Auto box fluid change?

[Dobbs]

Hi folks,

I decided to do a part-change of the fluid in my auto box today and duly drained the sump of it's 3 liters - what came out did not look that good i.e. not cherry red, cloudy and smelt a bit smoky.

I've now refilled the box with 3 liters of nice new Honda fluid, but I've read in other postings that it's not a great idea to mix new and very old fluid...

Would it be best to either go to a local garage who could vacuum out the full 7 liters, or go to a local Honda dealer and get them to do the proper auto box service?

If it would be best to go to Honda, just how much would it cost as it seems like they would drain the box, run it though the gears to drain the rest, refill, repeat the draining process and do a final fill, all of which sounds a little expensive, knowing Honda prices

Many thanks for all advice,

Dobbs.

[Animal Mother]

Just do another 3 litres in 1000-3000 miles, and then another. It should be good enough.

[NafemanNathan]

I can't advise about the change itself, but can tell you not to even consider taking it to Honda :

[Vtecmec]

Apparently its not a good idea to draw the fluid out in the normal vacuum manner.

The prescribed way Honda do it is to swap 3-5 litres (whatever it needs to refill), run it through the gears for a minute swap more litres, and then do it once more. It'll result in a fluid bill alone of +£150.

http://tl.acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=857223

There is a riskier way of disconnecting one of the hoses and running it for about 15 seconds to pump all the fluid out. But it's .

[4thgenphil]

have a look at this

http://www.ludegeneration.co.uk/look-at ... it=%20auto

[Dobbs]

Hi Folks,

Thanks for the advice and the video links.

I'm going to go for the 3x drain n' fill option rather than disconnecting the pipes and letting it run dry, or having it vacuumed out or going direct to Honda (cannot afford that option).

I've got 2x 3 liters on order from Cox Motor parts as they seem to be the most affordable around for genuine Honda fluids.

I've done one change so I'll do another this weekend and the final one the following weekend. That should dilute the old fluid enough and give me confident that what's in the box is some good stuff.

Thanks once again for all the advice,

Dobbs.

[Dobbs]

Apparently its not a good idea to draw the fluid out in the normal vacuum manner.

The prescribed way Honda do it is to swap 3-5 litres (whatever it needs to refill), run it through the gears for a minute swap more litres, and then do it once more. It'll result in a fluid bill alone of +£150.

Cox motor parts http://www.coxmotorparts.co.uk currently do ATF fluid for a MK4 at £10.76 + vat, bringing the total cost to about £100. Expensive, yes, but worth it to keep the auto box in good working order (and certainly a LOT less than going direct to the beloved Honda workshops... )

[mercutio]

in an auto box i wouldnt skimp on the stuff thats swishing around in there, Use the honda stuff might cost more but its whats recomended.

[giblet]

Has anyone looked into any alternatives such as Amsoil? The Amsoil ATF fluid is the fluid of choice on the VR4 owners club, it was the stuff I used on both my Galants and seems to last longer than normal oem fluid. A little more expensive though. http://www.performanceoilsltd.co.uk/aut ... fluid.html

[giblet]

Dobbs, what size washer did you need to replace the old one when changing the fluid? Looking to do mine soon and would rather order everything at once. Cheers