So the question is whether to change your automatic transmission fluid? Of course you should, I'm not sure I would do it every 30K miles or 45K miles, but definitely by 60K or so. On my generation of Honda Accord it is recommended every 50K or so because the 6th generation ('98 through '02) is notoriously bad for automatics - good thing my Honda is also a manual transmission.

I've heard the argument that you shouldn't replace the fluid because you might wash away gunk that is holding your transmission together. If your transmission is in that bad of shape - it's going to fail either way. Just replace the fluid... at a reasonable time.

For what it's worth, here is the discussion from the Volvo FAQ on transmission fluid changes: http://www.brickboard.com/FAQ/700-90...X940FluidFlush

I miss that car.

 

New Mazda5 owner here:

Suggestion for the moderator, as it was done on the Honda board I participated on for years. Delete all offensive posts and send any and all warnings via private message. Deletion of the account is advisable for anyone going back and forth. Of course, if people wanna argue utilizing PM, have at it, but trolling and insulting is not tolerated. Keeps things quite clean. Hondasuv.com did not and will not ever have such back and forth insulting as a result of this moderation.

As far as this argument, it can be covered real simply. The input of the owner's manual combined with an experienced Mazda tech is really all you need. I am new to Mazda, but I know that at times Honda would attempt to stretch maintenance intervals to keep up with other manufactures.

Case in point is the automatic transmission. Honda said every 100K miles to change the fluid, drive it for 10 minutes, drain, then drive, then drain a third time. This was to mask the original design specs which was to do one drain and fill every 30K. But the Honda trans did NOT require the pan to be dropped. If I remember correctly, it held like 3-4 quarts if you drained it from the plug and refilled. So the Mazda still requires a pan drop to drain the fluid??? Interesting.

Secondly, a trans cooler is only good if it has a thermostat in it. Many a person has installed a cheapo trans cooler which keeps the fluid circulating even when cold, causing cold fluid to never warm up. But if the transmissions are having issues with hot fluid (Honda Odyssey van comes to mind) a good quality aftermarket cooler is advisable.

Finally, my Honda experience has shown that you do not, under any circumstances, flush an automatic transmission ever ever ever. The quickest way to trash a Honda automatic trans is to do a flush. Does that apply to Mazda? I have no idea, but one thing I do know. If you take your car in and let the Mazda dealers sort it out, if you have transmission problems, you have a leg to stand on. If you take your Mazda down to Acme Transmission service and the damn thing goes out at 80K, you are pretty much on your own. The dealer will NOT help you out. The only thing that "Acme" is going to do is replace the transmission with a rebuilt unit or attempt to nurse yours to 100K miles.

When in doubt, go to the dealer. At a minimum it puts the ball in their court for any failures.

 

What generation and model of Honda are you talking about? I am familiar with the 6th generation of Accords ('98 through '02) and don't recall any flushing issues and that generation had automatic transmission issues, especially in the V6 Accords (my Accord has manual transmission).

 

The Gen 6 Accords with a V6 and an automatic transmission had HUGE issues with their automatic transmissions, as did the Odyssey minivan and any number of Acura models with the same engine and transmission. That and contrary to Honda's assertions, the problem has yet to be fully fixed. Now, an Accord with a manual transmission is a car typically good for a quarter of a million miles or so with only minimal maintenance; a different animal entirely.

 

The issues and results of flushing a Honda automatic transmission are straight from Honda as well as the many techs I know that have had to clean up the mess from a trans flush being done. I won't argue about it. If you have a Honda and choose to flush the transmission, that's your choice.

Also, as stated here, Honda V6 automatics have not been as reliable as they should be and they certainly are a soft spot of Honda cars and vans. BUT...my brother's second hand Ody had a transmission go out at 99K and Honda replaced it, not repaired, but REPLACED it; no questions asked.

 

Relax, we're singing from the same page of the hymn book.

It is my often stated assertion that flushing ANY automatic transmission (Honda or otherwise) is bad for the transmission and leads to premature transmission failure in an alarmingly high number of cases.

As for the Honda V6 automatic debacle, yes, my neighbor had Honda replace the automatic with new units in both their Odyssey and their Accord for free; that said, when the Oddy ate the second transmission, Honda made them pony up of something north of $5,000.

All in all I'm quite content with being a family with three cars, all of which have three pedals under the dash.

 

My wife does not like three pedals. The other two cars in our household have three pedals though.