How good are cheap siphon pumps for oil/atf?

[Klutch9]

I've been looking around for a decent fluid extractor to make atf changes easier. I saw this cheap $9 hand siphon pump yesterday (Pennzoil branded). How decent do you think it would work? I'd pump all the fluids into a nice measuring bucket to see exactly how much fluid came out.

My dad had a cheap hand pump before, and it didn't last long. However, you had to continuously pump that one. Siphoning is physics though, and should keep going once started as long as the hoses don't have any holes. Thoughts?

 

[Boomer]

My experience on a number of auto trannies is that the pump method (through the fill tube) actually will get out only small amounts. Usually something blocks the tube from descending to the bottom of the pan. If you want to do the work, drop the pan, drill it and install a drain plug. Takes a little work to get it leak proof.

 

[JHZR2]

Ive never seen a unit designed for extraction of ht and/or viscous fluids for $9. Have a link?

Even the "big syringe" types are $15-ish. The little soap bottle type pumps to get liquids out of quart and gallon jugs likely wont hold up to hot oil.

You can get most all motor oil out by dipstick, IME, but ATF only gets a fraction. ive used mine for other stuff too, like on my Saab, where the MTF fill hole is easily accessed, but the drain hole is blocked by the suspension... So I sucked the fluid out.

 

[djb]

My experience: I bought one of the inexpensive squeeze-bulb type siphon pump, thinking it was a real pump with inlet and outlet valves. It wasn't. It was simply a bulb with open ends that counted on moving enough air to start the siphon. To start a siphon with thick fluid (most oils) you needed to put both ends in liquid and have the outlet end much lower.

My advice: if it has "siphon" in the name, don't buy it.

 

[andrewg]

Pela Extractor model PL-6000. Works very well and is simple to use.

 

[bigjl]

I shall.try and find the name.of the one I had a fee years ago. As i had a BMW diesel.engined Vauxhall Omega it meant i could.change the oil and filter.from.above without putting car on ramps.

I have seen them.in MachineMart and Screwfix catalogues in the past byt will.try to find the name.

They were designed specifically for the job with different pipes of various diameters. They were £60/70 though if memory serves.

But would last years.

Also good for getting the dregs of oil.out of the housing an.insert oil.filter sits in.
You basically.pumped a handle.on top. It created a vacuum and sucked the oil.or tranny fluid up and out.

 

[sciphi]

I went through 3 of those before biting the bullet and getting a MityVac 7201. Save your money and get a real fluid transfer pump.

 

[bigjl]

Re previous post it was a different name but was identical to the Pela PL650 . The pl6000 previously mentioned is the newer more compact version.

I would suspect they both work as well as each other.

 

[RMM]

I have used the HF tools transfer pump before with good results. It was about $3 on sale. It pumped ATF/gear oil fairly quickly. It is not a professional tool for sure, but it is definitely worth the $3 IMO.

You may have a problem getting the ATF out of the fill hole on an automatic transmission. It is often difficult to get the hose far enough down in there to get a lot of fluid out.

 

[HerrStig]

I drained my power steering reservior with a cheap one last week. Works well IF you remember that the pickup end has to be higher than the drain end.

I've also used it on brake fluid reserviors. TO get it work right on a tranny you'd have to get the car up in the air enough to create a drop at the drain end of more than a few inches.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

I did a drain and fill with the same Penzoil pump (though this one was from Harbor freight) - a bunch of people actually market the same exact pump.

It's quite useful. I use it for filling diffs, changing ATF ... Love the thing. When it works.

It doesn't work well on cold days. I couldn't suck 0w-20 out of a pail at 30F one day.

It's probably the best way to change the ATF on your Fusion/Focus - neither of them have a drain plug. Does the fusion even have a dipstick tube?

 

[Vikas]

I have used the 12V pump from this kit for transferring PS fluid from cars and hot engine oil from lawnmower. It does NOT work with the brake fluid though.

 

[zzyzzx]

I used a cheap HF one many times to drain a transmission before removing the pan. This made the whole removing the pan process way less messy.

Specifically this pump:
Multi-Use Transfer Pump
Pittsburgh Automotive - item#66418
http://www.harborfreight.com/multi-use-transfer-pump-66418.html

If done on a hot day I was able to drain the pan in my Escort's Automatic transmission really good. I am less confident that it would work good on a cold day.