Hey guys, didn't want to make a thread about this, but

Does anyone have any experience with RP ATF? I'm about to buy some using the AAP promotion! I need a transmission change ASAP because the color of mine is dark brown

LMK

Oh yeah how many quarts do I need again for just a drain and fill?

 

try a search for it- some ziners are using it in the trans - no known issues

to get as much of the old stuff out as possible do a 3x3 which is actually 12 qts,
but
I would do 14 maybe 15 qts when switching from acura fluid to RP

You can only get 3.2 of 7.3 qts total capacity of the trans to drain at a time- the rest is hiding in various places and in the TQ-
you drain out 3 and replace, then drive 5 minutes using each gear to move fluid forward in the system, drain 3 and refill, drive 5- drain refill- etc etc
Since it holds over 7 you want to double that, the first set will get old stuff out then refills with new

 

stay THE HELL AWAY from royal purple. I put their MTX fluid in my RSX-S. 4,000 miles later my 2nd gear was annhilated. I was using their engine oil at the same time. Burned almost 2 quarts in 3,000 miles. My car wasn't the issue because before, and after the fact I would only burn about 3/4 of a quart between 3,500 mile oil changes.

 

and this has what to do with a TL and how it reacts?

 

RP I thought didn't meet Honda Z1 specs. I wouldn't use it. Amsoil, Redline or Honda Z1 is the recommended ones.

 

 

if someone wants to be a test pilot....let them!

 

I did the search and was told that it does meet or exceeds Honda Z1 specs like Amsoil and Redline. And according to RP, in no way does it void your warranty, because the Magnuson-Moss Act clearly states if it meets or exceeds the factory specs than it will not. And according to recent searched threads and searching online, it does just that. The first time I did my transmission change which was a drain & fill was basically a cheap ATF fluid such as O' Reiley ATF, and it held up just fine. Of course I'm not going to test my luck, but so far besides doubters and people that haven't used it, their hasn't been any problems in 20 people's car that I've talked to that used it, ranging from, BMW's, AUDI's, 2G TL, 3G TL, etc... They actually think very highly of it since they've tried Amsoil, Redline, Mobil, and Factory and they said RP worked the best in the rapid improvement of shifting quality. I'll be the tester I guess, but I don't think any approved oil should have a problem in our cars, even highly detergent oils (I may be wrong, but I haven't seen any problems where I work at cars at). I'm going to use the RP and change the 3rd and 4th gear sensors shortly. I'll let you know on the results. Because of finances, I am only going to be able to do a 3x2 (sucks to be a college student), which I think is fine. I do it slightly different though, since I find this method better. I do a drain and fill, wait 5k miles, do it one more time and I'm done. I dislike the 3x3 method anyways. It doesn't work the best according to some close people that I know that works with transmissions and engines for their careers. I don't know the 100% facts, because I'm stupid when it comes to cars, but I can't disagree with them either. Let you guys know if I have a problem. Hopefully, I don't regret it because I've already been through a engine problem (bent rod, randomly), and don't want to add a broken transmission either. But I'll take my chances because its either the RP or nothing and the ATF in the car now is dark brown.

I'd like IHC to chime in, but I don't think he likes RP period anyways

 

RP uses a multi-vehicle additive package that covers ATF-Z1.

It is not and will never be Honda approved (and neither will Amsoil, Redline, Valvoline Maxlife, etc), but RP's additive supplier will have done the validation testing to ensure compatibility.

 

^
I am looking at the Amsoil catalog, and it states that the Synthetic Universal ATF is Honda Z-1 approved.

Am I missing something here?

 

Keyword is recommended, not approved.
Honda does not have a licensing program for their fluids, unlike GM, Ford and Chrysler. So, the only approved product is the Genuine Honda fluid.

