my friend needs a transmission drain and fill.......is 10w-30 acceptable? what did the user manual call for in this particular year?

honda mtf not accessible for him, but regular motor oil is so if the manual says its okay, we'll use that.

 

yes but I would order some MTF... I think there was a stipulation for it tho so you will have to look in a helms

 

Bernardi Parts will mail Honda MTF to you.

 

pennzoil syncromesh

 

You could always buy GM's syncromesh transmission fluid. But, I always use like castrol's 10w40.

 

MTF if you can get it.


Regular 10w30 will be fine. You don't need synthetic...just the regular stuff

No need for synchromesh either...Nothing special or magical about it but, can be used.

 

All above fluids can be used, is always better to use hmtf though.

 

^^^^this^^^^^

 

I put regular 5w30 in mine and noticed a grind in 3rd and 4th, along with increased effort to get into all gears. I quickly ordered some Honda MTF. The grinding is gone, and every shift now feels smooth and effortless.

 

Just use Honda MTF.

 

syncromesh is better than honda mtf

 

many say to use GM syncomesh ..not Pennzoil syncromesh. i use 10w30 in mine.. but i think next time im going to use honda mtf.. honda's always love their own honda fluids and parts.

 

and what makes you say this?

 

30 weight oil. I have used pennzoil. And mtf both worked fine.

 

96-00 Civic service manual:



96-00 Civic owner's manual:

 

personal experience from working on alot of honda's and doing research...

 

I've tried 10w30 in S40 ('96 - '00) trannys. It didn't work well, no grinding, but it was notchy as hell, put in Honda MTF and it shifted fine. Older S20 trannys work fine with 10W30 though, and a lot of guys that build them everyday say it's better than Honda MTF.

 

can you point me in the right direction to find this research? Plenty of people have had plenty of experience with Honda's that may not find Syncromesh to be better than Honda MTF. If the OP wants to try both, then he can form his own opinions. Honda recommends MTF for a reason and I guarantee that they have had the most experience with Honda transmissions.

 

GM syncromesh says it's "friction modified", while Pennzoil syncromesh doesn't. I noticed no difference between the two. However, GM syncromesh is much more expensive.

From a mod on here:
Check out this thread:
https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-civic-del-sol-1992-2000-1/neo-mtf-vs-honda-mtf-vs-gm-synchromesh-fm-641177/

Various replies from other threads:

I'm not saying it's miracle tranny elixir, but from what I read (and experienced) it's pretty good. I tried Honda MTF and it shifted like before I changed the fluid. With Syncromesh, shifting was much smoother. But say what you like, I'm not forcing you to like Syncromesh.

 

I use 10w30 strictly . my buddy uses it in his far trans he's had for 20 years. and that's the best shifting trans I've ever ran. we have driven the car clutchless many time. he has daily drove it without a clutch pedal thing will shift without the clutch flawlessly

 

Honda mtf is the best you can use and their new stuff is a lot better than the old formula. I've used the old stuff before and wasn't too happy with itin my 97 hx and it caused notchy shifting then I switched to the pennzoil syncromesh and it was way better and the shifts were smooth. I have put the new mtf into my 99 and it's been great so far.

 

yea i should have mentioned that their new stuff is suppose to be alot better, i was refering to the old formula as not being as good as syncromesh... they developed a new formula when they had all those problems with the trannys in the new Si's and a few others.. i hear its alot better.. havent tried it yet..

 

Another vote for GM synchromesh here.

Pennzoil synchromesh is gear oil...Honda transmissions aren't designed to use gear oil.

 

^just to clarify, you need the FRICTION MODIFIED if you get GM syncromesh. I'll try the new honda mtf next week and update, I'm using pennzoil syncromesh with a slight 2nd gear grind above 6k rpm

 

friction modified only if your running an lsd. I've been running the pennzoil syncromesh for over 60k miles in my y5's tranny and I've had zero issues with it.

And pennzoil syncromesh is not gear oil it is the same thing as gm's regular syncromesh only you don't have to get bent over to grab your ankles by the dealer.