DIY: Changing Manual Transmission Fluid

[Oil Doc]

Originally Posted by soxfan143

Because I'm turbo. And when I use the 5w-30 the turbo smokes a little and GReddy recommends 5w-40 oil with this car and their kit to protect the turbo seals and bushings. And I'm ALWAYS driving this car HARD and I just feel better with a heavier weight oil in the hot summer months that are coming up. But thanks for the response.

In that case, I would recommend AMSOIL AMO 10W-40. It is a much tougher oil than the 5W-40.

It is actually the oil we used in our Bonneville Salt Flats car which is a 2.3 Turbo'd putting out over 1400 HP

The difference between 5W-40 and 10W-40 is at 32 Degrees F.

Doc

[gnews]

Only had the Amsoil in a couple of days now but way smoother shifting. I have an 07 SI with about 15K and I haven't had to finesse my way into 3rd gear. I highly recommend the swap. By the way, Harbor Freight has the oil suction gun for 3.99. Not the easiest thing in the world to find!

[slammedRRcoupe]

just ordered amsoil synchromesh tranny fluid today. this will be helpful in the near future. bump

[Excalibur]

I can't find the fluid pump that fits directly on the amsoil bottle for some reason. Anyone have a link to it?

[kwonoh2]

nice!!

[ricotimlg82]

Originally Posted by BATANG CITY JAIL

okey..its been 2 days since i change my MTF...
tonight is cold, 30F, i start the car and i notice that the rpm at idle is going down faster than before. i run the car and you can really notice the notchiness of the shifting but the good news, 3rd gear is behaving. (crosses finger) 3rd gear have not poped out on me since yeasterday.

how about you guys? for the ones who changed thier MTF.

to BCJ, seems that you know alot about civics, i'm 61 yrs old and i do a lot of diy on my 94 civic, until i wreck it... it had 5 speed tranny, now i bought a 06 civic and loving it so much.

but this time i have a 06 and auto tranny. how do i change trans. oil?.

[Zeuceone]

ricotimlg82

the tranny has a bolt on the left side, remove it and drain the fluid. then fill it with about 2.5 quarts of OEm HOnda fluid.

[f14fighter]

As I have posted my info in the TSB part, with the change to Royal Purple I have had no problems whatsoever. I had to flush the tranny out before adding in new... I was getting the shaft from two dealerships about them having to 'reproduce' the problem. I took it upon myself to get the problem fixed. Piss on those two dealerships... Victory Honda of Muncie, IN and Kokomo Auto World of Kokomo, IN

[Old School SI]

Hi All

First post, just picked up my 09 civic si sedan. Just hit the 300 mile mark. Shifting thru the gears seems fine except going into 6th seems a little notchy. Does anyone know if Honda put the "new improved" version of their MTF in the 2009's?

Thanks
Al

[Zeuceone]

the 6th gear thing is normal. you just have to get used to it. its a bit tricky to get into

[GreyK20z]

Originally Posted by Zeuceone

the 6th gear thing is normal. you just have to get used to it. its a bit tricky to get into

I know you got my pm Zeuce

[Zeuceone]

i was pm'ing someone and forgot about yours.

[20civic07]

FYI, while stopping at my local parts dealership to buy some honda genuine manual tranny fluid, he said that to never put synthetic tranny fluid in our trannys. they said something about the tranny syncros spinning too fast and it would eventually make the tranny grind in every gear. there was a customer with an 08 si who put synthetic tranny fluid in their car and it fk'ed up the syncros and he had to pay 2600 to get it fixed because they wouldn't warranty it (because of the synthetic fluid)

[N1GHTH4Wk]

Originally Posted by Old School SI

Hi All

First post, just picked up my 09 civic si sedan. Just hit the 300 mile mark. Shifting thru the gears seems fine except going into 6th seems a little notchy. Does anyone know if Honda put the "new improved" version of their MTF in the 2009's?

Thanks
Al

Welcome!

[20civic07]

also, to pump the tranny fluid in, it's easier to buy a siphon only around 10 bucks at harbor freight tools. you can put one tube into the tranny fluid bottle and another inside the tranny. very easy way to do it.

[f14fighter]

Originally Posted by 20civic07

FYI, while stopping at my local parts dealership to buy some honda genuine manual tranny fluid, he said that to never put synthetic tranny fluid in our trannys. they said something about the tranny syncros spinning too fast and it would eventually make the tranny grind in every gear. there was a customer with an 08 si who put synthetic tranny fluid in their car and it fk'ed up the syncros and he had to pay 2600 to get it fixed because they wouldn't warranty it (because of the synthetic fluid)

With my personal experience and a few tips from an honest service tech... I have been informed that the techs are required to suggest always buying Honda brand merchandise and parts. I recently replaced my MTF with Royal Purple. I used to have that damn 3rd gear problem, which two dealerships refused to service since they couldn't duplicate the problem, until I flushed the tranny and put in the purple. 5K miles later and still fine.

[homeboyv]

how many quarts should i need to change my tranny fluid? I've called around to a couple of oil change shops and ive heard anywhere from 18 quarts to 3....now i kno that the car doesnt need 18 quarts but could they need this to flush it out? really dont feel like buying so many bottles to get it changed

[f14fighter]

I had two bottles. Just a bit left over in the second bottle. The flush was a completely different chemical.

[Willie Mack]

subbed

[09CivicSiBrian]

Originally Posted by Janizary

Just one word of advice for anyone attempting a fluid change of any form (oil, tranny, diff, etc.). NEVER drain the fluid before you ensure that you can actually get the fill bolt off.

Shouldn't be an issue on such a new car, however, I have seen it happen...and when it does you are in deep kimchi. (empty tranny and no way to get new fluid in...)

Thanks for the pics, BCJ. That should help some folks out.

I think, in a pinch, you can use the vent cap or remove the speed sensor.
When I filled mine, I used a half court of GM syncromesh then filled the rest of the way with Honda MTF. I changed it with my second oil change, so at about 6000 miles.
B