I just put in GM Syncromesh Friction Modified in my CLS6. It was really easy to do the drain and fill the tranny fluid, took me about 20 minutes.

I am at about 55k miles and this is the first time changing the fluid. The old fluid came out pretty clear, nothing dark or dirty at all.

I put in 2.3 qts of the syncromesh and drove around all weekend. The shifting is soo much smoother now. The slight friciton I got going into 2nd and 3rd gear has been reduced greatly. Shifting is very effortless and smooth, kind of how I remember the car used to shift like when it was brand new.

Now I am not sure if the fluid is great or the fact that the old oil had broken down and it wasn't doing its job. Either way, time and money well spent.

 

Where did you get the fluid from?

 

that stuff is magic in a bottle. one thing GM actually did right. :p

 

I ordered it from gmpartsdirect.com. You have to buy a case of 6 at once, ends up about $10/bottle. The thing is, their shipping/service sucks. I ordered on March 20th and I got it March 30th. I would suggest finding a GM dealer who carries it.

brad - the stuff is great so far. NSX, s2000, and many many others swear by it.

 

GM wont let you buy just one or you need 6 bottles to fill it?

 

No, from the website I ordered from they make you buy a case of six. Our cars only need 2.3 qts.

 

no, the website he bought the fluid from requires you buy a case (6qts). You'll need 3 bottles because it takes 2.3 qts to fill.

I helped him with the fluid change but it's easily a one man job. MUCH easier then what it takes to change the tranny fluid in my S2k (even tho that's pretty easy too).

edit: ha mood, you beat me to it, quit posting while you're at work!

 

There is debate on whether you should put this into a Honda tranny. The TL folks have been talking for a bit on this. Some say yes, some say no,

 

why doesnt anyone try redine's MTL they say you can use it in honda transmissions, and reline makes the best oil on the planet. here check out some info

http://www.redlineoil.com/products_g...57&subcatID=18

http://www.redlineoil.com/whitePaper/13.pdf

http://www.redlineoil.com/pdf/6.pdf

 

You can get Pennzoil Synchromesh (same exact stuff) at regular auto parts stores. I bought mine at AutoZone for $3 a quart.

The friction modified is harder to come by, I'm not even sure if they still make it. Supposedly it wasn't as good for LSD equipped trannies.

Save yourself a few bucks.

 

It's time for my 60K service so I wanted to know, is this for changing engine oil or transmission oil?

In this thread, people have mentioned:
GM Syncromesh Friction Modified
redine's MTL
and
Pennzoil Synchromesh

Which is the best for OUR cars? Which is better for summer conditions (I live in florida)?

 

i think they are talking transmission here............................... not engine. redline is nt bad, the synchromesh i never used.........

 

I don't know much about cars, so I'm trying to learn just like everyone else. When would y'all say is a good time to replace the transmission oil?

 

60k service

 

If you're at 60k, then now is a good time to change your tranny fluid. Honda makes a really good transmission fluid. A lot of people that use Synchromesh buy it because they are having problems with their tranny shifting properly. Synchromesh works great as a band-aid to cover up the problem. I had a hard time getting my GSR tranny to go from 4th to 5th at WOT, so I bought it for that reason.

Pennzoil makes the Synchomesh MTF for GM. GM just puts their name on it and charges 3 times the price.

I use regular Honda MTF in my CL and it works great. It's hard to say whether Syncromesh can prevent wear and tear on your tranny because I doubt anyone will ever take the time to research it, but it does a good job of smoothing out the glitches you might have between shifts.

 

I did quite a bit of research before going with the Syncromesh. I really wouldn't consider it a band-aid, it is just a differently formulated fluid. Various additivies and ingredients bring out good qualities of a manual transmission.

I am sure Honda MTF is good, but it wasn't to my liking. Many others feel the same, that is why they try the Redline, GM, Pennzoil. Here are a couple of good threads on s2ki that helped my decision:

http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=195574

Go to the transmission oils section. Have fun.

 

I didn't think it made a difference whether I had a manual or automatic (I have an auto, by the way), but please correct me if I'm wrong.

It seems y'all are saying the regular Honda trans fluid is fine, and I haven't noticed any problems with my transmission, so are there any other advantages to using Syncromesh?

 

What do y'all think?

 

Thre has been lots of discussion on this topic... some very knowledgable input from some members...

http://www.acura-cl.com/forums/showthread.php?t=178800


The GM friction modified fluid is for standard transmissions only.

 

Thanks goredcar, but after a few posts, all that went over my head. I'll stick to the recommended fluid for my autotragic unless someone says different.

 

For your auto I would definately stick to the Honda fluid... you don't want to give them any reason to bail on the extended warrany. I think this discussion is targeted at 6MTs only.

 

Extended warranty? I bought the car used, and as far as I know, it's not warrantied

 

the warranty on all acura CL transmissions with the exception of the 6-spd manual were extended to 100,000 miles due to all of the failures they were/are having. if your tranny hasnt failed in the car yet (either since you have owned it, or the previous owner) it will soon.

 

Oooooooohhh that - I thought you were talking about some dealer warranty, not the 7year/100K mile one that we all get. And not all of these transmissions fail, just a lot