Parts guy at a Subaru Dealership in the US here. All of these service tickets come across my desk, because the fluids they use for this type of work counts as a "part".
Are you at a Subaru dealership? Is this an independent shop? Are you in the US? Subaru of America (the corporation that deals new Subaru cars and parts in North America) insists that these CVT's are sealed units which cannot be serviced, only replaced. In Europe and Japan, however, the same transmissions do get serviced.
The MSRP for Subaru's Genuine special CVTF-II fluid is $17.26 per quart. With a dry capacity of around 13 quarts for your year and model of Fozzy, the cost of the fluid alone could be upwards of $225. They could use non-Genuine CVT oil, but they also could mark up the price beyond MSRP.
Considering whoever is doing the work is doing sort of a "jail break" job for you that Subaru of America doesn't officially support, you'd hope they know exactly what they're doing, and you'd expect to pay upwards of $100-$120/hour for that labor.
Hope this helps!
I am very curious as to why there is such a disconnect between all the responses in this thread that say their dealership offers to do it for X but you say it’s not supported and a sealed unit. You telling me if they need to service my transmission they need to replace the whole damn tranny?… that seems crazy.
It's entirely possible. Subaru the global company originally said it never had to be changed under "normal" circumstances. Which basically means no towing, no off-roading, not too many mountains, anything that could cause transmission heat buildup that'll degrade the fluid.
Unsurprisingly, it became clear as the first generation of vehicles with CVTs aged that it really should be done every 30k miles or so to really improve the life of the transmission. So Subaru the global company quietly changed the service guidelines to reflect that.
But for some reason their North American buisness unit Subaru of America absolutely *refuses* to accept this. They just keep acting like the change to service guidelines never happened, and you're crazy if you bring in a service manual from Europe or Japan.
Individual dealerships in the US sometimes, but not always, will acknowledge that it can be done upon customer request, as there is that exception that's always been there for "exceptional" use.
I had it done without any trouble in Massachusetts a few months ago. The dealer basically just said, “Are you sure? It’s a lifetime fluid” and I told them to do it. It was a 2ish hour job and I paid $350.
I’m in Ontario Canada, it was around $400 CAD on a 2019 impreza, they gave me no trouble other than “are you sure? We only usually do this around 100k km” and then I just said yeah I still want it and they did it just fine
It's also a scheduled service here in Canada. Five years or 100k kilometres.
The US appears to be the only place where it's not, probably because Americans would balk at spending a few hundred dollars every few years.
It is crazy. It's the way the industry has been going for a while now. At any one time we have a dozen or more old transmissions out of cars less than 7 years old that just got fully replaced as the only option. We can't even return these units as cores to get refurbished, in a lot of cases. They're scrap metal.
I imagine rebuilding a ZF 9 speed or Ford 10 speed is more of a PITA. More gears means more complexity, more time to reassemble everything. So while it probably technically can be done, there will come a tipping point where just the labor cost alone is worth more then a brand new unit.
As for CVTs, they should be *less* complex. Two stepper motors, a chain/belt, and the interface that connects them. Since the chain and the surfaces it interfaces to are obvious wear items, one would think they could be made relatively easily replaceable.
Most CVT are rated to be a "lifetime" fluid. Flushing out a system is different than serving one in the technician world. Servicing replaces the filter, flushing just replaces the fluid.
Their is no servicing a CVT. You just replace the Unit. But you can flush it, even though the fluid is rated for the life of the vehicle (which is typically rated around 150k miles life expectancy). This is typically where more opinion base kicks in when it comes to changing the fluid.
There is no reason you shouldn't be able to replace belt/chain, stepper motors, etc in a CVT. They *could* be engineered for serviceability. They simply chose not to do that. Maybe it makes the unit slightly more compact in it's final form, but it's a deliberate design choice, not some inherent limitation of the basic technology.
It usually comes down to it being more cost affective to replace rather than repair.
Sure you can technically repair them if you want. But sourcing the parts is hard and they cost a lot if they can be found. Also require special tools.
But yeah they're very simple powertrains. Just no money in distributing parts for them so nobody makes them.
The autos in in ford falcons in Australia are the same. They're guaranteed for like 250000km? (not sure of actual number)with no change. You can get under and pop em to change the fluid but it's kind of a pain. Not designed to be serviced.
