Yes, this is common. I dont normally do it on many engines... BUT...it WILL NOT hurt anything....

Anytime we find a car that has been sitting(like those beautifull 60s era cars that have been sitting in a barn for 15 years), we drop the oil and filter, replace with one qt fo Dexron, adn the rest with a nice this oil..0-30, or 5-30, than a few ounces down the intake, rotate by hand, abot 3 revalutions, adn let it sit for a few days...

Come back, fire it off, let it get warm, and let it run for about 20-30 minutes... then drian the crankcase adn replace the oil, fileter, adn plugs....

Has worked so far....

Anyway, ATF has tons of detergents, adn friction additves(only work with certain materials IIRC), so, thats why some people recommend it... especially on a high mileage engine, to get the "sludge" and other crap out....

Chase