My 2014 odyssey has 41,000 miles on it. Back in July I started to notice the transmission slipping occasionally. It has gotten worse in the last few weeks and was happened daily. I took it to Honda and they flushed and replaced the transmission fluid. They showed it to me and it was black. It looked like a bottle of coke. They even noted it had no red in it at all and that even dirty fluid should have red in it.
I know it was 11,000 past the recommended service mileage, but even they seemed surprised that it was black.
I read this on the forum and it worried me. “The transmission is probably on the way out. Dark fluid is generally caused by friction material contamination and burning fluid. It’s days are numbered.” My van has been smoking at the back end of the vehicle, on occasion, when we start it. Could this be a sign with the transmission? Does anyone have any insight on the black fluid?
I picked it up today and I feel it shift (almost like a slight lag and jump) with every shift of the car. It drives great at a consistent speed.
Why worry? U have a warranty?
Not necessarily, not if “I know it was 11,000 (miles) past the recommended service mileage” means it wasn’t serviced on schedule.
Honda warranty usually goes to 36K. At 41K, the dealer should work with you for a “good faith” compromise.
i know Honda trans and Toyota trans fluid turns dark very fast. I have owned both and done fluid services a lot. Does your manual say recommended OR required at XX miles to maintain warranty? I have not owned a 2014 odyssey so I can’t say what manual says.
Are you sure the owner’s manual calls for transmission fluid change at 30K mile? I ask because on most newer cars the manufacturers claim that the fluid should be good for at least 100K miles.
I am not surprised on the dark fluid. I buy mostly ~2 yr old cars. Most of them have no dipstick so no way to check the ATF color when I buy them. Most of the time when I drain the fluid right after purchase, the fluid is quite dark. Two to three changes later things return to normal. I have never had any of this transmissions fail on me-yet.
Also, the powertrain warranty should be good for 5 yrs/60 K miles. If it does not get back to normal after 1K miles, take it back.
This problem seems unusual for a newer car with not that many miles on it. hmm … you haven’t been towing anything with your vehicle, right? One idea, there’s a customer interest bulletin (3.6.15) for this vehicle for hard downshifts, clunks when slowing down. Have you ever noticed something like that happening? You may need some reprogramming of the tranny computer system.
Form what I’ve heard, Honda recommends changing the transmission oil every 32k.
The Maintenance Minder should tell you when to change the Tranny fluid. According to the owners manual page# 457 it is a Maintenance Subsystem code 3. It is supposed to tell you when to change it.
It never has shown me anything, other than the oil change indicator and I do that when it is due.