I had my automatic trans fluid drained & refilled about 3K miles ago at a local shop. Right afterwards, I added the Zmax trans formula and made sure the dipstick level was correct.

Today, I drained & refilled it again because I heard that Zmax was not good stuff. At only 3K miles, the color of the fluid was brownish and very thinnish.

My question is that the fluid that came out was only 2.75 quarts. I added fresh Valvoline Synthetic Blend of about 2.75 and it brought up to level.

I thought that this amount is supposed to be 4 to 5 quarts.
Has anyone here only drained 2.75 quarts?

BTW, the shifting is sooooo much better.

 

When the drain plug is pulled on the transmission all that comes out is the ~ 3qts in the pan. The other ~5 qts are in the passages and torque converter. If 3k miles ago all you had was a drain and refill, most of the old fluid was left in. The beast thing you can now do is go to a place that has a machine to do a complete fluid exchange, and have them put in synthetic ATF: all 8-9 qts.

 

do this (thanks Matt93GXE):

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Instead of doing the $100 flush, what I did was just buy 12 qts of tranny fluid and do the drain/fill thing 3 times, once a week..
to drain the fluid, just pull the plug at the bottom of the tranny.. a 1/2" drive ratchet end fits perfectly (the square piece)
let it drain for a good 20-30 min, then put the plug back in and refill.
the fun part is filling it.. you've got a hole about the size of a McDonald's straw to fill it! (you'd think carmakers would find a better way to do this, but noooo! almost every auto I've seen is done like this.)
you'll need to fill 2.5-4qt each time.
I suggest dumping in 2 qts, then check the level and add as necessary.
(you could also measure how much you drained form the trany then put just a little less than that back in..)
don't overfill, cause that can cause nasty problems. it's better to have to add small amounts several times than try to take some out!
that's about it.. usually I'll change the fluid, then drive for a few days or a week (whenever you have time to do it) and change it again. do this 2-3 times and you should be pretty well done.
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this is what I am currently doing. For the past 2 weekends, I have done a drain and fill. I will do another one this weekend, and then one more because I'm **** about it....

I like doing the drain and fill every weekend because I put a good 300 miles on the fluid and allow it to properly circulate everywhere....

Initial impressions were nothing after the first drain and fill, and a noticeable change on the second one.....We'll see how the third flush does.

 

I used the Z-Max system in my prior car (89 Accord) and it made no appreciable difference whatsoever. I had my '92 Max SE tuned up at the local dealer and they drained the transmission (including the torque converter). It was like $100.00 or so and the shift quality is much better. My feelings about any of those so called miracle products (Z-Max, Pro-Long, Dura-Lube) are that they are essential glorified oil.

 

All the three bottles that come in the Zmax kit are nothing more than tinted pure mineral-oil.

I wish I had known that before I added it in my Max.

Can't we sue Zmax for false advertising?

 

this is what I am currently doing. For the past 2 weekends, I have done a drain and fill. I will do another one this weekend, and then one more because I'm **** about it....

I like doing the drain and fill every weekend because I put a good 300 miles on the fluid and allow it to properly circulate everywhere....

Initial impressions were nothing after the first drain and fill, and a noticeable change on the second one.....We'll see how the third flush does. [/B][/QUOTE]

Thanks so much.

It sounds like a good idea. I will do it again in about two weeks. Eventhough I am using a synthetic blend of ATF, it is far cheaper to do it this way, than to pay a $100 to a local shop for the flush.

 

I just ordered some Royal purple ATF from carparts.com
(gotta love that $30 off $100 coupon!) and planned on
flushing it myself a couple of quarts at a time. I figured I'd might as well since I ordered the B&M tranny cooler too.

Also, a little quick math for ya (since I have nothing better to do). This assumes 9 qts. in system, 3 qts. in pan, & even mixing between drains.

Drain and Fill:

1X = 67% of old fluid left in system
2X = 44%
3X = 30%
4X = 20%
5X = 13%
6X = 9%
7X = 6%

---Paul

 

man i am glade i read this thread, i was changing the atf for my 94 maxima, i called autozone and they said 5 quarts and i had already bought 4q's from the dealer so i just went ahead and poured the wole thing in it and checked the level, the leve was way to high. i started the car thinking i need to start the car so the fluids can go through the system(only ran the car for not more than 30 sec) still it was high. had to drain it out and man what a wast. thx for all the info and i am thinking i am just gonna buy 10more quarts and do the whole flush. wish me luck.

 

aw man one more thing to do on my AutoSE that came from a loveless owner.

I've done:
Fuel filter
Spark plugs
PCV valve
Oil and filter
carbon-clean
New pads/rotors all around and calipers in the back
New control arms/bushings
New water pump (leak)

Anything else pressing I should be doing on a 125,000mi SE (other than fix that damn VTC tick)?

 

A reminder- check transmission fluid with car running and in park. After filling fluid run the transmission through the gears before checking. When it is in the grid, drive around the block so it can shift through the gears and get up to operating temperature then check again in park.

 

thnx for the post, i will keep that in mind.