sharpescalade

Thank you for your time.

Its come time to flush and fill my 1998 honda accord coupe 4 cylinder with Auto transmission.

I have read and READ and READ post after posts on many websites including this..which i consider the BEST honda resource. Also I checked my manual I bought....and read ALL the sections and nowhere does it say I have to use genuine honda ATF?

On 1/2 the posts I see that they say you have to 100% use ONLY HONDA GENUINE ATF fluid.....

The other 1/2 says any regular or upgraded[royal purple] ATF will do.....

I do NOT understand why using Honda Genuine AFT fluid would change anything... I mean ATF fluids should be similar RIGHT?

I mean... it just sounds WERID that HONDA fluid is SO much different...or rather you achive different results with Honda ATF.......??

HELP?? And PLEASE NO OPINIONS...facts and evidence are the best information...

TheMuffinMan

iTrader: (1)

you don't HAVE to use the Honda ATF, in fact up until recently I dont think they made it themselves.

In all honesty any TF is fine, when I change out mine I'll be using GM Synchromesh to help smooth things out

m1ndless

Dont you need a machine to flush your tranny?

BLKFLSH

Honda developed their own ATF, because the other (ordinary) ATF was causing harsh shifting. The other brands will work, just not as well. The owner's manual for older Hondas did not recommend Honda ATF, because it had not been developed yet.

BLKFLSH

3 changes, with short drives in between, is considered a flush.

JimBlake

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by TheMuffinMan &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">you don't HAVE to use the Honda ATF, in fact up until recently I dont think they made it themselves.

In all honesty any TF is fine, when I change out mine I'll be using GM Synchromesh to help smooth things out</TD></TR></TABLE>Sounds like you have a 5-speed, but the original post is about automatic...

fiveten

I would only recoment using genuine honda atf. Is it worth over $1000 to buy cheap non-honda fluid.....I think not. A good reman tranny will cost you well over that.

fiveten

TheMuffinMan

iTrader: (1)

This is true, I was mostly saying that I'm using the GM stuff to point out that you don't have to use OEM Honda fluid

Also a power flush is not recommended which is what those machines are used for, like said it's drain it, fill it, drain it, fill it, drain it, fill it and then you're done.

Patman

you guys recommend a "short drive" before the change for a good flush, is that around the block, 5 miles?, 10 miles?

hondatuningboi96

is the sycromesh stuff is really that good?? Because i heard the same thing too and i'm goin to try it soon!! The honda transmission fluid after i did my swap cause the third gear to grind. I guess because it was so thin i guess??

TheMuffinMan

iTrader: (1)

the honda TF is decent stuff, I've heard quite a few people loving it.

GM Synchromesh I've heard so many reviews of people loving it that I'll be putting in my car soon when I get my regular oil change.

And Patman, from what I've heard just a quick drive to go through the gears and then drain again - I'm not 100% on that but I want to say I've read it on here

Loco-B

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by m1ndless &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Dont you need a machine to flush your tranny? </TD></TR></TABLE>

no.....but a flush performed by a machine is said to be better than just a drain and refill.

and i work at a honda dealership.....and to state the obvious we only use honda genuine. but as a mechanic, it is highly suggested that you use honda genuine fluids throughout the car. i.e. oils, lubricants, tranny fluids, coolant, and so on. I can begin to tell you how many times i've had a customer come in and complain about transmission problems due to the fact that they had not used honda genuine tranny fluids. Especially if the car has been serviced only with those products for the life of the car. To change now might cause extra problems down the road. Its just like switching over to synthetic oil.......you don't just switch without breaking in the motor to synthetic oil by using semi-synthetics then fully synthetic

sharpescalade

OK ....Thank you for the replies...

Can anyone explain why different fluids would act differently in auto transmissions?

I mean 3 transmission fluids.....one HONDA and one ...lets say.. GM... and the other is a generic autozone fluid.... How can 3 automatic transmission fluid act differently???

