There IS a filter in his transmission, in fact there are TWO. Pictured below you will see the internal filter and an external spin on filter. The internal filter is buried in there and difficult to get to. This is most likely why the dealer is saying no to changing it, I can understand their point. Indy can just drain and refill and change the spin on filter like I told him in my last post. I still dont recommend flushing and leaving a trashy filter in ANY transmission. His best bet is to drain and refill and change out that $8.00 spin on.
My '99 Honda CR-V has no “pan” to “drop” and no routinely replaceable filter (the internal filter is accessible only by disassembling the tranny). But it is not a “throw away” transmission. Many owners are getting 200-300k miles on this vintage vehicle. Honda recommends the drain-n-fill method of fluid maintenance, with no filter to replace, and the trannys do just fine.
I actually ahve no idea when or if the fluid has ever been changed. The van has 137,000 miles, the transmission runs just fine, the fluid color looks to be a light tanish color and there is no smell.
The tan color indiactes that it is time to at least do a drain and fill. That will give some breathing space. If I had your vehicle I would completely replace the fluid at this time.
If the transmission fluid had a strong burnt smell it could be on its last legs at this time.
i did the sniff test and smell nothing. I am going to end up going with the dealership because of the "special’ type of transmission fluid KIA uses and I am not real secure on the fact that my independent place says it uses a verified alternative. I never like to hear there, so will go with the dealership for the drain and fill for now, then do the whole fluid flush come the summer.
transman - I wasn’t going to ask what the site it b/c I figured it can’t be that hard to find. Even though you could obviously use a different screen name I figured I’d just search on it.
So now I’m just curious (partly about what the other site is) - but really about whether or not you’ve ever typed “transman” into a general internet search? It was strange.
As for Honda Automatic transmissions…Junkyards have rows of Hondas that are in drivable condition except for their failed transmissions… 300,000 miles?? In your dreams…
I know what you mean.. I think here's the arguments each way.
The argument for dropping the pan is that allows for any filings and such to be scooped out, and that flushing could flush debris into the transmission.
The argument for the flush is that any junk should stay on the bottom, and there shouldn't be any significant junk sitting there anyway. Also, the flush will remove all old fluid from inside the transmission.
I've heard of transmissions failing after both types of service -- but usually it was after someone waited until the transmission wasn't shifting right THEN tried a flush or pan drop. The person doing the pan drop, since they'll be able to see how much metal has shed off the transmission internals, it will be less of a surprise when a really bad transmission fails. My gut feeling points towards wanting to do the pan drop, but I really don't know which is better.
In your case it's really "none of the above", and I agree with transman -- with it even having a external filter and drain plug, that's certainly the way to go.
What’s your beef with Hondas? Plenty of 'em get 200-300k. Oh, and Tom and Ray hate the Civic, Accord, Element, CR-V, and Odyssey 'cause their transmissions break so often…
My 1998 Honda Civic LX is the same way. Different transmission (I think) than yours, but same maintenance principals apply. Honda recommends drain & fill the trans every 30k miles. There is no serviceable filter or pan on this vehicle. The only filter is a metal screen inside the transmission. The ONLY way to reach this metal screen is to remove the trans from the vehicle and tear it apart. Again, there is no pan. To replace the fluid, you simply use a 3/8 ratchet and remove the drain plug located on the passenger side of the trans. I usually get about 2.5 quarts of fluid out of it. I am aware this doesn’t replace all the fluid. There’s still fluid in the cooler lines and probably a few other places, but I’m not a trans expert so I can tell you where any remaining fluid may be trapped.
I drain and fill my trans every 15k miles - about once a year. Thats twice as often as recommended by Honda. Don’t care. It’s cheap. Costs me less than $20 for the fluid and again, I only do it once a year. Sometimes it’s 12k miles - sometimes it’s 15k miles.
There is more oil in the torque converter than there is in the pan. In general, you cannot drain the converter in the vehicle(excepting some rear drive fords). A flush would be more effective at replacing the fluid. If the filter is “clogged” with junk then an overhaul is in the near future anyway.
This one will go 100 posts easy…It’s developed a life of its own…There are more man-hours in this thread than it takes to rebuild the transmission, including the R&R…