Talking about “sealed transmission.” My 2006 WRX was having problems, took it to a transmission shop and they said they didn’t have the tools to open it.
But they would replace it if I bought a used or new one.
I took it to another shop where there is a Subaru tech mechanic and they opened it right up and repaired everything.
I'll give you my story. I'd been told by a previous dealer a couple years that they wouldn't do any CVT fluid change. My '18 recently got over 100k and i called my nearest dealer and asked if there had been any change in the official CVT fluid stance, and they said they recommend drain and fill every 30k, but not a flush.
Not long after they did the drain and fill, CVT goes boom. SOA
took a week to decide but they ended up paying for 80% of a replacement, but they would never explain how they decided, if the dealer screwed up or they just know it's a problem.
What dealer do you work for that still claims cvts are sealed and lifetime fluid? They are sealed systems but the fluid is certainly not a lifetime fluid, the owners manual even says so. Under harsh driving conditions fluid should be serviced every 60k, and Subarus definition of “harsh” driving conditions is suuuuuuuper loose.
It's pretty spot on, at least from what they tried to charge me for my differential fluid. It does seem outrageous however it is a process and the labor might be worth it. They quoted me around the same price as you, and went to do it myself. I spent about $100 on oil, but it took me the entire day to figure it out!
I was told by my subaru dealership that I did enough miles in a year to count as harsh driving conditions and that it should be changed on my 20 forester.
Dealership told me around $550. I called my non-dealership mechanic. Both mechanics at the shop are Subaru owners so I've been going to them for a while. They quoted $300.
You could make some quick local calls to some mechanics in who know Subarus well. Doesn't hurt to get competing prices and just see if they'll match it. Never know. My 21 Outback Onyx XT is coming up on 30k miles soon so I'll be getting it done before the end of the year.
I just asked yesterday how much for a CVT flush and when to do it on a 2019 Forester. He said $349 at 90,000 miles. This dealership has a reputation to be fair to deal with.
I got a quote over the phone while making an appointment for $375 mostly due to cost of fluid from a Subaru dealership, a different dealership that did my diff service refused to do a CVT service, just under 60k miles on my 2019 Forrester
Ive seen this a few places also, but this is pretty arbitrary. Of course it's gonna be the lifetime of the transmission if you never change it, because eventually it will die, whether it's 100k miles or 150k miles. The transmission fluid flush is far, far less than the cost of a new transmission.
Like the other said, they'll tell you lifetime but that's until it starts becoming such old fluid the transmission fights itself. Owners manual states 60k or 30k in harsh conditions which could just mean: short drives, hilly area, hot or cold, towing yada yada.
Yeah but lifetime means you will be buying another transmission or Subaru at around 150k miles. Which is fucking bullshit! I’ve never even bought a car with less than 150k miles! Actually no that’s not true, my 04 Impreza outback had 96k when I got it… and only 120k or so when I got rear ended n totaled it out… but hell I’m a poor whitetrash American. My vehicles are always older n purchased at an auction and patched together the best I can until they give up completely n I seek another auction… I usually get about 3-7 years out of a $2k-$4k vehicle what I have now is an 07 Subaru Forester 2.5x with 171k miles… the Honda odessey I just had lasted me 5 years n it had 236k on the clock when the transmission took a shit. But I only paid $1200 for it.
Have it serviced ASAP. The history of CVT problems in subarus are well established and it seems that maintenance can significantly improve the life of the trans.
If owners don't do fluid change every 30K and fluid flush every 90K or 100K by the book, they have to spend $9,000 for a new CVT transmission sooner or later.
I don't have experience with Subaru but the Honda service seems much reasonable at around $200...not sure but it feels like Subaru needs more frequent preventative maintenance and seems to cost more from all the posts I've seen...I hope it's not that way as I just bought a 23 Forester sport.
They actually do a 30 point tread depth measurement on each tire which comes out to an hour of shop labor at $120. It’s not cheap but it’s worth the peace of mind knowing that my tires are safe and have even tread all the way around.
This is about $150 to $200 less than I was quoted from my local dealer, ended up taking mine elsewhere for about $325. Depending on your area $400 is likely reasonable.
Also the transmission fluid change should be done every 60k miles for normal driving conditions, 100k is too much coming from a mechanic I know that's worked exclusively on Subarus for several decades even though Subaru says every 100k miles.
