Originally Posted by gwf545

I recently did a pan and fluid change for my 6HP26 using the excellent info from this post. I also ordered the mechatronics sleeve, but since it was not leaking, not even a little, I did not replace it. The refill was more difficult than I thought it would be and I ended up spilling about half a liter of the fluid on the floor. A hot exhaust pipe on the V8 runs right by the drain plug and I also got a bit of a burn from it. The car was on jack stands which made the job a lot harder than it would be on a lift. I strongly recommend using a lift for this job if you can borrow one or rent time on one.

Out of curiosity, I broke open the old plastic oil pan to check out the filter. I was surprised at how clean it was, it looked white, like new. Aside from some very fine metal powder on the magnets, the pan & filter were very clean. I drive my car pretty hard at times and expected to see a lot more evidence of it than I did. So, unless you are totally obsessed with tranmission fluid cleanliness, I would suggest that replacing the pan/ filter combo is not terribly important and could probably be skipped.

I also recommend that anyone replacing the pan & filter order at least 5 of the pan bolts. (I think someone else on this board recommended that, but I missed that post until after I had started the job.) I had a few bolts that were a bit corroded, difficult to remove and should have been replaced, but since I doubt I will replace the pan again, I didn't think it was all that important.

Originally Posted by lcc014

One question - how do you borrow a lift or rent one ? All the lifts in local garage or dealer are installed into the floor. Are you talking about something else ?

When I change the pan, I will replace all the bolts not just a few, peace of mind.

Originally Posted by rctmthouse

How much fluid did you put in before starting the car? The reason why I ask is because my transmission has been leaking fluid slowly through the gasket, I supposed, so using the measuring how much fluid drained method might not be correct for me. Just want to get some ball park figure since I will have to fill it to the max when it gets hot. .

Originally Posted by rctmthouse

Thanks for the quick reply GWF...need to tackle this project soon. Order the ZF transmission kit already. Stop by local auto store but they didn't have the fluid transfer bottle. Need to find a bigger store somewhere in the Bay Area when I head down there this coming week.

BTW, how did you measure the temp of the trans fluid when refilling?

Originally Posted by gwf545

There is a company here in So Cal that rents space and tools in a garage and they also have a lift. They get around $230 for a full day and prpoportionally less for partial day. Of course I did not mean to rent a lift for use at your own garage!

Originally Posted by rctmthouse

Where is the best location to put the jack stand at all 4 corners? I was thinking of instead of using jack stand, can I use stack of 2x10, 4 or possibly 5 nailed together, underneath each wheel for stability. Considering the current underneath clearance along with another 6" from 4 pieces of 2x10, I will get around 10 inches of clearance which, I think, is sufficient enough for me to work with.

Any opinion or additional advice guys? Never try to lift a car at all 4 corners before.

Originally Posted by JasonH

The problem with this idea is that the car suspension hangs down when you jack it up so you won't get much under the wheels. When you lower it again the suspension will compress. You might get 4" but that's not much.

My plan is to jack under the front jacking points using two trolley jacks, then use a bottle jack under the central jacking point to hold the car whilst I swap the trolley jacks for axle stands. The axle stands will then be on the proper jacking points.

Then repeat at the rear (here you have to use the differential, avoiding the fins).