Hello! I have a Toyota Camry 1999 clocking an odemeter of 240k estimate miles. The previous owners maintained it from my observations as i recently did a transmission drain and fill. The fluid was dark redish, no bad oders. Smelt like the new fluid going in. But i did observe some mechanical traits the car always had since i got it and i just want to hear some thoughts on its transmission health. It shifts just fine. However there is a noticable feeling of it shifting from first to second. It shifts harder when cold in winter time. The other thing i noticed was that when i remove my foot off the accelerator it feels like the car pulls back/looses power. Not by a lot but enough to notice. Imagine the sensation your body feels when applying the breaks but very subtle. Its hard to explain. Lastly when moving from park to reverse there is a noticable bump of the shift from P to R that's not really present with other gears. Let me know your thoughts. Thanks!
In the absence of obvious major problems only a transmission expert using a fancy scan tool for analysis can evaluate the actual health of your transmission. It doesn't sound too bad for a 25-year-old car but you have to realize that despite those cars having the reputation of being pretty bulletproof that was a quarter century ago. Some wear is to be expected at this late date and even if the car cratered on you tomorrow it would have delivered long, reliable service.
One thing you might want to check if you're experiencing minor issues would be adjustment of the TV cable (sometimes called the kickdown cable) if your car has one. Many older electronically-controlled transmissions still used a TV cable, especially if the car does not have an electronic throttle.