It's well known in the auto mechanic business that an automatic tranny "not working right" is a bad candidate for a fluid change. Quite often, it's ONLY working because the fluid is bad and its crapped up -- the shifting symptoms are from sticky spool valves. Nice flush and clean fluid is definitely a crapshoot -- quite often the tranny fails very quickly when the varnish and scorched friction material washes off -- there is then NOTHING on the frictions and it won't move.

Standard frictions are high density paper, by the way -- this is why water in the tranny fluid means instant death, the paper "melts" pretty fast.

Best advice I've heard on automatics (refering mostly to GM turbo 350/400s) is to use semimetallic frictions instead of standard ones. Much longer life, impervious to water, much less damage from slip (they won't char), but do shift harder.

If the tranny works better, hey! Change the fluid every 30,000 miles like you are supposed to, and it may last forever (not really, the frictions eventually die).

When it does, though, it ain't gonna bet a quick set of clutch paks and seals repair, though -- usually by then there is serious mechanical wear too.

Peter

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1972 220D ?? miles
1988 300E 200,012
1987 300D Turbo killed 9/25/07, 275,000 miles
1985 Volvo 740 GLE Turobodiesel 218,000
1972 280 SE 4.5 165, 000 - It runs!