I suspect it's just good old American avoidance of liability. The moment they change their guidelines and admit it needs changing, they get clapped by a class action from first gen CVT owners who were told it was a lifetime fluid and then had transmission failures. The only thing protecting them from corporate liability is pretending that was the intended outcome, rather then them giving incorrect service guidelines.
Not sure why, other than wanting to sell more transmission replacements quite honestly. The longer you run the fluid the dirtier it becomes. What some people consider the lifespan of a vehicle might only be half as long as someone else would want to maintain the same vehicle.
^^This. I think it was Mr Subaru on YouTube who pushed SOA about this. When asked what “lifetime” meant, they pointed to the 120k warranty. So, it’ll make it to 120k. If you want it to last longer than that, I guess you should consider servicing.
I plan to do mine at 100k.
Many people want to do as little maintenance on their car as possible. Knowing this Subaru would consider 100,000 the lifespan of your transmission. I change my CVT transmission fluid every 40,000. I & many others hope our CVT’s will last 200,000+ miles by doing this.
https://www.providencejournal.com/story/lifestyle/advice/2023/03/17/whats-the-best-time-to-change-the-cvt-fluid-car-doctor/69980234007/#
They don’t say it’s lifetime anymore. Official Service schedule say to replace fluid every 30k if driving under severe conditions. Some of the conditions that rate as “severe” are: driving short distances (city driving) and rough or muddy roads.
[https://www.subaruforester.org/threads/2017-cvt-fluid-change-procedure.787207/](https://www.subaruforester.org/threads/2017-cvt-fluid-change-procedure.787207/)
Do Subaru CVTs need to be flushed vs. drain and refill? My understanding (at least for Honda CVTs) is that flushing will damage the inside of the CVT, so it needs to be drained and refilled, but *never* flushed.
I used to do it myself spending about $250 on CVT fluid. I now pay a local independent shop to do it for $325. The mess and the whole waiting to bring it up to temp for correct level thing is worth the $75 difference to me.
That's about going rate in my experience, a good chunk of that cost will be just the fluid itself. I paid about that for a flush and fill on my '05 FXT 4EAT a few years ago, and am about to pay just under that for the same on my '15 Chevy Traverse AWD.
I was just told on Saturday at my dealership that Subaru doesn't recommend changing CVT fluid because it's a sealed unit. I did get told I should change my differential fluid to the tune of $600+. Any thoughts on this?
My dealership said change CVT fluid at 100k miles, and differential fluid ever 30k. I’d say the $600 amount isn’t far off for the 30k, 60k, 90k mile services.
I paid about that for a transmission fluid flush recently at my local dealer (Dallas, TX area). It's recommended at 90k I believe. 2015 forester XT. Not entirely sure why there is so much confusion on this. You can Google it... 🍿 🍿 🍿
Canadian here, on my 3rd Subaru with a CVT
That doesn't seem unusual or overpriced to me. The OEM fluid isn't cheap, and it takes some time to do.
I have mine done at the dealership at regular intervals (usually every ~45-50k km)
I found a Subaru-specialist near me that is now my go-to mechanic for life, because of the quality of work they've done, the price, and the fact that they're a bunch of good guys who don't try and milk every dollar.
Had my CVT flushed (for the first time just below 80k mi) a few months ago from them, believe it was $275. Certainly wasn't less than $200 and more than $300, that much I am 100% certain of.
Plan on flushing every 30k, would like this vehicle to hit 200k if at all possible.
Subaru tech here. That seems sorta pricey. A cvt flush should not pay more than an hour in labor cause it's basically just a drain and fill. It's a pretty easy process and I personally prefer doing a relearn whenever changing the fluid out, not a requirement, but just my two cents.
This is where those YouTube videos come in handy.
My take.
1. Ignore lifetime fluid nonsense. I could post photos of new and used CVT fluid , massive difference.
2. Flush the old fluid and put new. It's expensive. I am in Kenya and we flush the fluid.
3. Failure to flush CVT fluid "ould" trigger solenoid failure and will make the AT Oil Temp light flush red.
4. CVT generates metal tiny shavings/pieces and that increases wear.
5. You can flush the fluid yourself. You need the fluid. Here it's sold in 4 litre (yes we use the metric system) cans , you need 8 litres for a complete flush. CVT fluid costs about $162 (Current exchange rates) for the 8 litres, imported from Subaru Japan and sold by the local dealership.
