hi all,
I'm going to change the ATF on my 2012 TL but have a question.
Can we fill the ATF through dipstick instead of remove the filler bolt?
I've noticed that they make the dipstick tube larger than the accord version and it's right in the open area for easy access.
I don't think it's a requirement to remove the filler bolt. The only different is it will take longer to fill by using the dipstick.
Can anyone confirm that?
Thanks a lot.

 

Yes you can but pour VERY slowly. It will burp/splash if your pour too fast.

 

I got one of those flexible funnel at the auto part store and it was specifically designed for those small tube. Thanks for confirming.

 

Yes, you can do it that way and there is nothing wrong with it.
I use a short length of rubber hose to "join" the funnel and the dipstick tube. I also carefully measure the old oil I took out (ATF) and replace the same amount of fresh oil.

 

Thanks for the info guys. Next week I am going to drain and refill the Honda ATF in my '13 TL Advance FWD wth 15K miles. Plan is to use Honda ATF however I haven't done this before. I'll refill through the dip stick however I haven't located the drain bolt. Anyone have photos or a YouTube video outlining the process?

 

there are two rubber hoses right above the transmission filler plug when looking from the top, move them out of the way and you will see the plug...its big, with hex on top of it,...really hard to miss...

 

You guys fill 4 quarts through the dipstick? That sounds like it would take forever. It's pretty straightforward to fill through the fill plug on the tranny itself and might save you some time.

This is a link to the 3g diy and it shows the drain bolt location. It should be about the same spot on the 4G.

https://acurazine.com/forums/third-g...f-pics-745892/

 

Filling through the dipstick is not how I fill. I've tried it ONCE with just one quart and that was enough. 4 quarts sounds kinda high. 3.3 is the specification and I usually just put 3.5 but to each his own.

 

The process of 3x3 is not a panacea, although it is of some value.
It is inefficient, time consuming, wasteful.
It's an easy low tech way to approach the problem.
I'm not dissing anyone for doing it, just commenting.
Do the math.
With each "change" you replace about 1/3 of the dirty oil with clean oil.
After three changes you still have 30% of the original dirty oil in the trans. And you "used" 9L or 9 quarts of expensive fluid.
A better way, if it's workable on a particular vehicle, is to disconnect the return cooling line from the trans and pump out all the dirty oil from the torque converter while you add clean oil to the trans with the engine running. I wouldn't really recommend this method though, unless you are an experienced doityourselfer.

 

An alternative that I think makes sense is to change the trans oil (the 1/3 that's readily changeable from the pan) early on in the life of the car and once a year after that. The quality of the oil is hugely dependant on how the vehicle is treated however. Overheating is the issue. If you get stuck in the snow and abuse the vehicle trying to get out, you can fry the trans in short order. What's that smell?

 

I agree with you on this. If the ATF has not been changed for a long time, the 3x3 method will slowly replace most of the dirty ATF fluid in the transmissions but it will not replace all of them. Again this is the case of neglecting on doing regular maintenance.
On other cases where people are doing their maintenance at recommended interval, replace ATF once a year should be adequate enough to prolong the live of our TL transmission.
Even once a year could be a little overkill, just go with the OEM manual suggestion, we should be fine.
In my case, I don't have any record of the car so I'd rather spend the $60 and change out the ATF not just for the sake of doing it but to have peace of mind.

 

Today I drained my tranny oil. Car is a 2013 Acura TL FWD with 15K miles. Service took 30 minutes and refilled the fluid through the dip stick tube. Since the vehicle is still 'newer' the shifts are the same.

 

deuce415--Thanks for providing info that cuts to the chase...

 

My tranny drained exactly 4 quarts of oil yesterday when I completed the work, which was more then I expected (3.3). I refilled with 4 quarts to replace what was drained. What are you seeing?

 

If you let the vehicle sit for a while to let it drain well, there might be some fluid drain from the torque converter, not just from the pan, therefore draining a somewhat greater volume than expected.
It's not a problem, but you should check the dipstick a few times after driving for a day or so.

 

I finally have some free time and change out the ATF today.
The over all process was simple and straight forward.
I used the 18" long funnel to refill the DW-1 fluid through the dipstick.


I had the car on 2 Rhino ramps and it gave me plenty of space to work with.

I didn't remove the plastic cover but I used a small 2x4 to push the cover up high so the ATF won't be all over the place.


My car is at 39K miles and the bolt looks like it hasn't been removed before.


I measured the fluid that came out and it was only 2.5 quarts even I did let the car run until the fan came on... not sure why it was too little...
The refill process was fairly easy with the long funnel.
I can drop it all the way down into the dipstick tube and the top is exposed for easy refill.


This was easier compare to my 2001 Honda accord because of the bigger dipstick tube.
It took me about 40mins to complete the whole process including taking pictures.
Took it for a 5 mins spin and noticed a slight difference in shifting. The car was a little more responsive than before, I will do another change in 5k miles just to change out the remainder of the old ATF.

 

To the fill quantity; 4 qts in particular. I have not noticed how much fluid has drained when I perform a drain/fill. Perhaps I should. I just fill per the spec. Reading the level via the dipstick is problematic and have yet to get a good reading. It's good to know that someone runs with a 4 qts fill and does not experience any problems. I just hate to have an issue and the steal-a-ship tells me the warranty is void because the trans is over filled.

 

I just follow the instruction on the manual.
I ran the car until the fan came on and find a level parking spot to check the ATF. If the dipstick stays between the two marks, it should be ok.
Mine was slightly below the high mark when the car was hot.

 

Today I put 75 miles on the car with 4 quarts of the new tranny oil. Tomorrow I'll do another 75 miles and then re-check the dipstick one final time. I'll keep everyone updated.

 

The reading on the dipstick is pretty sensitive to how level the car is.
It is also affected by the temperature of the fluid. You might see 3/4" variation in readings simply for these reasons.
The low volume you drained cooldude may have been because your level was low to begin with, or the car was "tilted backwards" on the ramps. When I previously suggested to fill the same quantity as what was removed, I assumed the level was correct to begin the process.

 

You're right about the car on ramps. It's on an incline position which causes only a portion of ATF to come out. Next time, I will also jack up the rear to keep the car at balance level and hope that more ATF will come out instead of just 2.5 quarts.

 

Why couldn't Honda design it to check the trans fluid level with engine cold and on level ground...??? It would be so simple and straight forward....

 

+1 on this.
Maybe those Japanese guys always try to do things the complicated way.