So far I'm at 64,000 miles and the maintanence minder hasn't come up with it yet. All i've gotten were the A1 and B1 codes so far. Last week at my B1 service the Honda dealership said the fluid looks a little dirty and they recommended a transmission service (I believe it's the C code). The service adviser said the C code usually came at around 45-50 k miles.

I was just wondering when any of you guys got the code or did your transmission fluid flush/service? TIA.

 

The manual calls for severe service (constant low speeds on mountainous roads) at 60K. I don't think in normal service the maintenance minder will call for it before 100K (and not at 45-50K for anyone).

I don't think looks count for much. Or smell. At least for transmission fluid. Women are different.

That said I'd probably change it every 60K because I'm somewhat OCD.

Keep in mind this service involves draining less than 3 quarts of fluid, then refilling with fresh. It's faster than an oil change. The fluid costs around $12 a quart. Don't pay more than $70 for the service. Don't take them up on offers to "power flush" the transmission.

 

I changed my manual transmission fluid at 75k.

 

Because I have a 2009 which has z1; i did a drain fill at 15k and 23k, mainly to switch over to the "superior" dw-1. I do take about 15trips to tahoe a year, which each way involves a pretty aggressively 30mile continuous uphill climb each way into thin air where i thrash the car for awhile. So that is a fair portion of time that'd be considered severe service, and I can't have the car fail on me.

I plan to do 2 more every other oil change (that'll be +15kmiles, +30kmiles) mainly because I bought the dw1 as a case and might as well clean it off the shelf.

After that, I probably won't change it afterwards until 60k miles from there or get a new car. I do it myself, and use a mityvac oil extractor, so it is minimal effort and work.

 

I did mine at 65k because the shifts were getting a little notchy and it was getting hard to get in gear shifting at redline 1-2. Changing the fluid fixed this.

This is on 2010 MT

 

I change my ATF every other oil change, roughly every 15,000-18,000. I'm on my 3rd ATF transmission service at 48,000 (2010 Fit)

 

Thanks for all your replies guys, appreciate it.

 

I did it myself at 34k miles and the drain 3 qts / fill 3 qts / drive 15 miles / drain.... 4 times to achieve 95% flush of the better DW-1 fluid takes about 2 hours, 12 qts total, and a properly torqued new drain plug washer at the end. The fluid during the first two drains had "the odor" and was more opaque than the last two which you could clearly see the "candy apple" red of the DW-1 fluid.


Because I bought a case (12 qts) of DW-1, the dealer sold it for $7.40 / qt = approx. $90 with the washer. I also did my wife's CIVIC with 57K miles - same procedure / same time / same cost.


Because the transmission's torque convertor holds a fair amount of fluid, I'm at a loss how the dealer's $70 fluid change in 30 mins truly makes it all new. I have no experience with the flush process procedure, effectiveness, or cost.


So, which is better, a $70 dealer job in 30 mins (?What did they really do back there?) or a $90 DIY in 2 hrs?

 

No need to be at a loss...

The Honda specified maintenance is one simple drain/fill. $70 is high for this service, as all it does is replace 3 quarts (give or take) of ATF. Some dealers will charge over $100.

Other methods: power flushing, running engine and letting the fluid drain through the out-hose cooling line while sucking in from the in-hose; these aren't recommended or required. I'd be reluctant to do these. Anecdotal accounts exist of power flushing causing problems. I haven't heard of any issues with the latter method, but I'll go with what the shop manual calls for.

mmmm how about a $45 DIY in 30 minutes? (simple drain/fill).

As the Honda specified maintenance is a drain/fill when called for by the MM and this is flagged over 100K miles for most (it varies according to use, same as the engine oil change interval) you might wait for the MM.

I'm a bit conflicted: I changed at 30K (one drain fill) and again at 40K (one drain/fill). I'll probably do another at 60K. But owning an 09 with the older spec fluid gives an advantage in changing: the newer DW-1 performs a tad better (smoother operation, less noise). I think everything from 2011 and on has the newer formula.

 

Be sure you compare apples to apples; it'd be $90/4=$22.50 just for the 3quarts of DW-1 you used for a drain/fill service.

Often the $70 exchange a dealer quotes is just a drain fill. So $70 vs $22.50 using your price that you got for ATF, or $50 for just for the labor.

The price for a service doesn't always have to match the labor involved. A drainfill service is easier than an oil change, but a dealer may still charge 50-70 for it, just going by the book.

It should be $100+ for a complete exchange. The only explanation is they could be quoting you only $70 just for the labor, but forgot to tell you they need to add on money for the quarts of ATF they need to use too (it'll be less than 12). (or maybe they're giving you some generic bulk atf instead).

If the dealer is doing a complete fluid exchange, they would likely be using a T-Tech (or T-tec) machine which will do the exchange in-line. Google this to see how it works. It is like a dialysis machine.

This is similar to the concept of taking the old fluid from the outhose and putting in good fluid in from the inhose. But since it is not a powered flush and just uses the car's own pump and pressure to do the exact exchange, it is a safe and widely accepted practice.

 

Fu%&$^ T-Tec, I hated using those things, 150k mile cars with dried up transmission line hoses that didn't want to come off

Worked like a charm though 90% of the time once the lines were off. I LOL'd at dialysis machine, but yeah, that's how it does it pretty much. That is the best way to do the auto trans service and is worth paying for it IMO just so you don't have to go back to drain/refill 3x.

