Saab 9-5 - Automatic Transmission Fluid (ATF) change - 2.3t and 2.3T

[nordwulf]

I only know what is specified by Saab. I am not familiar with the differences between Dexron and 3309.

[J.Lucas]

9.5 AERO AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONOIL CHANGE
This service tip is adapted from your local library's ALLDATA ONLINE AUTO
SERVICE BULLETIN. You cannot change the entire volume of trans oil at once,
but you can get 80% of it this way. First buy a case of MOBIL ATF 3309 from
an online dealer. Then go to the hardware store and buy a plastic 1/4"MNPT
barbed nipple and about 2 feet of hose. Empty the pan of 4 liters of fluid
and replace the plug. Refill the 4 l. of fluid through the dipstick. Then
remove the supply hose to the transmission cooler banjo connection on the
transmission. This is located on the passenger side on the front of the
tranny. Thread the plastic nipple into this threaded hole (use teflon tape
to improve the fit) and connect the hose. Direct the hose into a pan. Let
the disconnected hose hang over the pan. Start the engine in park and run
it until 2 liters of fluid comes out. Stop the car. Refill the transmission
with 2 liters of fluid. Start the car again in park and run another 2 liters
of fluid into the pan. Re-connect the banjo hose connection (ensure the
seals are good). Refill the transmission to the proper level with the car
at operating temperature and in park. The hash marks indicate 0.5 liter.
Using this method, I used about 9 quarts of fluid in an eight quart system.
Towards the end you could see the new fluid mixing in with the old
indicating you have done all you can. Good luck! Jeff Lucas, Hastings, MN

[IndpMind]

After enough trans. fluid changes the regular way, your pretty much getting out the old in the torque converter when the new mixes w/it and
becomes more "new" than old. When I bought my car, the fluid was brown. Although the trans. showed no issues, I had to get that crap out of
there obviously. The method I adopted was to drain old, refill w/new, drive it for a few days mixing it up, drain again, then refill. Some do this
3 or 4 times initially, but once was enough in my case. '
I change it every 10K regardless of color..........which is always bright red. 5 qts. for 25.00 every 10K is pennies. So after about 4-5 changes
thus far since owning the car, I'm confident all the oil is newer.

[Leonard]

I own a 2003 93 sports that has the crazy little dipstick that can only be removed by going under the car and removing the bolt that retains it. I was advised by somebody in the trade that the best way to change the oil in the transmission was to drain the oil by removing the drain plug then replace it.Remove the pipe that goes to the oil cooler.Connect another piece of pipe to the gearbox and lead that into a large container. At this point it is advisable to have the help of a mate as you will be tipping a lot of transmission oil into the gearbox filler via a funnel with the engine running until the oil pumps out red. Now stop the engine and fill the sump to the correct level followed by checking the oil again when it is hot.

[wally]

I realize you rounded the 57% to just 50% to get the last two percentages, but I went ahead and calculated the specific values. They are:

1st change - 57%
2nd change - 82%
3rd change - 92%

Also, thanks for this and your other tutorials. It's all great info.

[tom3holer]

Thank you all for the great advice. I have a question if I may. I have done the 3 flushes on my 06 Aero with 63k miles. The problem is checking for the correct final level. The local temp here is in the low 20's F. It will be very hard to get the transmission up to the 80C for the recommended check. Can I assume, till it warms up here, that if the level is full on the stick when cold, its close enough till I can get a good fully hot check?

Tom

[Brad Lauzze]

I had my transmission drained and filled back up this afternoon. Even with driving before draining the old fluid out and then driving for a good 20 minutes after fresh fluid went in, I still had another 10-15 minutes of idling in the heated shop to bring it up to 80 degrees needed to accurately check the level.

[ymaval]

I tried the method mentioned by J. Lucas. it rocks! The previous times I had changed the transmission fluid by 3 drain and refills, but I felt with this method it took less time and I feel like I have changed more of the fluid with this method as the transmission fluid is so shiny now while I didn't get that by drain and refills. I just altered Luca's method as follows:
I lubed a 1/4in (outer diameter) transparent hose into the hole after openning the bonjo bolt (going to transmission cooler). 1/4 inch pipe fits it pretty well and has almost no leaks when the engine runs. I drained 2L, and filled 2L. Then, the hose was 10ft long and I ran the engine untill I saw the clear fresh oil comming out and I shut off the engine.
By the way, I had always had bad shifting since I had my 2006 9-5 and changing the transmission fluid helped little in fixing it. The bad shifts were much more pronounced after driving in heavy stop and go traffic. This time I thought I'd just switch to AMSOIL multi-vehicle synthetic signeture series (which covers JWS 3309) as the worst scenario was to change the valve body (I already wanted to do it anyway to get rid of bad shifts). VIOLA! The bad shifts are 90% gone. The gear shifts are slightly different too. I like the way it shifts now compared to Mobile 3309 or Toyota T-IV. It also catches much faster when in lower gears (1 and 2). Very happy!
And again, thanks to Frank for sharing so much useful information online.

[ymaval]

After driving the car for 300 miles this weekend, I can definitely confirm that I like the amsoil signature multi-vehicle transmission fluid way better than Mobile 3309. The car just blows me away every time I push it for a WOT on second gear... Reaches torque faster than before, pulls stronger on first and second gear and gets slightly better mpg. The bad shifts are becoming less and less pronounced as I continue driving.

[AT ONE SIR]

For my 2001 9-5 Wagon:

The Saab Owner's manual I downloaded here says: Texaco Texamatic Dexron III (mineral oil based) (page 256)

The Haynes Manual I purchased (#4156) lists Saab ATF fluid 3309 (mineral oil based) --OR-- Dexron III ATF (page 0-17)

????