How did your auto trans, differential, and transfer case oil look when you changed it for the first time? Also, how many miles were on your vehicle, what year is it, and what kind of driving do you do (towing, off roading, commuting)?

I am trying to get an idea of what the insides of my 2002 4runner with 54K miles might look like (I just purchased the vehicle and have no service records).

I know that my 1993 pickup looked pretty bad all the way around (manual trans, diff, transfer, brake) at 61K miles in 2003 (when I purchased the vehicle).

One more thing - I was reading up on all of your posts in the archives on auto tranny flushing, fluid choices, etc. Here's what I think I will do for my 4runner: Buy 12 quarts of amsoil universal ATF and drain and refill (4 quarts) each time I change out the motor oil (Mobil 1 every 5K miles). I believe this process will be ok as the fluid looks pretty good right now and all is operating correctly. Do you see any problems with the mixing of the current fluid (could be factory fill) and the synthetic amsoil? Maybe I should flush all 12 quarts through in 1,000 miles instead of 15,000? I realize that I am only diluting the 16 quart (or so) capacity with this method. Are you going to make me buy 24 quarts of amsoil = $200<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/barf.gif" alt="" /> Thanks!