Well, I've approached the 60K maintainence marker and I need to do some stuff (valve clearance, drain/refill coolant, oil change, etc.). My Owner's Manual only mentions "Inspect transmission fluid". From what I can tell, it never seems to mention when it needs to be replaced. Obviously, I should add fluid if it needs it and replace it if I see brown or it smells burnt. When should it be serviced?

I read the 30K Maintainence Article and that makes sense, but draining/refilling does not get all the fluid as some is left in the torque converter. Of course, the dealer wants to sell a "transmission flush" for $$$. While that sounds really neat <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif" alt="" /> , is that overkill? I see the logic to both flushing and draining/refilling. What are your thoughts?

I've done both. On a new vehicle with good fluid, I'd probably be inclined to just do a drain and refill. On higher mileage transmissions, or ones that show signs of bad fluid, I'll do a flush.

You can flush it yourself with a rubber hose. Just disconnect from the tranny cooler and attach a rubber hose. Direct it into a drain pan. Then start the vehicle and start adding fluid in the top while it gets pumped out below. Figure on a few gallons of ATF this way, so watch out for overflowing the drain pan.