Hi,

I have a 2005 Accord, automatic, I-4, with 31,000 miles. When I took it to the dealership for a brake problem, they recommend that I change the automatic transmission fluid ($80). I remember it should be done at 100K mile from the service manual. Should I change it now?

Also, is there a DIY for this?

Thanks!

 

This can go three ways, keep it serviced and it will keep you on the road but not sure if the dealer has to do it for you at those prices. Let it go to 100K and old school guys dont like to flush high milage trannies, can cause more harm that good, those specs were a sales gimmick for lower maintenance costs during the life of your car. OR dont flush it at all, Honda trannies are not servicable, meaning there is no pan to drop to change the filter and some magazines have recommended not to service Honda transmissions ever. Gunk builds up in trannies and tends to stay lodged in certain places, once you flush them with new fluid, that new fluid tends to clean this gunk and the only place for it to go is this one small internal, unservicable screen filter then you are looking for trouble.

Lets see what others have to say and go with the majority, flame suit on guys, its not my idea, thats why I gave all the options here. Anyone install an inline filter on their ride.

 

if you drive in a lot of city traffic, change it. those service intervils are for non severe driving conditions.

 

I'm no expert, but I've been studying automatic transmissions a lot in an attempt to gain knowledge about them and become efficient in them.

It seems as though the biggest reason (even bigger than beating the crap out of your transmission) of transmission catastrophic failure (the transmission taking a crap) is people not changing the transmission fluid when they're supposed to.

So if I had an auto (I've never owned an auto, 7 manuals, no autos) I'd be changing that transmission fluid every 3 oil changes or something like that. It's not like it's hard or anything, not like the oil/transmission fluid is expensive. Seeing as it's a huge factor in the life of a transmission, I'd be doing that crap almost as frequent as I change the oil. I'd say it's never too early.

Like I said, I'm no expert though. Good luck either way.

 

I have an 03 V6 automatic, and I change out 3 quarts of fluid every 15,000 miles. Hopefully this will be enough to prevent ever needing to have a flush done. Since I do it myself, it doesn't cost very much (under $30). It's easy to do, just drain and fill (3 quarts), and there is no filter to change. Always use Honda fluid, and no additives.

 

Just curious but do you HAVE TO use Honda fluid? Or is it just recomended by the manufacturer?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by honda94accord &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Just curious but do you HAVE TO use Honda fluid? Or is it just recomended by the manufacturer?</TD></TR></TABLE>

If you want your tranny to last and shift smoothly, you should only use Honda ATF.

 

I believe that for that year model the reccomended is every 60k, if you drive under extreme condition I would do it @ 30 or 45k, your car doesn't need a flush, a drain and refill will do just fine, and stick to honda tranny fluid.

 

Are there any synthetic transmission fluids that are good for Honda automatics?

Thanks

 

I just used other ATF, pennzoil and other brand ATF. They suck. Stick with Honda's ATF. Less shift shock, faster gear changes, less to no lag.

 

1) There is nothing SPECIAL about Honda ATF - they just rebadge and markup a good quality ATF. It may not even be the same brand year to year - depends on the bidding process.

2) Yes, their are plenty of synthetics to use in the Honda. Redline, Mobil 1 and Amsoil to name a few. I tow with my '95 Ody (2000 lbs for the past 4 years, 5 times per year), have used Amsoil synthetic since 70k miles. It now has 230k miles with ZERO transmission issues.

3) Yes, at 30k miles, it would be a good time to change to SYNTHETIC. Then do the drain and fill every 30k miles.

4) If you wish to MAXIMIZE the life of your tranny, HEAT is the #1 problem - so add a small cooler AFTER the loop through the bottom of the radiator. But, Synthetic ATF effectively reduces tranny temps by 30 deg F by itself.

 

Amsoil FTW