 

If you buy a 12 qt case, you get the 10% discount = $7.40 / qt (+ sales tax = $7.84 / qt or $94.08 / case) otherwise it was $8.63 (+ sales tax = $9.15 or $109.80 / case) with a savings of $1.31 / qt or $15.72. 18mm drain plug washers were +/- $2.00 ea with tax (local to Pennsylvania). Doing a DIY 3 qt drain / refill four (4) times over 2 hrs = $94.08 + $2.00 washer or ~$96.

It would seem less economical it a person buys a case of DW-1 to get the discount but then does the 3 qt drain / refill every 30,000 after the initial 60,000 miles, as per Honda’s maintenance schedule. That would result in the following: 3 qts ($23.52 + $2 washer) at 60,000 miles, 3 qts + washer at 90,000 miles, 3 qts + washer at 120,000 miles, and use the final 3 qts at 150,000 miles. Who knows if the car would be around at that point?
If you follow that schedule, I would pay the full price of $8.63 / qt (3 qts = $25.80) plus the $2 washer as you need to and that way you haven’t made a long term commitment to a case of DW-1 that you have to store.

The other method I’ve seen was to do the 3 qt drain / refill every time you do a regular oil change, which would be about every 8,000 – 9,000 miles. While you are under the car, combining those tasks makes sense to focus your “getting’ dirty time” and waste disposal of both liquids at once. It also allows you to justify the economics of buying a case of DW-1 for the discount since you will cycle through it in shorter intervals and thereby avoid several time-consuming trips to the dealer. In a sense, the AT fluid in service in your transmission will never be newer than 50% (3 qts new in a 6.0 – 6.5 qt capacity transmission).

Seems like there are +/- of each method, as well as, just taking it to the dealer.

 

That's fine. Only added note is the service interval you're quoting "drain / refill every 30,000 after the initial 60,000 miles, as per Honda’s maintenance schedule" is for severe service as defined by:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Owner's Manual

Driving in mountainous areas at very low vehicle
speeds results in higher transmission temperatures.
This requires transmission fluid changes more
frequently than recommended by the maintenance
minder. If you regularly drive your vehicle under these
conditions, have the transmission fluid changed at
60,000 miles (100,000 km), then every 30,000 miles
(48,000 km). (For A/T only)

Also "fluid change" is one simple drain fill as defined by the service manual.

 

One of these days I ought to buy a service manual. Any recommendations? I like paper.


The only thing I would change with the service manual procedure is that there isn't a need to remove the splash shield. The drain plug is fully accessible with a 3/8" socket wrench (need a breaker bar to initially loosen it) without any extensions. And at all times during the draining process, the fluid went directly into the bucket and didn't soil the splash shield. A lot of extra work for no gain.

 

"The service adviser said the C code usually came at around 45-50 k miles"

According to my 2011 owners manual and the 2009-2010 Fit shop manual there is no C service.

In both those manuals the time to change transmission fluid is when sub item 3 appears on the maintenance minder. It would be changed again when 3 shows up.
No mention of 60k and then every 30k in either manual. If the maintenance minder works as it's supposed to work, service intervals should reflect the actual operating conditions and the service intervals should come up more frequently.

Both of those manuals do say, if the car is towed the transmission fluid should be changed at 30k or two years, whichever is first. (automatic transmission only)

None of the above comments are my opinion, they are from my Fit manuals.

This comment is my observation, some people here are changing Fit tranny fluid more frequently than Honda specified for the 1979 Civic and 79 Accord I purchased new. Haven't we made any progress in maintenance requirements in 34 years?

For example my 2008 Mazda 3 maintenance schedule doesn't mention transmission fluid or brake fluid changes.

I lucked out on the Fit shop manual, the day I bought the Fit I found it on eBay, buy it now for around $28 with free shipping.


Clifton

 

yes, yes we have (progressed).

Marketing has progressed tenfold, and we are half as aware of what makes our cars tick. These are scientific observations.

Go by the owner's manual (in the Fit's case the MM unless you qualify for severe mountainous service). Understand that service salespeople don't have your car's best maintenance in mind; they are looking at sales quotas and commissions.

Keep all records of what has been done (professionally or DIY). I've taken to electronic records, scanning receipts and logging/linking in a spreadsheet. It will help with resale value (a lot) if you sell privately as opposed to trading. Read the owner's manual maintenance chapter. It will also help you when you get to 120K and someone is trying to sell you $500 in service that you don't need, while perhaps missing something critical like a simple ATF drain fill.

 

Get electronic and print the pages you need to refer to. After you've got'em all greasy, throw them out. I haven't seen a cost effective paper manual, but Ebay has the CD version all the time.

The only reason I can think of for removing the splash shield is to avoid spillage of fluid on it. Simple observation and a rag work better. Or maybe their tech writers copied this from an older manual where it was needed for access.

 

to spike55:

A thing to think about with your calculations and strategy is that there are bigger case discounts on the internet; and combined shipping.

If you buy a case or everything at once, then you only pay 1 shipping fee (or 1 trip to the dealer).

If you buy 3quarts at a time, you either have to take more trips to the dealer to buy the stuff; or pay shipping every time. For car parts; shipping can be like $10 or so as a minimum for each order.

Definitely do the service to coincide with an oil change. Doesn't have to be every one.

 

15K then 30K then will do at around 50K.
The 2012 is at 11K now and plan to also replace it at 15, 30, maybe 50, 70, etc.

Both are manuals, driven gently in SoCal. Use honda fluid.

 

search Google with the following text to find some good DIY on how to change out the fluid yourself:

site:www.fitfreak.net/forums change transmission fluid

I usually change out 6 quarts ( 3 quarts via drain fill, 3 quarts via coolant line ) about every 30K. I get about $6.50/qt if I buy a box.