Transmission fluid drained by CT...problem?

[tobyking100]

Hello,

I went to my nearest Canadian Tire for a quick oil change (learned my lesson and won't be going back). After this my Subaru Forester was jerking when accelerating from a stop or slow speeds. When I took it back, I learned that they had not only drained the oil but the transmission fluid too (but only replaced the oil). They said about 1L of the transmission fluid was drained and claimed not all was drained. They refilled it and said all is fine now. The car seems to be driving as it was before....but my question is, could there be permanent damage to the transmission system? Should I take it some where else for inspection? The car would have been driven about 20 to 30 km before being taken back in and the transmission fluid replenished.

Would appreciate any advice/suggestions/comments as don't know much about transmissions!

Thanks,

AM

[Fairtax4me]

What year and model is your car?

 

If it was causing problems they probably drained about 3-4 litres of fluid out of the transmission pan. Unfortunately, there's no way to know for sure how much damage was done.

 

My biggest concerns for now would be:

1. Did they use the correct fluid to fill the trans? There isn't any way to really know this. There are so many different transmission fluids out there, and they all react differently in different transmissions. Most of those quick lube places carry a generic trans fluid that works in a wide range of different transmissions used in older vehicles. If you have a new vehicle (less than 3-4 years old) the wrong fluid may cause more problems.

 

2. Did they mistakenly put ATF in the front differential before finding the dipstick for the transmission? This is another common mistake that the quick lube places make. ATF is bad for the front differential and will ruin it in a very short time.

[Rooster2]

When the ATF is drained, only about half the ATF will actually be drained from the system. The remainder half stays in the torque converter, and cannot be drained. As Fairtax wrote above, it is impossible to know what kind of ATF was used in a refill, or what damage may have been done to your auto tranny. Save any receipts, on what they did, or not do. If you had not asked them to work on the tranny, and they did so anyway, then you have grounds for a law suit, should your tranny fail. You may also want to voice your concern to upper management in the quick lube joint. It is important to start a paper trail of what happened, and that they are responsible should you have transmission problems within the next year.

[tobyking100]

Thanks for your replies.

 

It is a 2013 Forester 2.5i.

 

I got Canadian Tire to give me paperwork documenting what happened. This is what the report said:

 

CUSTOMER HAD OIL CHANGE DONE ON AUGUST 31/2015. THE LUBE TECHNICHIAN ACCIDENTLY DRAINED ABOUT 1.5 LITRES OF TRANSMISSION FLUID ALONG WITH THE OIL. WHEN THE CUSTOMER LEFT

WITH THE VEHICLE HE NOTICED A JERKING WHEN SHIFTING AND RETURNED THE THE VEHICLE. THE TECH THAN FILLED UP THE FLUID TO ITS APPROPRIATE LEVEL AND TOOK THE VEHICLE FOR A TEST DRIVE.

EVERYTHING SEEES TO BE FUNCTIONING THE WAY IT SHOULD BE. CUSTOMER SENT AN E-MAIL IN REGARDS TO CONCERENS ABOUT THEIR TRANSMISSION AND CANADIAN TIRE WILL COVER THE COST OF A

TRANSMISSION FLUSH AT SUBARU

 

This is what they documented they put in:

(Quantity 2) MULTI VEHICLE SYNTHETIC ATF - I don't know if the 2 preceding it means 2L

 

I have set up an appointment at Subaru to have the transmission check and flush done and know that this is probably not the transmission fluid Subaru usually uses. In your opinion, should I let Subaru know all the details of what took place or just get the transmission check and flush done without the details. Have about 4 years left of warranty (had taken extended warranty) so I don't know if they would void it?

 

Appreciate your advice!

 

Rooster2, on 31 Aug 2015 - 23:02, said:

 

When the ATF is drained, only about half the ATF will actually be drained from the system. The remainder half stays in the torque converter, and cannot be drained. As Fairtax wrote above, it is impossible to know what kind of ATF was used in a refill, or what damage may have been done to your auto tranny. Save any receipts, on what they did, or not do. If you had not asked them to work on the tranny, and they did so anyway, then you have grounds for a law suit, should your tranny fail. You may also want to voice your concern to upper management in the quick lube joint. It is important to start a paper trail of what happened, and that they are responsible should you have transmission problems within the next year.

[Rooster2]

Good question you ask about possible voiding of extended warranty. Maybe there's some Subie techs, or Subie management on this forum, who can give you good advise. I don't feel qualified to give advise on this issue.

[mikec03]

I would drain and fill multiple times?  It's going to cost over $1000, maybe over $2000.  Ct isn't going to cover it.  You better have a lawyer send them a letter.

 

I don't really see how you can avoid telling subaru [unless you do the draining and filling yourself] about it and, yes, I think it will void the guarantee.  Maybe ct would just want to replace your car.

[Rooster2]

I would drain and fill multiple times?  It's going to cost over $1000, maybe over $2000.  Ct isn't going to cover it.  You better have a lawyer send them a letter.

 

I don't really see how you can avoid telling subaru [unless you do the draining and filling yourself] about it and, yes, I think it will void the guarantee.  Maybe ct would just want to replace your car.

IMO, good thought about doing a drain and fill on your auto tranny. I have done that several times, with a drain and fill 3 times, with short drives between drain and fills. This does a good job of swapping out all the ATF. It is not hard to do, as there is a drain plug for the ATF. That is how the tech made a mistake, and removed the wrong plug at CT. IMO, this is about the best action you can do under the circumstances. 

 

If your tranny develops problems later, then have it repaird under the extended warranty. I don't think it would be prudent to advise the dealer of your problem, so they will have an excuse to void your extended warranty. Who knows, CT may help pay for some repairs, if needed,  but I am guessing not that much. Pursuing them legally, at some point, could get expensive, and not worth your time and money. Just my humble 2 cents worth of advise.

[lstevens76]

A "flush" for a Subaru means draining 3 qts (which is what comes out and 1/3rd of the capacity) then refilling it, running it, then repeat 2 more times to get most of the transmission fluid changed out.

 

The transmission fluid they used is probably fine.  I know people out there running Valvoline Maxlife multi-vehicle in both 4EAT and the 5EAT without problems.

 

Have the transmission inspected by a transmission shop if possible.  Based on the sounds of it though if damage was done it was very minimal.  You also have a written statement of fault by the company who caused this so I doubt they would fight it if you can trace a future problem back to being run low on transmission fluid.