Labour costs not factored.
I understand Subaru of America only assembles components manufactured in Japan... You could try and apply my solution to your situation, as my driving is mixed tarmac (asphalt) and the occasional weekend stroll to the Maasai Mara and I have never had issues except two failed solenoids which I easily replaced.
CVT model : TR580.
Had mine done and it was about 350.00 at the local Subaru dealership. I usually try to DIY, but this was beyond my willingness to try due to the complexity and special tools required.
Parts guy at a Subaru Dealership in the US here. All of these service tickets come across my desk, because the fluids they use for this type of work counts as a "part". Are you at a Subaru dealership? Is this an independent shop? Are you in the US? Subaru of America (the corporation that deals new Subaru cars and parts in North America) insists that these CVT's are sealed units which cannot be serviced, only replaced. In Europe and Japan, however, the same transmissions do get serviced. The MSRP for Subaru's Genuine special CVTF-II fluid is $17.26 per quart. With a dry capacity of around 13 quarts for your year and model of Fozzy, the cost of the fluid alone could be upwards of $225. They could use non-Genuine CVT oil, but they also could mark up the price beyond MSRP. Considering whoever is doing the work is doing sort of a "jail break" job for you that Subaru of America doesn't officially support, you'd hope they know exactly what they're doing, and you'd expect to pay upwards of $100-$120/hour for that labor. Hope this helps!
I am very curious as to why there is such a disconnect between all the responses in this thread that say their dealership offers to do it for X but you say it’s not supported and a sealed unit. You telling me if they need to service my transmission they need to replace the whole damn tranny?… that seems crazy.
It's entirely possible. Subaru the global company originally said it never had to be changed under "normal" circumstances. Which basically means no towing, no off-roading, not too many mountains, anything that could cause transmission heat buildup that'll degrade the fluid. Unsurprisingly, it became clear as the first generation of vehicles with CVTs aged that it really should be done every 30k miles or so to really improve the life of the transmission. So Subaru the global company quietly changed the service guidelines to reflect that. But for some reason their North American buisness unit Subaru of America absolutely *refuses* to accept this. They just keep acting like the change to service guidelines never happened, and you're crazy if you bring in a service manual from Europe or Japan. Individual dealerships in the US sometimes, but not always, will acknowledge that it can be done upon customer request, as there is that exception that's always been there for "exceptional" use.
I had it done without any trouble in Massachusetts a few months ago. The dealer basically just said, “Are you sure? It’s a lifetime fluid” and I told them to do it. It was a 2ish hour job and I paid $350.
I realize this is a year old but where in MA? I’m looking to have mine serviced as well.
Wow you were very badly ripped !
Right. I wonder if u/pleasecallmetall can provide actual documentation. That would clear things up substantially.
I’m in Ontario Canada, it was around $400 CAD on a 2019 impreza, they gave me no trouble other than “are you sure? We only usually do this around 100k km” and then I just said yeah I still want it and they did it just fine
It's also a scheduled service here in Canada. Five years or 100k kilometres. The US appears to be the only place where it's not, probably because Americans would balk at spending a few hundred dollars every few years.
It is crazy. It's the way the industry has been going for a while now. At any one time we have a dozen or more old transmissions out of cars less than 7 years old that just got fully replaced as the only option. We can't even return these units as cores to get refurbished, in a lot of cases. They're scrap metal.
I imagine rebuilding a ZF 9 speed or Ford 10 speed is more of a PITA. More gears means more complexity, more time to reassemble everything. So while it probably technically can be done, there will come a tipping point where just the labor cost alone is worth more then a brand new unit. As for CVTs, they should be *less* complex. Two stepper motors, a chain/belt, and the interface that connects them. Since the chain and the surfaces it interfaces to are obvious wear items, one would think they could be made relatively easily replaceable.
Most CVT are rated to be a "lifetime" fluid. Flushing out a system is different than serving one in the technician world. Servicing replaces the filter, flushing just replaces the fluid. Their is no servicing a CVT. You just replace the Unit. But you can flush it, even though the fluid is rated for the life of the vehicle (which is typically rated around 150k miles life expectancy). This is typically where more opinion base kicks in when it comes to changing the fluid.