Any Honda Techs? Any facts or evidence...i mean the "my honda shifts smoother" posts are good but can anyone explain whats going on in the transmission????

sharpescalade

UPDATE:

anyone explain whats going on in the transmission????

MEANING....why would different transmission fluids act so "differently" in the automatic transmission???

Loco-B

the gears in a transmission are in constant movement. All the gears are made of a certain type of metal.......whether it be steel, titanium, nickel, copper. Whatever the compound of material is, Honda engineers have designed their lubricants around these compounds. Specifically stated, that honda geuine products might actually have different additives to the fluid that help provide lubrication to the compenents that move . you also have to understand that because parts in the transmission are in constant velocity they tend to heat up. again based on the temperature that a certain transmission may produce, lubricants do break down just as you may loose oil over the course of travel.....therefore engineers have produced their lubricants to only breakdown at a certain temperature.

understand? like if you bought Autozone ATF it may only be designed to break down at say 140 degrees where as your honda genuine product may breakdown at 160, which might be what you need.



hopefully

pos_cd5

you dont HAVE to, but its highly recomended. i used valvoline ATF for awhile, it worked, but caused real harsh shifting. when i switched it back to genuine honda ATF it was a ngiht and day difference, my shifts immediately became much smoother, but there is still some harshness left, which i think is from using the valvoline for a year.

JimBlake

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by pos_cd5 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">... but there is still some harshness left, which i think is from using the valvoline for a year. </TD></TR></TABLE>When you switched back, did you drain & fill more than once? Only about 1/3 of the fluid drains, so you have to drain & fill 4 or more times before it's all gone.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LocOBanAnA &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">the gears in a transmission are in constant movement. All the gears are made of a certain type of metal...</TD></TR></TABLE>That's true for all gears in all transmissions. But automatics have clutches too. Different fluids have different amounts & different types of friction modifiers for the clutches. That would directly explain the harsh shifting with other ATF. OTOH, putting Honda ATF into a chevy auto tranny would probably have the opposite result.

pos_cd5

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JimBlake &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">When you switched back, did you drain & fill more than once? Only about 1/3 of the fluid drains, so you have to drain & fill 4 or more times before it's all gone.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

no, i didnt. i was planning too, but then never got around to it. the shifting improved so much that i assumed the harshness that was left couldnt be helped anyway. i guess i'll drain and refill again next time i change my oil and get back to you guys whether or not the harshness goes away.

Stealthman80

your asking how honda fluid is different? well thw stuff in the fluid is made specificaly for hondas by honda, while ony other stuff is generic

YeuEmMaiMai

honda atf is the ONLY stuff you should use in your honda. any other fluid will result in shift problems after a certain time. I know when I got my 94 accord, i changed the fluid back to honda fluid and the transmission started acting normal again especially in the winter time.

honda atf also flows better at lower temps than either Dextron or Mercon or Chrysler's fluid

roombuilder

Has any one used Amsoil ATF in their Accord?

YeuEmMaiMai

if mobil one recommends you use honda fluid, I am pretty sure they have their reasons. I would personally not use anything but honda atf in any honda automatic.

pos_cd5

hey YeuEmMaiMai, how do you manage to stay MIA but magically appear when there is a thread concerning automatic transmissions?

Charri

I would recommend using Honda ATF. My car had some junk in there then i flushed it out with Honda ATF and I was totally amazed at the shifting quality much firmer shifts and smoother by far. Youre comparing something universal like Royal to something specific like Honda ATF. I tried both already i would recommend Honda ATF its worth the extra 5-10 dollars.

Phenomenon420

I recently did a transmisson flush on my car and i did experince some problems with my car. i went to honda and talk to my friend that works there. He said that honda tranny fluid is slightly thinner then the other tranny fluid so i purchased 4 quarts of tranny fluid i think it was 20 bucks totally and did a drain. i did help but you do need to do 3 flushes totally to drain the old fluid and dalute the old tranny fluid in your torque converter