Honda Manual Transmission fluid

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Hi,
I was wondering whether the Honda Manual tranny fluid can be used in the engine? These were bought in 2002, and were going to be used in my 1990 civic.

Hank
 
There are lots of claims (and a VOA IIRC) that suggest Honda MTF is nothing but a 5w-30 with some EP additives thrown in for good measure.

As you are probably aware, Honda used to specify motor oil in their MT's until ZDDP started disappearing when the newer API specs came on the scene.

This tells me their MTF is probably similar, but how similar is not a test I'd want to try on my engine.
 
Originally Posted By: HankYee
Hi,
I was wondering whether the Honda Manual tranny fluid can be used in the engine? These were bought in 2002, and were going to be used in my 1990 civic.

"Were", or "are" going to be used in your Civic?

MTF will be just fine for your engine, but will eventually do lousy things for your cat. Might shorten its life by a few years. Maybe. Or maybe not. Your cat pre-dates OBD-II.

You may or may not experience some increase in oil-consumption.
 
Originally Posted By: 92saturnsl2
There are lots of claims (and a VOA IIRC) that suggest Honda MTF is nothing but a 5w-30 with some EP additives thrown in for good measure.

The EP additives are not there "for good measure", but are there as the basic reason for MTF in the first place.

When OBD-II regulations effectively mandated ZDDP out of engine oils, Honda had to come up with a replacement fluid, since they'd designed their transmissions around those additives in pre-OBD-II motor oil.
 
It was going to be used in the civic until it got totalled in an accident. I actually used some of the fluid to top off my 1994 honda accord engine with 185k miles. No problems yet.
 
Originally Posted By: HankYee
It was going to be used in the civic until it got totalled in an accident. I actually used some of the {MTF] fluid to top off my 1994 honda accord engine with 185k miles. No problems yet.

Proving, yet again, that you can run d*** near anything in a Honda engine!

However, Hank, as others have stated, what you're getting away with is not a good idea.

Nota bene: For those who may care, Honda owners manuals still state that "f Honda MTF is not available, you may use an SAE 10W-30 or 10-40 viscosity motor oil with the API Certification seal that says 'FOR GASOLINE ENGINES' {caps in original text) as a temporary replacement." The owners manuals go on to say: "However, motor oil does not contain the proper additives, and continued use can cause stiffer shifting. Replace as soon as convenient." Note there's no requirement to replace the stuff.

And, jfi, for those Honda cognescenti who are wondering what other MTF options may be out there, I can tell you from years of experimentation that either Honda Genuine MTF, part # 08798-9031, and Amsoil Synthetic Synchromesh Transmission Fluid or M1 5W-30 in a 50% mix works magnificently. Been running the stuff for years. The real benefits are realized in extremely cold weather when one discovers there's still no 2nd gear crunch.
 
You have 2 qts of it?
That would be plenty for the tranny, which calls for 2.1 qts in the Accords we have.
You could give it away or you could sell it on CL.
I'd give you a couple of bucks a quart for it if you were nearby, although I won't need any for awhile.
This stuff, while maybe not identical to the 2002 formulation, sells for ~$7.00/qt now.
 
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