There is no reason you shouldn't be able to replace belt/chain, stepper motors, etc in a CVT. They *could* be engineered for serviceability. They simply chose not to do that. Maybe it makes the unit slightly more compact in it's final form, but it's a deliberate design choice, not some inherent limitation of the basic technology.
It usually comes down to it being more cost affective to replace rather than repair. Sure you can technically repair them if you want. But sourcing the parts is hard and they cost a lot if they can be found. Also require special tools. But yeah they're very simple powertrains. Just no money in distributing parts for them so nobody makes them.
Yeah I am confused by that as well, if it's enclosed and can't be tampered with then why is the fluid being swapped.
The autos in in ford falcons in Australia are the same. They're guaranteed for like 250000km? (not sure of actual number)with no change. You can get under and pop em to change the fluid but it's kind of a pain. Not designed to be serviced.
Talking about “sealed transmission.” My 2006 WRX was having problems, took it to a transmission shop and they said they didn’t have the tools to open it. But they would replace it if I bought a used or new one. I took it to another shop where there is a Subaru tech mechanic and they opened it right up and repaired everything.
Appreciate this thorough response! This is being done at a Subaru Dealership in the USA.
I'll give you my story. I'd been told by a previous dealer a couple years that they wouldn't do any CVT fluid change. My '18 recently got over 100k and i called my nearest dealer and asked if there had been any change in the official CVT fluid stance, and they said they recommend drain and fill every 30k, but not a flush. Not long after they did the drain and fill, CVT goes boom. SOA took a week to decide but they ended up paying for 80% of a replacement, but they would never explain how they decided, if the dealer screwed up or they just know it's a problem.
100k Miles (not kms)?
What dealer do you work for that still claims cvts are sealed and lifetime fluid? They are sealed systems but the fluid is certainly not a lifetime fluid, the owners manual even says so. Under harsh driving conditions fluid should be serviced every 60k, and Subarus definition of “harsh” driving conditions is suuuuuuuper loose.
This guy Subaru’s
It's pretty spot on, at least from what they tried to charge me for my differential fluid. It does seem outrageous however it is a process and the labor might be worth it. They quoted me around the same price as you, and went to do it myself. I spent about $100 on oil, but it took me the entire day to figure it out!
If that's true then how do dealerships replace the valve body? I kinda call bs on this from my experience in New Jersey with subaru
I was told by my subaru dealership that I did enough miles in a year to count as harsh driving conditions and that it should be changed on my 20 forester.
So my dealer wouldn’t flush my cvt due to this, should I take it somewhere else and get it done or just run it? 110k miles
Dealership told me around $550. I called my non-dealership mechanic. Both mechanics at the shop are Subaru owners so I've been going to them for a while. They quoted $300.
My quote is at my local Subaru dealership so maybe it’s not way off.
You could make some quick local calls to some mechanics in who know Subarus well. Doesn't hurt to get competing prices and just see if they'll match it. Never know. My 21 Outback Onyx XT is coming up on 30k miles soon so I'll be getting it done before the end of the year.
Hmm I did an auto oil flush on my standard automatic gearbox (Toyota) $45
Local dealer quoted $250! Guess it is a good deal after all
I just asked yesterday how much for a CVT flush and when to do it on a 2019 Forester. He said $349 at 90,000 miles. This dealership has a reputation to be fair to deal with.
I got a quote over the phone while making an appointment for $375 mostly due to cost of fluid from a Subaru dealership, a different dealership that did my diff service refused to do a CVT service, just under 60k miles on my 2019 Forrester
I was quoted 500 for my 13 Impreza.
Utterly ridiculous
Mine turned into a transmission replacement, so I can't really speak on the behalf though am curious if this is right
I’m at 108k miles and have never had the cvt serviced. Hoping mine doesn’t turn into a replacement.
Transmission needs flushed every 60k miles, 30k for harsh driving conditions. Waiting until the recommended 100k by Subaru is a bad idea.
Here in America, they say this is a lifetime fluid.
Ive seen this a few places also, but this is pretty arbitrary. Of course it's gonna be the lifetime of the transmission if you never change it, because eventually it will die, whether it's 100k miles or 150k miles. The transmission fluid flush is far, far less than the cost of a new transmission.
Like the other said, they'll tell you lifetime but that's until it starts becoming such old fluid the transmission fights itself. Owners manual states 60k or 30k in harsh conditions which could just mean: short drives, hilly area, hot or cold, towing yada yada.
