Seems to me that the vast majority of posters on this forum who show any evidence of having needed a transmission fluid change do so by talking about the color of the fluid and showing photos of it. The color means little to nothing. Sending the used fluid for analysis seems like a good idea if the lab in question has a baseline for this particular fluid from Mazda, which still has no aftermarket equivalent. If you think you've seen one, it's not correct because it indicates that the said aftermarket fluid is compatible with BOTH MV and FZ. That should not be possible. If it were, why would Mazda have a proprietary fluid just for Skyactiv transaxles?
SkyActiv drain & fill
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You make good points. Never seen a UOA for FZ fluid so not sure if anyone would have a baseline, but they can at least show a particle count which would show us if there are any abrasives to be concerned about. If it looked and smelled good after 50,000 or 60,000 miles then its probably a stout fluid, I'm more concerned about iron and aluminum floating around.
As far as the proprietary fluid, good question. Although on the previous 4 automatic in the early Mazda 3's they shared with early Ford Focus, Mazda was adamant about using M-V (Mazda M5) which was equivalent to the FNR5 bottled fluid Ford spec'd, but the 4-speed Ford said only use Mercon LV, not the FNR5 fluid they use in the FNR5 5-speed in the Milan and Fusion, which had the same 5-speed box as the later Mazda 3's and 6's which required only Mazda MV. Huh, what? Try to wrap your head around that one, it still gives me a headache any time I try.
I wish we knew what is the magic of the FZ fluid, until whoever makes is (Idemitsu, or whoever) sells their own generic version like they do with the Mazda MV fluid. You can finally get that fluid cheap on Ebay.
As far as the proprietary fluid, good question. Although on the previous 4 automatic in the early Mazda 3's they shared with early Ford Focus, Mazda was adamant about using M-V (Mazda M5) which was equivalent to the FNR5 bottled fluid Ford spec'd, but the 4-speed Ford said only use Mercon LV, not the FNR5 fluid they use in the FNR5 5-speed in the Milan and Fusion, which had the same 5-speed box as the later Mazda 3's and 6's which required only Mazda MV. Huh, what? Try to wrap your head around that one, it still gives me a headache any time I try.
I wish we knew what is the magic of the FZ fluid, until whoever makes is (Idemitsu, or whoever) sells their own generic version like they do with the Mazda MV fluid. You can finally get that fluid cheap on Ebay.
Actually, I just remembered seeing this some time ago. It's the only non-Mazda version I know of.
Ravenol FZ
Looking around, though, it's not really cheaper than buyng FZ fluid from Mazda.
Ravenol FZ
Looking around, though, it's not really cheaper than buyng FZ fluid from Mazda.
Good find. Can we assume Ravenol is likely the OEM supplier to Mazda? All we need now is for some hungry ebay seller to buy a few thousand quarts at a discount and start selling them (relatively) cheap to people like me/us/whoever who have OCD about changing their ATF.
For now, compared to the price of FZ fluid therapy for my OCD would probably be cheaper.....
For now, compared to the price of FZ fluid therapy for my OCD would probably be cheaper.....
I wouldn't assume Ravenol is the OEM supplier. It appears to me that it's only available if you purchase from outside the U.S. and have it shipped to you. Since nearly all the Mazda vehicles use Skyactiv transmissions now I would expect that another aftermarket equivalent or two ought to be appearing soon. For the single D&F I did (and I don't plan to do another) I'm not too worked up over what I paid for the genuine stuff.
I would say it's a good start, but if you want to follow Mola's advice, you have to exchange most of the ATF. That means either 3-4 D&Fs or a cooler line exchange.
His latest post I read about ATF was an initial d&f before 10k miles and then every 35k after for life. As DBMaster stated, Mazda uses RTV as a sealant and I don't want to me tackling that job just to get at a rock catcher filter.
Idemitsu is the OEM fluid supplier as stated on the bottle.
Idemitsu is the OEM fluid supplier as stated on the bottle.
Based upon a thread (that included photos that have expired) I read in 2013 I don't think the sealant is RTV. It's something a lot tougher. I seem to recall a transmission shop telling me in the 1980s that RTV isn't ideal with transmission fluid. I wish the photos hadn't expired, but here is the post.
Skyactiv D&F
Skyactiv D&F
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