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Changing the ATF

S

Si74

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Fife
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2003 exec tourer
I want to change the ATF and have searched the threads but see no mention of flushing. You tube videos suggest flushing two or three times. Given the cheapest I can find fluid is £26 for 3 bottles, looking near 100 quid if flushed twice. Is this really necessary?
The car has a full history from Honda, Last servIced Jan 2016 at 93K but I can't find any mention of changing the ATF. Mileage is now 98K so I'd rather be safe than sorry. Realising £100 is way cheaper than a new box,but seems a bit ott!
 
Mine was never done either, it was quite brownish when I acquired the car. I went ahead and just did a straight forward drain & refill, just under 3litres I think and the fluid is a much better colour, still needs doing again waiting for better weather but I reckon two changes in a short period should rejuvenate enough to extend the life of the box. Something is better than nothing kind of way. I reckon if you can find the flow and return pipes from the box to the oil cooler you're probably half way there to developing a method of full flush. I did it on my old Avensis and that method works great but is a little time consuming.
 
Thanks Scooby, sense as usual. I trawled the net and there's hundred of pages on the American CRV site. A video suggests taking a line of the ATF filter with the engine running, two people needed and letting the engine pump out the old stuff whilst someone pours in new. Also an oil expert suggests just a drain and fill every 5K is cheaper and more beneficial than a 4x times flush at Hondas suggested mileage. They also quote a far bigger and better filter for the ATF. Don't you just love the net for every ten saying black, you get ten saying white,lol.
There is also a copy of the official Honda procedure which I could find again if anyone is interested?
 
Procedure may be useful. Yea it's one of those ask ten mechanics get ten different answers, ask ten doctors get ten possible diagnosis lol.
I think after two drain refills in short period should rejuvenate enough to be a nice pinkish/red colour. I know even after one I'm 50% there. Love the yootube tho. Eric the car guy and Scotty Kilmer two of my favourites!
 
This is taken from a site for CRVs but reckon it should be the same for an Accord?

Check Out the Latest Word on A/T Flushing

Some A/T repair procedures call for flushing the trans using Honda Genuine ATF-Z1 (and no substitutes). Problem is, where do you find the info to do that? It’s not listed in the S/Ms, and if you do an ISIS search,
you’ll find a few ServiceNews articles on this subject, but they’re rather dated, and none of them say the same thing. Even the most recent one (see “Revised A/T Flushing Procedure” in the December ’00 issue)
still mentions that old work horse—the PGM Tester—which we stopped supporting when the HDS first came on the scene.
NOTE: The term “flushing” refers to repeatedly draining and refilling the trans with Honda Genuine ATF-Z1. Don’t confuse it with aftermarket flush systems. American Honda still strongly recommends that
you avoid using them on any Honda vehicle.
The original procedure was written for simpler A/Ts that readily upshifted when you ran the vehicle on a lift. But A/Ts have come a long way since then, and most of the newer ones balk at shifting past 2nd gear
when on a lift, unless you work the shift lever a certain way.
In light of all this, we thought it was high time that the A/T flushing procedure got a facelift. So here’s the latest word on flushing that works for all A/Ts:

1. Set the parking brake, and raise the vehicle on a lift.
2. Drain the trans, and refill it with Honda Genuine ATF-Z1. Refer to the applicable S/M or to ISIS for details.
3. Start the engine, shift into Drive, and release the parking brake.
4. Push down on the accelerator pedal to raise the vehicle speed to 2,500 rpm.
• If the trans shifts past 2nd gear, go to step 5.
• If the trans won’t shift past 2nd gear, keep the engine speed at 2,500 rpm and shift from Drive to
Neutral and back to Drive. Then go to step 5.
5. Make sure that the trans shifts through all the forward gears and goes into torque converter lockup.
6. Let off the accelerator pedal, and press the brake pedal to drop the vehicle speed to zero. Shift into
Reverse and then into Neutral.
7. Shift into Drive, and repeat steps 4 thru 6 four more times.
8. Set the parking brake, and repeat steps 2 thru 6 two more times.
9. Drain the trans, and reinstall the drain plug with a new sealing washer.
10. Refill the A/T with ATF-Z1.
 
In a ideal situation draining and refilling at the same time until only fresh oil comes out is best I think.

Realistically as ScoobyDoo said two oil changes closer together should be ok especially if your not experiencing shifting problems the first change will probably get most of the contaminants out.
 
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