ScootCherHienie

Porsche specifies fluid Aisin specifies, there is nothing proprietary about it, except the price Porsche dealers charge for it.

jbaker136

@rchen404, I also live in the DC area (Vienna VA) and have a 2004 Cayenne Turbo. I would be glad to help you with this or any other Porsche stuff. Feel free to PM me any time. I just did my transmission fluid service a few weeks ago. The key points are to understand how much fluid comes out and goes in, making sure the car is level when filling, and knowing the temp of the ATF for the fill. I used 3309 (as you heard from Mobil it meets the requirements same as the Porsche branded stuff) for the first service but I will be doing it again soon and using Red Line D4 ATF. For the first service I drained the fluid, pulled the pan, cleaned the magnets, inspected the filter (really just a metal screen) and filled it back up with 3309. I reused my old gasket (still in good shape after 100K miles but Ill replace it when I do this again) and filter for now as I am doing this again soon. If I was in a shop on a lift this would be a 45 min job (I was a professional mechanic in the 90s before I got into IT) with most of that time coming from the fill process. It takes about 20 min of idling on the rack for the trans fluid to get up to the correct temp (I have a Durametric Diagnostic Tool I used for this) to confirm the fill level. I do all my own work but I think a good independent shop should charge between 1 and 2 hours for the labor. Replacing the filter is debatable and if you are not careful and the O-ring on the new filter doesn't seat fully you will have shifting problems after replacing it (very common) and you can also snap off the small filter bolts in the valve body or brake a solenoid wire if you are a bit ham-fisted (or too many beers in). Since I would have to pull the old filter to clean it anyways I am going to just replace it since it isn't that expensive. Also keep in mind that while the transmission can hold 9qts of ATF, some of that stays in the torque converter and some stays in the trans cooler and cooler lines so a pan off drain and fill will only take about 5 to 6 quarts including spilling some during the heat up and top off cycle. Based on my old ATF not looking too bad for 100K miles I am assuming the valve body was replaced by one of the two previous owners as hard shifting is a common problem on early 955 Cayenne's and a lot of dealers just swapped valve bodies to address it.

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New filter and part number.


Filter is really just a screen; this is the valve body side of the new filter screen.


This is the pan side of the new filter screen.


If you don't replace the filter you can at least wipe off the old oil and let it drip for a while and of course inspect the screen (use a flashlight) for blockage.


Based on how little metal was on my magnets I assume my old filter is fine, but I will change it anyway as I already bought a new one.


Only 4.5 quarts came out of mine but I used 5 and a little from a 6th bottle on the refil as some spills out during the process.

Dilberto

955 Transmission holds exactly 8.75 quarts of ATF. If you only drain the pan and filter - there remains another 2.75 quarts of old ATF contained within the Torque Converter, cooler lines and valve body.

rchen404

Hi jbaker thanks for the great writeup.

I contacted a few local reputable shops about the transmission service. One very reputable shop flat out said he doesn't do the service and recommended against flushing (drain and fill is ok). All the shops recommended different fluids: pentosin, motul, Castrol. But they still charged about 300-500$ for labor. At that rate might as well go with dealer at $450 labor and buy the parts off suncoast at $450



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rchen404

Same tranny, same car company, half price off

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-genuine-volkswagen-audi-parts/automatic-transmission-fluid-1-liter/g055025a2/

95_993

You bet...and you'll find same fluid under Mobil 3309 or Toyota Type IV for half of that price again.

rchen404

I made a long post about detailed quotes I got from reputable Indy shops. It says paost needs to be moderated and it never posted.

Indy shops are charging 300-500 for labor, on par with dealer cost of 450. But they are using pentosin, Castrol, motul oils and not Porsche oil.

In my risk averse mind, I still want to get dealer to do it with Porsche fluid for about $1000 labor and parts. It would be like insurance and I would have a dealer to go after if something went wrong vs an Indy shop. I have a 8 yr old BMW that I almost didn't buy extended warranty on. Good thing I did because tranny failed under 50k miles - warranty paid for a rebuilt unit free. I plan on keeping the cayenne until it dies as it has no resale value at this point.

deilenberger

Can you point me to that post so I can approve it? I normally see moderated posts and if they're not spam they get approved immediately. In looking at all your posts - I don't see any that come up as still moderated.

