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I just thought I'd follow up with this.
I had 16 quarts of Mobil 1 synthetic ATF, and a little filler tube from the auto store that screws right on the oil bottle, which was great and a big help.
I got a 1" ID clear plastic hose, removed the upper radiator line, and attached the hose to the radiator using an appropriately sized hose clamp, and drained the oil in an old five gallon bucket. The oil coming out was black (I mean, completely black, not dark brown), and had a horribly strong burnt smell, which surprised me after only 45K miles. I started up the car, and the oil came pouring out. I did the 2QT flush/fill cycle, until the oil was gone. By that time the oil coming out was completely clear like new fluid. It took me about an hour start to finish.
I took the car out on the road, and was immediately impressed by a huge improvement in the smoothness of shifts when using the Geartronic Manual mode. It also made a difference when in Auto mode. I drive for a few minutes to get the transmission fluid hot, took it home, and checked it. It was slightly under the line marked "HOT" on the dipstick, so I added a quart. Before the change, the fluid came two inches above the "HOT" mark when the fluid was hot. It is now one inch above, which I think is fine.
So, don't believe the dealer when they tell you you don't need to flush the transmission! It is a very easy job, even for mechanical infidels like me, and even my dad who was hesitant to buy the fluid "because the dealer said it doesn't need to be done", he was shocked when I showed him the bucked of fluid. "Any fool can tell that oil is completely shot", he said.
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