 

doing 3 qts of the total 7.3 at intervals farther than 5 miles is not a good investment of your cash
If changing fluid- change the fluid- all of it- not 2/5ths and think that new fluid is rejuvenating oil fluid,,,thats not how it works

`meeting additive requirements`- `tested for a few months in your car` , and `works fine in honda trans` are very different things

 

doing 3 qts of the total 7.3 at intervals farther than 5 miles is not a good investment of your cash
If changing fluid- change the fluid- all of it- not 2/5ths and think that new fluid is rejuvenating old fluid,,,thats not how it works

`meeting additive requirements`- `tested for a few months in your car` , and `works fine in honda trans` are very different things

 

Correct, it's really up to the individual to decide.

Since there isn't a licensing program, the actual requirements are not public, so they are reliant on reverse-engineering and bench/field testing to determine the requirements. Major companies, such as Lubrizol, do this testing so it is up to you if you want to trust them.

My take on it is that the multi-vehicle products are probably good enough for most drivers and especially since the aftermarket synthetic products use upgraded basestocks, it may sometimes be better than the OE fluid. But I feel the only time the aftermarket synthetic multi-vehicle fluid is better than the OE product is when you are dealing with older fluid specifications such as ATF-Z1, T-IV, etc.

 

According to the on line site, Amsoil states it is recommended for Z1 replacement, but states nothing about being approved by Honda. If you read all the features listed on the Amsoil site you might think it's the eighth wonder of the world.

 

^
Gotcha
As stated before, their marketing dept. is great!

 

As stated above, Honda won't license to anybody. It's about $$$$, why license to a competitor when you can market your own fluid and make 50% margin on it?

I've been running Redline D4, no problems at all. The cold shifting is vastly better than the OEM fluid. I drove it my car with the scan tool hooked up with OEM Z1, and D4. The trans runs on average 9-12 degrees cooler with D4 in similar conditions than it did with Z1. Probably because of the mix of group IV and group V Redline uses for basestock.

FWIW, I agree on Amsoil's marketing, it's the main reason why I don't use their products. I can't stand it, or their "tests" they publish. They do make good products, but the way they market them makes me want to puke.

 

This may be a silly question but why does everyone do a 3x3?
Or really a drain and fill?

I am due for a transmission fluid change but confused on why not to bring it to a shop to flush it?

 

Manual states do not use a flush machine on these transmissions. A 3x3 is draining and refilling the transmission 3 times. It's done that way because you are only get around 3-3.5 quarts out per drain, and the system holds around 8 quarts, give or take. So you need to do it 3 times to get most of the fluid out of the trans.

When I changed over to Redline I did 4 drain and refills.

 

@ BradE what scan tool did you use

 

I just read my manual, didn't see where it says no flush machines.
I could of missed it. Can anyone else confirm?

 

best setting use the royal purple for engine oil 5w30,but the ATF i will choose the redline ATF its more better!

 

Soul- while it does not say NOT to use them what it does say is to `manual drain and fill`(gravity)-
or to do a 3x3 being the 3 qts at a time it will give up, drive 5 minutes using each gear to move old fluid forward to the drain as new fluid moves in to replace it,drain 3 and replace
Do that for a total of 12 qts to fully change fluid
Acura says 3 qts one time is ok but many users prefer more fluid more often to prevent many well known heat issues in the trans

 

the power machine flushes rarely or never carry the approved honda atf and other brands may cause problems- as demonstrated many times

The real filler hole (not the dipstick) has a plate to prevent a hose from going in there--that should be a clue!!

By draining you access the MAGNETIC tipped drain plug and remove what will be on there- always stuff on it- thats why its magnetic!

 

its too simple to do on the acura- a marked drain plug and filler hole
no need to remove oil pan like old days of cars-
thats the type of cars the machines are made for

 

Honda GM600 I think it's called. It belongs to a friend of mine who's a mechanic, it's the OEM factory scan tool.

 

It's in the Jan. 2008 TSB. I think you can find it on this site somewhere.

 

^Thanks.

Guess I'll just do a 3x3. Once again, AZine FTMFW!

 

American Honda strongly recommends you avoid using aftermarket trans flush systems (click here)

Flush Systems: A Big Taboo (see page 3 of 4) (click here)