TIA!

reachme

I gotta be honest, this job sucks. dirty, hot and little satisfaction at the end so here is my overview of this job with real world detail to add color you won't find anywhere else, your mileage may vary:

I bought the ECS kit last summer on my 04 at 75K miles. Only chunking I get is very first shift into second gear so based on age and clunking I figured I would change it.

I hope you like oil dripping on your head? Not from one spot you can avoid but from anywhere along like a 9 square yard area? There is no dodging dirty oil dripping on your head and hands. You know those smiling photos of spouses helping by turning a wrench on a job-this is not that job. It's also one of the few jobs where the Cayenne needs to be running while on the lift which always elevates my alert level.



Due to the brown oil shower, eye cover is highly recommended and if your glasses are like mine they are scratched up, it was like I had cataracts so I could barely see to begin with, then add some oil drops on the scratchy goggles.
Now you need Durametric (or something) telling you what temp the trans fluid is while filling so it is completely full at 40 I think. So the Durametric cord is not even long enough to make it down to the ground (car on a lift) so the old laptop computer was like 9 feet away, and the laptop screen is tiny as any win XP laptop woudl be. Recap. Scratchy goggles covered with brown oil drips, tiny laptop screen, far away so hard to read the temperature.
Now I had a lot of trouble pumping this thick fluid uphill ideal so my pump was slow. This matters because you want to reach full JUST as you hit the 40 degree fluid mark which is as easy to time as Marty McFly catching lightning with his Delorean. So as you approach 40 you start pumping like mad while watching the laptop far away. But the laptop keeps going to screen saver so you have to stop pumping to run over and smear your oily fingers on the mousepad to wake it up again, run back and pump like mad. But don't run too fast because your soles are covered in oil-(did I mention trans oil is a great lubricant) and there is great risk of breaking your jaw just by standing.


So you reach 40 degrees, get your final few pumps that fill up causing more overflow, then quickly screw the cap back on and torque it. Then climb back in the Cayenne to kill the engine and realize your interior and steering wheel is now smeared with hot brown oil

After all that, changing filter and fluid in the trans didn't really cure my 2nd gear shifting issue when cold so now I think it is software related
Then when you are done you have really only replaced 70% of the fluid, color is still brownish as are you by this point so I will need to replace in another 3-4 years.
Maybe next time I will have a pro do it since this job sucks.

rchen404

Hi Deilenberger, I saw the "moderated post" message after originally posting, but I don't see the post anywhere in my account. It's ok. thanks

jbaker, thanks for the detailed post. I'll keep you in mind for car jobs.

Reachme - thanks for the real world write-up. I've experienced stuff like this on much simpler jobs. HOW MANY LITERS did you pump back in? Indy said it may be only 4-5 quarts, but Porsche docs show 9 qt.

reachme

I bought 12 and used 9 (maybe not fully).
Changed the filter too so maybe that matters a little.
Oh and get a good transfer pump. Oil is think and you are pumping vertically a few feet so the harbor freight one I started with was leaking by when I put the needed force on it.

HenryPcar

Problem our contact at the dealership is most likely the service advisor, and getting any knowledgeable information from them are....you know the answer.

nodoors

I used mobil 3309. It works great in these transmissions and is most likely what Porsche put their label on. I posted somewhere on one of these threads... the trick is to use a 1 or 2 gallon garden sprayer! It makes everything about 10 times easier because you can easily pump the crap out of it and then turn it on and off for the flow. Cut the tip off and use a heat gun, socket, and some pliers to put a nice hook in it so it will hang up there in the transmission pan filler neck. It doesn't solve the issue about how messy removing and replacing the pan can be, but sure makes the fill process a lot simpler.

Martynban

Brainz

Garden sprayer is the hands down MVP of replacing ATF in these transmissions. The $10 bottle pump you get at the car parts store or Harbor Freight will take forever, break, exhaust you, and/or make a huge mess. Don't even waste your time/money -- buy a garden sprayer. I upgraded mine with a 1/4 turn toilet shutoff valve -- makes for a fast/easy/[relatively] clean filling.