a message dated 96-06-13 10:03:06 EDT, kersey@bga.com writes:

>Has anyone serviced a Vanagon automatic transmission?  I expect that it is a
>matter of draining by dropping the pan, cleaning the screen, replacing the
>gasket and pan and refilling with trans fluid.
>
>Any gotcha's from someone that has done this?

I did this a while back and it's just as you describe.  I did replace the
screen also.  My ATF had not been changed in a long while and I wanted to
change as much of it as possible.  Since a significant ammount of ATF remains
in the trans during this procedure, I elected to change much of the ATF
before the procedure.  What I did was use a plastic lube oil pump and snaked
plastic tubing down the dipstick tube and pump out 1 quart.  Then add 1
quart.  We'd drive it for another week or three and replace another quart.  I
think I replaced about 6 quarts this way.  I recall calculating that I was
able to replace about 95% of the old ATF after the screen & gasket change
with new ATF.  If I recall correctly, a typical change only replaces about
60% of the ATF.  If yours hasn't been serviced regularly, you might want to
to the same.  Remember to do any of this work in the most clean conditions
possible - ATs are very suseptible to even small amounts of dirt or even
lint.

Good luck,
Jim Davis
87 GL Syncro
88 GL Wolfsburg