Well that old story about changing fluid in a old tranny is quite amusing. Stories form idiots that don't even think about it until it starts acting strange then try changing the fluid and filter and blaming that instead of their laziness. That way you describe it may be filter is plugged up and the first thing to do is replace it. Maybe he won't be your friend much longer unless you go it real cheap!
Transmission fluid and filters should be changed at the service intervals. Yours is way over.
Old fluid performs badly and can damage the transmission
You can try a fluid and oil change, no guarantees. The clutch disk material is probably nonexistent.
I have a 1999 Dodge Ram with 213,000 miles on it. The engine was rebuilt 70,000 miles ago but the tranny wasn't. I bought the truck a few weeks ago from my friend who bought it brand new. So I know the history of the vehicle pretty well. I knew that there were issues with the trans when I bought it, but had hoped it would last me another few weeks. Well the other day it stopped shifting from 1st gear, but after letting it cool down began shifting again. The trans fluid is old, brown, and dirty. Should I change the filter and reuse the old fluid? I've heard all the horror stories about changing the fluid in a trans that wasn't maintained and then it goes and takes a ****. I'm just trying to squeeze a few more weeks out of this thing before I bite the bullet and have it replaced.
