alsdock

Recently had a code of A13. I took the car to a shop and had the oil changed & tires rotated. After discussing the tranny fluid changes (various methods) and fluids used (they use Service Pro Global Synthetic ATF recommended for all vehicles except CVT's), I had given the shop the go-ahead and they drained the tranny case, about 3 quarts, and filled it with the Service Pro. I was assured they serviced a couple of hundred Honda transmissions and had no issues.

The fluid that was drained was dark but didn't smell burnt. I'm now having 2nd thoughts and wondering if I screwed up. The car has been driven about about 30 miles so far. I'm tempted to drain it out (3 qts) and fill with Honda ATF-DW1 as recommended by practically everyone and printed everywhere.
(I'm feeling really stupid now)
My question is, should I drain and replace with Honda ATF now or wait awhile, to not upset accumulated buildup, maybe at next oil change?

The car has about 125k and was previously serviced when the maintenance minder indicated a "13". The transmission was serviced by the dealer at that time, approx 2 yrs ago.

ezone

If there is any question that the fluid was wrong ("recommended" doesn't mean a damn thing unless Honda says it), then buy a case (12qt) of Hondas ATF DW-1 fluid and do the recommended method of changing it multiple times as per the instructions (link below).


The trans holds something like 8 or 9 quarts total, but you can never drain out more than about 3 at a time. So you have to dilute and hope for the best. Buy a case of the correct fluid. No, it isn't cheap.....but neither is a whole transmission.


Never use a machine or chemicals to flush a Honda trans.

The official Honda information on trans flushing:
(Note the current fluid is DW-1 now, not Z-1.)
http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/p0420/A080100.pdf <---Linky click !!!

alsdock

Recently had a code of A13. I took the car to a shop and had the oil changed & tires rotated. After discussing the tranny fluid changes (various methods) and fluids used (they use Service Pro Global Synthetic ATF recommended for all vehicles except CVT's), I had given the shop the go-ahead and they drained the tranny case, about 3 quarts, and filled it with the Service Pro. I was assured they serviced a couple of hundred Honda transmissions and had no issues.

The fluid that was drained was dark but didn't smell burnt. I'm now having 2nd thoughts and wondering if I screwed up. The car has been driven about about 30 miles so far. I'm tempted to drain it out (3 qts) and fill with Honda ATF-DW1 as recommended by practically everyone and printed everywhere.
(I'm feeling really stupid now)
My question is, should I drain and replace with Honda ATF now or wait awhile, to not upset accumulated buildup, maybe at next oil change?

The car has about 125k and was previously serviced when the maintenance minder indicated a "13". The transmission was serviced by the dealer at that time, approx 2 yrs ago.

mikey1

honda OEM ATF should always be used and nothing else,

if you do another drain and fill that will still not get all of the other fluid out,

big mistake on your part,

i would recommend taking it to a honda dealer, they will drain and fill the system 3-4 times, which is the only approved method,

pay the price, and take this as a lesson learned

RIPSAW

I have had 4 Honda. Still own 2. Only problem I have had is an 1985 I put generic transmission fluid I had on hand from Advance auto. 10K after putting it in, it started to fail to up shift. When I drained it out, it appeared to be a little thick. If it where my car and I planned on keeping it, I would get 9 qts from the dealer. I would dump it, add 3 and run it apx 30 seconds going thru the gears. Dump it again and add three. Drive it 20-30 miles and dump it and top off with the 3. Of course just my 66 year old opinion. Drive it and just keep an eye on it. You will know if it shifts funny. I assure you they threw in the cheapest stuff they can find unless you actually saw the quarts. Bet they used bulk..

brags

when it comes to changing the trans fluid its not like changing your engine
oil. where you can pick and choose wich brand to use. Honda transmissions
are "brand specific." being You should Only use Honda OEM DW-1 fluid in it.

sdaidoji

iTrader: (1)

you did not do it yourself, nor is providing a useful DIY article, so you have been moved out of the DIY section

I also merged with your other thread so all info stays in one place.

Your third thread with same subject have been deleted by another member, since it was just a duplicate in another section.

don't go spreading your threads all over the forums, it will make things really confusing to you in the end.

alsdock

Thanks for your thoughts. Maybe that's the conservative solution and that's what I might end up doing. Unfortunately nobody is familiar with Service Pro (processed by Warren Oil) and nobody knows the properties of Honda's ATF-DW1 nor who makes it. For all we know, they could be identical formulas.

ezone

I don't have to be familiar with that particular company.
This misleading statement tells me all I need to know about the fluid in question:

they use Service Pro Global Synthetic ATF recommended for all vehicles except CVT's

That's crap.
Of course the company that made the fluid recommends it for everything. They profit from it.


There is no possible way any one fluid can meet all specifications of each auto and trans manufacturer.

This is an era of application specific engineered fluids.
One-size-fits-all is a thing of the past.





It's reeeeeeal simple: Buy the correct fluid from Honda. There is no question that it's absolutely correct for the application.

alsdock

Don't take this wrong fellas, but a few of you give me the impression that you believe Honda is the supreme vehicle and makes no mistakes. To those few, you drank the KoolAid and never even realized it.
First and foremost, Honda doesn't manufacture their ATF's. And most of you have no clue of what properties are contained within the ATF. Do you know what the difference was between the Z1 & the DW-1? Why the switch?
My intention of this post was not to belittle your intelligence, but to just get an open dialogue regarding ATF's other than Honda's factory filled equipment. Sometimes OEM products are not always the best (remember BASF?). I'm also saying Service Pro labeled oil is not necessarily bad either. After doing some research, I'm confident the product that was introduced into the transmission will not destruct it (as a few of you may think) as long as the vehicle is regularly maintained and not abused.

mikey1

oh boy here we go,

another mister know it all who came here asking for advice

CraigW

iTrader: (1)

Roll the dice then, and best of luck to you....

sdaidoji

iTrader: (1)

hunh...alsdock,


buy a manual trans civic.

then go and change the trans fluid with regular transmission fluid.

See if you can even get it in gear.

manual civic trans - uses regular engine oil weight, like 5-30. Regular trans fluid: 90. Are you sure you know about fluids and what honda decided to use? ...