Hi folks,
My 2006 Toyota Camry LE 4-cylinder is coming up on 60,000 miles. The manual and automatic transmission dipstick both state that the fluid is good for the life of the transmission. My Haynes manual, however, states that the transmission fluid should be changed every 60,000 miles. As I prefer to err on the side of caution, I'm going to change the fluid at 60,000 miles even though the fluid is still bright red on the dipstick.
Unfortunately, Toyota T-IV ATF is relatively pricey, and costs about $9/quart at the local Toyota dealer. None of the local auto-parts stores have T-IV or Mobil 3309, which is evidently an identical replacement.
AutoZone has Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF that claims to be "suitable for" transmissions that require T-IV, as well as a huge list of other transmission fluid specs. It's also cheaper, at $7.69/quart locally. I'm a fan of Mobil products, so this looks promising, though the lack of T-IV-specific approval (as opposed to being "suitable for", as declared by Mobil) makes me a bit skeptical. Would Mobil 1 ATF be satisfactory in this case?
Wal-Mart also has a multi-vehicle ATF (their Dexron IV stuff) that, like Mobil, claims to be "suitable for" transmissions calling for T-IV. It's in the $3.50-$4.50/quart range (I didn't write down the price, and forgot the exact price -- it was rather affordable though). Not bad, but again I'm a bit skeptical of the "suitable for" wording.
All things being equal, I'd probably go for the Toyota fluid just to be on the safe side. However, prices are different, and I need to figure out if the extra cost for "genuine" T-IV is worth it. If the Mobil 1 ATF is actually better (for whatever definition of "better" can be applied to ATF), then it'd be beneficial to get a better product at a lower price.
Any thoughts?
On a related topic, the power steering system of my Camry calls for Dexron-type ATF as a working fluid. My understanding is that any Dexron-type fluid (e.g. Dexron III, Dexron IV, etc.) would be satisfactory. Is there any reason why I should use Dexron III as opposed to the newer Dexron IV fluid?
Thanks!
My 2006 Toyota Camry LE 4-cylinder is coming up on 60,000 miles. The manual and automatic transmission dipstick both state that the fluid is good for the life of the transmission. My Haynes manual, however, states that the transmission fluid should be changed every 60,000 miles. As I prefer to err on the side of caution, I'm going to change the fluid at 60,000 miles even though the fluid is still bright red on the dipstick.
Unfortunately, Toyota T-IV ATF is relatively pricey, and costs about $9/quart at the local Toyota dealer. None of the local auto-parts stores have T-IV or Mobil 3309, which is evidently an identical replacement.
AutoZone has Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF that claims to be "suitable for" transmissions that require T-IV, as well as a huge list of other transmission fluid specs. It's also cheaper, at $7.69/quart locally. I'm a fan of Mobil products, so this looks promising, though the lack of T-IV-specific approval (as opposed to being "suitable for", as declared by Mobil) makes me a bit skeptical. Would Mobil 1 ATF be satisfactory in this case?
Wal-Mart also has a multi-vehicle ATF (their Dexron IV stuff) that, like Mobil, claims to be "suitable for" transmissions calling for T-IV. It's in the $3.50-$4.50/quart range (I didn't write down the price, and forgot the exact price -- it was rather affordable though). Not bad, but again I'm a bit skeptical of the "suitable for" wording.
All things being equal, I'd probably go for the Toyota fluid just to be on the safe side. However, prices are different, and I need to figure out if the extra cost for "genuine" T-IV is worth it. If the Mobil 1 ATF is actually better (for whatever definition of "better" can be applied to ATF), then it'd be beneficial to get a better product at a lower price.
Any thoughts?
On a related topic, the power steering system of my Camry calls for Dexron-type ATF as a working fluid. My understanding is that any Dexron-type fluid (e.g. Dexron III, Dexron IV, etc.) would be satisfactory. Is there any reason why I should use Dexron III as opposed to the newer Dexron IV fluid?
Thanks!