Projectsonic

i Purchased my honda a month ago and well , i dont know if i should just change the tranny oil, but is the color of tranny mith real or a fluke, my car is a 95 lx auto civic

HondaPartsHero

Usually the darker it is the dirtier it is. How many miles are on the car?

Former User

Just replace the ATF. Don't guess.

What does this^ mean?

strategy400

I recently flushed my transmission fluid on a '95 del sol with 4 speed auto.
10 quarts of fluid at the dealer will cost you between $80-90. Use genuine Honda fluid.
Support the front of the car on jack stands and firmly set the emergency brake.
Take the drain plug out of the trans and drain approx. 3 quarts. The magnetic drain plug will have black metal filings on it this is normal clutch plate wear. Clean it off with a paper towel. The draining fluid may look red and clean, don't let this fool you. There is likely brown and black sludgy fluid in the inards of that tranny. Replace plug and fill in approx. 3 quarts through the dipstick opening (a long narrow funnel will help here). There is a transmission fluid cooler inside the radiator which you will want to include in the flush process as part of this procedure. Unclamp and pop loose the driver side transmission oil cooler hose at the bottom of the radiator (be careful not to stress/crack the radiator pipe/fitting). You should buy some new hose clamps because the stock clamps suck. Attach a suitable piece of hose about 2 or 3 feet long to the radiator fitting (the hose and clamps can be purchased at your local autoparts place). Have 2-3 gallon milk jugs to catch the fluid that will be pumped out. Put the hose into one of the milk jugs and have an assistant start the motor until the jug is half full and have the assistant stop the motor. Some air might start coming out don't panic. Fill in 2 quarts. Repeat process and have assistant shift through all the gears (this will force clean fluid through all parts of the tranny). Do not lay in front of the car while the gears are being shifted through. Continue repeating process draining 2 quarts and filling 2 quarts until the fluid stops coming out brown/black and looks like cherry koolaid (about 8-9 quarts will be used keeping one for final fluid level adjustment). It may be foamy at this point, don't panic. When clean fluid comes out you are done, reattach and clamp the hose to the radiator. I ended up with 1.5 milk jugs of dirty fluid, not counting the 3 I initially drained. Let the car sit overnight to let the foam settle down. Check level and add fluid if necessary to bring it to the bottom of the crosshatch area on the dipstick. Start car and check for leaks. Drive car to operating temp shifting through all gears while driving. Recheck level and add fluid if necessary until the level is in the center of the crosshatch area. Do not overfill the transmission as damage may occur. The 2 most important things with an auto trans are fluid level and quality.

I did this procedure to my trans with 290,000 miles on it and so far there are no negative effects. My shift points are exactly as described in the helm manual. I brutally drive my car on a ~180 mile daily commute (mountain pass included).

The first milk jug came out black.

mikekh10a

iTrader: (2)

yeah just replace it. if you're not sure the last time it was replaced, it will save you the headache later on.

furious94ls

I did the 3x3 drain/fill/drive. Then a change one month after. Fluid is perfect color. Shifting is smooth and on point. Change it.

strategy400

Mine looked clean on a drain and refill, only a complete flush/replace revealed the murky crud in there.

redm3turbo

I did mine over the course of 3 months....
2.7 out, 3 in.
2.7 out, 3 in.
etc

with probably 1500 miles in between.

Projectsonic

well its a 95 civic lx 123000 miles automatic

mrspeedy69

It's probably never been done. Best bet is to just do it so you know it's been done. Anytime I buy a used vehicle I go through and do all normal maintenance to it because you can't be sure it's been done unless you do it yourself.

eurochoi

123k....perfect time to do a "Honda" flush if it hasn't been done.

Projectsonic

ok, ive also been told and read online that if u change the tranny that it could affect the tranny beacuse it used to the old fluid, and where can i get a flush at , that wont **** it up, u know what i mean

mrspeedy69

This is just personal preference but I don't ever use a flush machine on an auto trans. What I normally do is drain and fill the trans with new fluid. Go drive the car 50-100 miles and then drain and fill again. Go drive the car another 50 miles then drain and fill another time. That usually gets most of the old fluid out.

furious94ls

Read the above posts. Follow that and you will be fine.