This happened to me about 6K miles ago and wanted to know if this has happened to anyone else. I changed the fluid in my trans because it was pretty dark. I am the second owner of the truck and it seems like the guy before me didnt like to change it often i guess. So i change it and two weeks later my 4L60E craps out on me. It doesnt shift right, etc. I manage to get it to AAMCO and have them take a look at it. They said that it needs to be rebuilt because by putting the new trans fluid in it "changed the environment" of the transmission. He said the trans would have been fine if I left the old stuff in there because it was used to the old stuff. Now 2000$ later i have a rebuilt trans that I am happy with because it needed to be rebuilt soon anyway, but i am 2000$ poorer when i didnt necessarilly have to be.
SO, has this ever happened to anyone else?
yes this has happened lots of times ,people dont understand even if you only put 20,000 miles a year on a car or truck the tranny needs a filter and oil change.
reason why is that when doing a filter change and oil you are only changing out 4 to 5 qurts of oil and moast trannys (auto trany that is) holds 14 quarts all together so when you do a filter and oil change your only replacing 4 to 5 quarts out of 14( see where this is going?) think of it this way your oil is dark and smelly you change it out 4 to 5 quarts out of 14 now it like taking 10 quarts of coolaid and adding 4 quarts of water to it and it the coolaid is dark like your oil? well it dont delute it much and is still dark
so what im trying to say is if you dont change it every year at least 2 or 3 times a year and it you put more than 20 to 30,000 a year on your truck or car it needs to be changed at least every 20 to 30,000 every year and then you will find the fluid will stay pretty much red .
im not trying to say any one is stupid by saying all of this by no means.
i have built trannys for years i cut my teeth on a 700 r4 when they frist came out and i have had a GM and ford tranny come in for a fluid change and it was so dark that when we changed the fluid it wouldnt even pull out of the shop
so yes this happens much offten and is verry common and is not someone trying to scam anyone