ATF drain and fill at 19K

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Transmission fluid does not get contaminated nearly as fast as engine oil, since it does not get exposed to fuel or combustion gases. Instead it slowly accumulates metal particles from gears and other material from the clutch packs. The fluid will also slowly break down from thermal oxidation and shear.

Replacing 30% does a lot, since that means there is now 30% fresh fluid that has not been broken down, and 30% of the contaminants suspended in the system have been removed.

The reason only part of the fluid comes out is that a lot remains trapped in the torque converter and the rest of the hydraulic system up inside the transmission. The only way to get the majority out is by diluting it with multiple drain and fills or flushing the transmission, whether by using the internal pump, or an external flushing machine. Flushing machines have a bad reputation for being too harsh or forcing contaminants into bad places and causing transmission problems.
 
Great info here. Would you suggest two more drains and fills within few hundred miles or singlle ones at 10-15K will suffice?
 
Originally Posted By: parshisa
Replacing 30% of the fluid seems a bit weird to me to be honest. Is the concept with transmission fluid same as with oil or it is different? Do really these “regreshes” work?


In my mind it is diluting the " bad stuff " with new clean " good stuff " .

Back in the day , some of the brands had a drain plug on the torque converter . You could get most of the old fluid out . Those days are long gone .
 
Originally Posted By: parshisa
Great info here. Would you suggest two more drains and fills within few hundred miles or singlle ones at 10-15K will suffice?


It probably depends on the mileage.... If you bought it new, you can feel confident doing a single drain-and-fill every 15k, 20k, 30k, etc. If you have never done a drain-and-fill and the mileage is 50k or higher, multiple drain-and-fills aren't a bad idea if it makes one feel better.
 
It's not the atf that wears out but the additives in the fluid. So you replenish about 30% of the additives which is a good thing. I'd do one more drain/fill since the fluid was discolored. Then prob every 15k miles there after.
 
Originally Posted By: parshisa
Great info here. Would you suggest two more drains and fills within few hundred miles or singlle ones at 10-15K will suffice?


In my mink , I think it would depend on how " bad " the old fluid looks and how many miles on it .
 
Originally Posted By: parshisa
Great info here. Would you suggest two more drains and fills within few hundred miles or singlle ones at 10-15K will suffice?


Just change ATF every other oil change, it will always be clean.
 
Assuming a total fluid capacity of 7.1 qts. (per AMSOIL chart) and the OP said he drained 3.5 qts., here is his transmission fluid drain/refill replacement ratio:

Change #1 49.30%
Change #2 74.29%
Change #3 86.96%
Change #4 93.39%
Change #5 96.65%
Change #6 98.30%
Change #7 99.14%
Change #8 99.56%
Change #9 99.78%
Change #10 99.89%
 
I would've (and did) the same. I understand why some people wouldn't do this, but why call this a "waste", "wallet flush" or whatever cute nickname you want to give it. Truth is, Honda's don't have the best of reputations when it comes to their automatic transmissions and I've never seen anything that points to their fluid as being anything other than serviceable. For every one post that claims DW-1 is a good fluid, I've seen handfuls of other posts that claim people have experienced increased performance by switching to Maxlife or Amsoil ATF. It's still anecdotal, but since there's no evidence going either way, it's probably good practice to keep intervals on DW-1 reasonable and consistent as long as you're going to stick with that fluid.
 
Increased performance based on what? Butt meter? The evidence is there: Look up Honda AT failures POST 2005.....http://www.hondaproblems.com/trends/transmission-failure/
https://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/08/honda-transmission-problems-seem-to-persist/
Honda knew they had problems from faulty parts from a subcontractor. They extended their goodwill program, I used it myself when my 02 V6 AT went out at 109K, all I had to pay was 500 dollars. Good luck getting other manufacturers to step up to the plate and admit the problem...ahem...Ford spitting spark plug 4.6 and 5.4 engines......Go to any dealership and ask the mechanics about how many transmission problems they work on lately. Those problem years with Honda's AT have stayed on the radar to read that they still persist to this day. Not true, total baloney . You think of the super small percentage of Honda owners here on BITOG compared to the actual number of Honda's on the road change out their AT fluid every 10-15K miles??? No way, but yet they are still on the road.
 
Originally Posted By: Schmoe
Increased performance based on what? Butt meter? The evidence is there: Look up Honda AT failures POST 2005.....http://www.hondaproblems.com/trends/transmission-failure/
https://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/08/honda-transmission-problems-seem-to-persist/
Honda knew they had problems from faulty parts from a subcontractor. They extended their goodwill program, I used it myself when my 02 V6 AT went out at 109K, all I had to pay was 500 dollars. Good luck getting other manufacturers to step up to the plate and admit the problem...ahem...Ford spitting spark plug 4.6 and 5.4 engines......Go to any dealership and ask the mechanics about how many transmission problems they work on lately. Those problem years with Honda's AT have stayed on the radar to read that they still persist to this day. Not true, total baloney . You think of the super small percentage of Honda owners here on BITOG compared to the actual number of Honda's on the road change out their AT fluid every 10-15K miles??? No way, but yet they are still on the road.


Quote:
It's still anecdotal, but since there's no evidence going either way, it's probably good practice to keep intervals on DW-1 reasonable and consistent as long as you're going to stick with that fluid.


I don't have to go to "any dealership and ask". I worked at a Honda dealership for more than a year. You should look up the problems Honda's had with their 9 speed auto in the Pilot (Touring and Elite trim levels). DW-1 is a decent ATF and Honda autos can be solid, especially the 6 speed, but I would do regular drain and fills on my Honda auto, especially if I had the means and skills to do it myself and save some money in labor.

Also, it seems like you are, or at least used to be, an advocate for early ATF changes if this is to be believed.

Originally Posted By: Schmoe
All the boys at F150.net forums know that you GOT to change the ATF at least every 30K, unlike the manual that says 100K, if you expect the 4R70W to make it to 100K miles.
 
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I was that for sure back then, but after being on here for a while and reading all the wonderous things how good oils don't need to be changed out that much, I've jumped to the dark side. However, I still believe that thicker oil is better!!!! On the F150, I got that setup with the 4R70W and the towing package option, and have yet come across transmission failures because of lack of ATF change frequency. I got over 90K on mine with factory fill and pulling a boat for umpteen years.
 
Ordered another 4qts of transmission fluid and will do another d&f once it arrives. From then will stick with every other oil change transmission d&f. I still have a sample of the fluid i drained ready to be sent off for analysis. In case anyone is willing to contribute fto BITOG semi-scientific research database and finance this UOA - feel free to hit me up!!
 
did another drain and fill this morning with 300mi after the first one. Liquid looked much better and very little on the magnet. Plan to do d&f every 15K from now on. What y'all think?
 
Originally Posted By: parshisa
Plan to do d&f every 15K from now on. What y'all think?


That's Overkill.....15k with FF is about right. 25k-30k is about right with a Honda Auto Trans since there known to be "Not To Reliable".
 
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