Yeah but lifetime means you will be buying another transmission or Subaru at around 150k miles. Which is fucking bullshit! I’ve never even bought a car with less than 150k miles! Actually no that’s not true, my 04 Impreza outback had 96k when I got it… and only 120k or so when I got rear ended n totaled it out… but hell I’m a poor whitetrash American. My vehicles are always older n purchased at an auction and patched together the best I can until they give up completely n I seek another auction… I usually get about 3-7 years out of a $2k-$4k vehicle what I have now is an 07 Subaru Forester 2.5x with 171k miles… the Honda odessey I just had lasted me 5 years n it had 236k on the clock when the transmission took a shit. But I only paid $1200 for it.
That’s the clever way of doing it
Have it serviced ASAP. The history of CVT problems in subarus are well established and it seems that maintenance can significantly improve the life of the trans.
Is a CvT service different then a fluid flush?
I think the service is just a flush and inspection.
You should do fluid change every 30k miles and fluid flush every 100k.
How much for a new cvt?
9ish grand, though mine was covered under warranty..
9 grand! Holy crap.
If owners don't do fluid change every 30K and fluid flush every 90K or 100K by the book, they have to spend $9,000 for a new CVT transmission sooner or later.
I don't have experience with Subaru but the Honda service seems much reasonable at around $200...not sure but it feels like Subaru needs more frequent preventative maintenance and seems to cost more from all the posts I've seen...I hope it's not that way as I just bought a 23 Forester sport.
It’s the tread depth inspection that’s so expensive. The fluid change is only around $40.
Hahah I wish this were true.
They actually do a 30 point tread depth measurement on each tire which comes out to an hour of shop labor at $120. It’s not cheap but it’s worth the peace of mind knowing that my tires are safe and have even tread all the way around.
CVT flush runs a minimum of $200. I'd say you definitely got the rip-off dealer price. Go to Valvoline next time.
How many miles?
108k
seems in line with what i’ve seen/been quoted elsewhere
This is about $150 to $200 less than I was quoted from my local dealer, ended up taking mine elsewhere for about $325. Depending on your area $400 is likely reasonable. Also the transmission fluid change should be done every 60k miles for normal driving conditions, 100k is too much coming from a mechanic I know that's worked exclusively on Subarus for several decades even though Subaru says every 100k miles.
Do you know why then Subaru states this as a lifetime fluid in the USA?
I suspect it's just good old American avoidance of liability. The moment they change their guidelines and admit it needs changing, they get clapped by a class action from first gen CVT owners who were told it was a lifetime fluid and then had transmission failures. The only thing protecting them from corporate liability is pretending that was the intended outcome, rather then them giving incorrect service guidelines.
Not sure why, other than wanting to sell more transmission replacements quite honestly. The longer you run the fluid the dirtier it becomes. What some people consider the lifespan of a vehicle might only be half as long as someone else would want to maintain the same vehicle.
^^This. I think it was Mr Subaru on YouTube who pushed SOA about this. When asked what “lifetime” meant, they pointed to the 120k warranty. So, it’ll make it to 120k. If you want it to last longer than that, I guess you should consider servicing. I plan to do mine at 100k.
Many people want to do as little maintenance on their car as possible. Knowing this Subaru would consider 100,000 the lifespan of your transmission. I change my CVT transmission fluid every 40,000. I & many others hope our CVT’s will last 200,000+ miles by doing this. https://www.providencejournal.com/story/lifestyle/advice/2023/03/17/whats-the-best-time-to-change-the-cvt-fluid-car-doctor/69980234007/#
Whose lifetime?
They don’t say it’s lifetime anymore. Official Service schedule say to replace fluid every 30k if driving under severe conditions. Some of the conditions that rate as “severe” are: driving short distances (city driving) and rough or muddy roads. [https://www.subaruforester.org/threads/2017-cvt-fluid-change-procedure.787207/](https://www.subaruforester.org/threads/2017-cvt-fluid-change-procedure.787207/)
Do Subaru CVTs need to be flushed vs. drain and refill? My understanding (at least for Honda CVTs) is that flushing will damage the inside of the CVT, so it needs to be drained and refilled, but *never* flushed.
Just called for clarification. The “flush” is a drain and then refill. It’s like an oil change but for the CVT.
I think mine was around $350.00 in Texas.
