BustedJack

How many Qts does the 2004 Acura TL take???


I'm assuming 3.8 but others debate it's only 3 Qts....

any experts know?

Ron A

Three quarts when you drain it. If the car is level when you drain it, you can put 3 quarts in for the refill. If you are worried about overfilling you could put a little less and then drive the car and check it out and add any if you need to.

I did it myself and put the contents of three quart containers in and it was right on the mark.

I did it at 20,000 miles and the fluid was thick and dark brown. I posted in another thread that I got Acura to do the triple drain procedure for me. The Acura service rep came and checked it out and didn't want to do it at first but I insisted and he finally agreed to a "customer satisfaction" procedure.

bhelsdon

I have done mine two times now, once at 24k and once at 48k. Both times it only took 2.5 quarts to refill it. I didn't like how dark it was either time so I am getting ready to use the transmission fluid exchanger on it. I will be able to replace All of it then.

BTW I haven't had any problems with it, I just don't want any problems in the future.

BustedJack

Really, that's strange...
I spoke to the technician at Acura Dealership and they said 3.8 Qts. ComptechUSA said 4 Qts.... I couldn't find it anywhere in the manual for the proper recommendation.

So it's only 2.5 Qts for bhelsdon and RonA says almost 3 Qts.

Ron or any other person may help me understand this. When you fill the ATF, I am assuming you just drain it like a REGULAR OIL CHANGE? and not flushing it. That only takes about 2.5 ~ 3 Qts correct?

I was told BY THE DEALERSHIP 3.8 Qts....... it's really messed up to give me bad information by them!

Ron A

Honda/Acura does not recommend flushing the transmission. This is from my Service Manager and the Acura Service Rep.

It is the same as an oil change. Remove the drain plug at the bottom, let the fluid drain out, replace the plug. Remove the filler plug at the top, pour the fluid in, replace the plug.

I definitely put in exactly three quarts. I bought 4 quarts in case I needed a little more, but never opened the container. I just checked and still have the one unopened container.

Here's the link to the excellent thread by Road Rage with scans of how to drain the fluid and how to check the fluid, and his description of the complete procedure, which includes how to remove the splash shield, which is not mentioned in the service manual for some strange reason.