I've read through the ATSG manual and it says that there MAY be a plastic plug in the location where the VW fill tube is. I will be tinkering on my MINI this weekend and will look. If it is there, then we may be able to pickup that part from a VW dealer and greatly simplify the fluid change process.

 

I have that manual and my car has a metal plug or insert at that location. I was not about to try and remove it.

 

so i went to change my ATF today and noticed thet I have a larger drain plug in addition to the smaller on on the pan. it is located right under where the axle shaft exits the tranny. I pulled that plug first and got out approx 3 quarts of fluid then pulled the smaller one on the pan and plastic riser tube and got out another quart for a grand total of 4 quarts! that part was easy. the filling took forever as you all know that fill hole in tiny so as that was filling I made myself useful and put new busshings in the lwer engine mount.
I never heard anyone mention this other larger drain plug, my MCSa was built 10/06 so not sure if something changed durring that build period???
Anyone ever hear of this?

 

Two changes today on the wifes 05 Cooper S. Same large plug that takes a 10 mm alllen wrench. Only 3 quarts combined with the pan plug came out on ours. As stated the fill sequence takes the longest time..or seems that way anyhow. Thanks to all who posted their procedures for this.

 

My car was sitting in the garage for a week so maybe that allowed more fluid to settle?? either way I'm glad I did it. Now if we can just come up with a better way to fill the thing....

 

So I had the car at Limerock race track on monday. It performed amazingly well!!! handled fantastic with megan coil overs and the tranny was supper smooth with the Redline D4 fluid. I'll be back on 9/20 for another day of fun and speed.

 

You guys saved my Mini. I am having the all too common slam-shift through 1-2-3 up and down after reaching temperature. I was preparing to torch my baby and give up on her before reading this post. I had taken my Mini to a local (150 miles away) dealer and a local import shop that had both done some work for me and was blown off at both. I decided to try another dealer (also 150 miles away) and they blew me away with their estimate (in a bad way). I attached it so you all could have a good laugh. Of course they gave me the MINI company line "you need your transmission replaced", but they pulled out the big pipe to work me over and tried to charge me $273.47 for a $4 running light. That's the last straw. The worst part is I brought this to everyone's attention (3 different Mini dealers) when I was still under warranty, and they all assured me everything was fine. I am going to get my tranny serviced tomorrow by following your directions myself. I'll keep you posted. THANKS!

'05 MCSa Convertible - Chrono+Sport pkg, CAI, MADNESS CATBACK Exhaust, 17' Alloys, Slotted Rotors, EBC Greenstuffs, ECU MOD (MPP), MSD Ignition, NGK, 15% Reduction Pulley

 

Hey Jimi,

I fell of my chair looking at the estimate. If there is an Anti-Christ, he'll come from the auto dealership biz.

Good luck with replacing the ATF & filter.

 

Same here, that estimate was ridiculous. you can replace the cabin filter for about $25, the bulbs, spark plugs and valve cover gasket are also fairly easy to do.
good luck feel free to ask for help if you need it.

 

Got 5 qts Mobil 1 ATF and the LUBEGARD Platinum today and will change tomorrow. Could not get it done because I spent all day looking for the crush washer. Already changed plugs, light bulb, and cabin air filter. I found no gasket leak. Can't wait to have my mini running strong again. WIll let you all know how it went. Thanks again!

 

Done. 50% better. Really wish I did this earlier, 'cause the Mini really took a beating while I believed the "lifetime fluid" hype. Hoping I can get it back. Attaching some pics of the Mobil 1 ATF fluid, some lubegard, my used ATF (got 2.5 qts out), the laughable "lifetime oil" sticker with scary warning, a pic of the drain plug location, and all the parts involved...

 

Pic...

 

Anyone know what the thread is on the top fill plug?
Thinking of machining up an adapter for filling the tranny since that is the worst part of the process.

 

Do not use additives. They are useless and can potentially cause issues. The M1 synthetic has the additive package you need.

 

You and me both.

 

No additives? OK. Gotta do a second drain/fill. Trans was flawless for a day, then reverted to same dropping into/outta gear and slipping issue, but overall 50% better. When I get the fill plug out, will check the thread and post...

 

How many miles have you driven since the fluid change? One thing I would have recommended, since you were having shifting issues, would have been to buy the Toyota T-IV fluid to use as your flushing fluid, after a couple of cycles start using synthetic. As for the lubegard, it sounds like your transmission is starting to do what mine was doing. After almost 1000 miles of fresh fluid in the trans, there was no change in the behavior. I drained the fluid again to add Lubegard Red, after 100 miles, the transmission was considerably better. There is still a stiff 3-2 downshift at times but it went from almost completely undrivable to being able to go out and play. I'll agree that the vast majority of additives do not do what they advertise, but the Lubegard worked for me.

 

The fill plug referenced in this post is an M14x1 or M14x1.25. I don't recall the thread pitch right off hand, next time I have it apart, I'll measure it again.

 

A tube that screws in to fill it already exists. They make it for the VW version of this trans. Someone posted it months ago either in this thread or the similar thread in the 2nd gen forum that is titled Partial fill and drain. Or search for posts by me and you will find the other thread.

 

But I also remember it being quite expensive, to the tune of $50. For a simple plastic tube and a threaded hollow bolt, that's quite spendy.
If we can find out what bolt we need to thread into the fill hole, it's trivial to find and cut the right length tubing for something I'm assuming will cost $10 tops.

Then there's the matter of finding the right size crush washer for the drain bolt. I haven't been able to track one down yet at the local parts store. Spending $10 online for one shipped ... that's more than a full quart of the best synthetic ATF fluid. I may sound stingy, but hey, gotta be cost effective since we're DIY-ing here right?

 

Found the crush washer at NAPA for $1.39. It's a 12x17x1 whereas the original OEM is 12x17x2mm. In my pic above, the OEM is the top silver one, and the one I used is the 2nd copper one. I just stacked 2 of them and it seems to be holding fine...

 

probably the M14x1 since an M14x1.25 is the same as my lug bolts and they seem to be a finer thread.

 

Here is a link to the $25 VW/Mini filler tube http://www.costplustools.com/Assenma...-_p_14884.html#

 

Hey that's cheap! Great link, thanks!

 

Just a quick note, that filler tube is used to pump fluid back into the transmission via the drain plug. It won't thread into the hole on the topside.

This is from a VW site but the 09G is the VW designation for the TF60SN. It shows how the above mentioned tool is used.

http://www.passatworld.com/forums/91...ilter-diy.html