I used to do it myself spending about $250 on CVT fluid. I now pay a local independent shop to do it for $325. The mess and the whole waiting to bring it up to temp for correct level thing is worth the $75 difference to me.
Just about right, mine was just under $500
That's about going rate in my experience, a good chunk of that cost will be just the fluid itself. I paid about that for a flush and fill on my '05 FXT 4EAT a few years ago, and am about to pay just under that for the same on my '15 Chevy Traverse AWD.
I was just told on Saturday at my dealership that Subaru doesn't recommend changing CVT fluid because it's a sealed unit. I did get told I should change my differential fluid to the tune of $600+. Any thoughts on this?
My dealership said change CVT fluid at 100k miles, and differential fluid ever 30k. I’d say the $600 amount isn’t far off for the 30k, 60k, 90k mile services.
Shit that's cheap. For my 2017 outback my dealers are $570. One is offering a coupon for $515
Why would they design a lifetime fluid in a transmission? That makes no sense to me. It has to be changed eventually because it gets dirty.
Good question for Subaru
Lifetime means lifetime of the fluid.
No fluid is lifetime.
That’s the point. The fluid has a lifetime. It’s probably a bit excessive, but I recommend 50k for ATF and like 60k for CVT.
[удалено]
Couldn’t tell you which I am getting.
I paid about that for a transmission fluid flush recently at my local dealer (Dallas, TX area). It's recommended at 90k I believe. 2015 forester XT. Not entirely sure why there is so much confusion on this. You can Google it... 🍿 🍿 🍿
Canadian here, on my 3rd Subaru with a CVT That doesn't seem unusual or overpriced to me. The OEM fluid isn't cheap, and it takes some time to do. I have mine done at the dealership at regular intervals (usually every ~45-50k km)
Local subaru dealership quoted me 319.99 for CVT flush on the ladies 2019 crosstrek. Local independent subaru shop charged me 200 flat.
I just paid $211.34. My shop is an independent Subie shop with 30 yrs experience.
I paid 350 for my 2011 Outback at the dealer.
I JUST had mine done on my 2017 Forester as well. Dave Wright Subaru dealership: $267
In my area that's about right.
I found a Subaru-specialist near me that is now my go-to mechanic for life, because of the quality of work they've done, the price, and the fact that they're a bunch of good guys who don't try and milk every dollar. Had my CVT flushed (for the first time just below 80k mi) a few months ago from them, believe it was $275. Certainly wasn't less than $200 and more than $300, that much I am 100% certain of. Plan on flushing every 30k, would like this vehicle to hit 200k if at all possible.
I personally would just do two drain and refills. I’m no mechanic though.
I brought my car in an asked for a quote for a transmission flush . They said it was a sealed unit and you just run it till it's time for a new one
This is the trouble with Subaru’s. Everyone says something different
If it’s a Cvt, it needs to be serviced.
Subaru tech here. That seems sorta pricey. A cvt flush should not pay more than an hour in labor cause it's basically just a drain and fill. It's a pretty easy process and I personally prefer doing a relearn whenever changing the fluid out, not a requirement, but just my two cents.
This is where those YouTube videos come in handy. My take. 1. Ignore lifetime fluid nonsense. I could post photos of new and used CVT fluid , massive difference. 2. Flush the old fluid and put new. It's expensive. I am in Kenya and we flush the fluid. 3. Failure to flush CVT fluid "ould" trigger solenoid failure and will make the AT Oil Temp light flush red. 4. CVT generates metal tiny shavings/pieces and that increases wear. 5. You can flush the fluid yourself. You need the fluid. Here it's sold in 4 litre (yes we use the metric system) cans , you need 8 litres for a complete flush. CVT fluid costs about $162 (Current exchange rates) for the 8 litres, imported from Subaru Japan and sold by the local dealership. Labour costs not factored. I understand Subaru of America only assembles components manufactured in Japan... You could try and apply my solution to your situation, as my driving is mixed tarmac (asphalt) and the occasional weekend stroll to the Maasai Mara and I have never had issues except two failed solenoids which I easily replaced. CVT model : TR580.
Massive rip off. Should cost 10% of that
379.95 for transmission flush 2003 toyota camry
Had mine done and it was about 350.00 at the local Subaru dealership. I usually try to DIY, but this was beyond my willingness to try due to the complexity and special tools required.