'04 Honda Trans death

[86cutlass307]

Good morning, my wife's 2004 Accord V6 auto transmission finally gave up this week. 188,000 miles we got out of it, it was a BAYA code if that means anything (3rd clutch pack and Q converter died). I have been following some of the ATF posts here relating to Hondas and just had a couple of questions for you guys with alot more experience with these cars.

I elected to replace with a reman'd unit...better warranty and internal improvements accomplished.(wife drives alot for her work - 500 to 1000 a week sometimes) my transmission repair guy is going to begin life for the new trans. with Honda DW-1 fluid. I spent the last 5 years doing periodic 3 qt drain & fills with Redline D4 - use it in everything I own.

I saw a thread on here once about using D6 in a new/reman'd Honda unit and then switching to D4 as the trans aged. My hope is to get another long service life out of the reman'd unit. Any recommendations from experts out there? We want to hang onto this car for a couple more years at least, motor purrs like a kitten, doesn't use a drop of oil and I rebuilt the suspension last fall so it rides like a dream still. Thanks for the input guys.

 

[dparm]

What does the company doing the remanufacturing recommend?

 

[86cutlass307]

Fluid meeting Honda Z-1 (gone now) or DW1 spec's. I thought about stockpiling some Honda trans fluid, I saw a few posts about the new DW1 being a better trans fluid...and it is cheaper than Redline D4 but I will probably keep the Honda juice while in warranty.

 

[JHZR2]

+1 dparm, and is D4 or D6 really the right fluid for that screwy Honda design?

 

[ARB1977]

I would use DW1. I was going to use Amsoil Universal since our CRV was speced for the older fluid. Now it's speced for DW1 like other Hondas. DW1 is pretty cheap at H and A. Replace the fluid every 15K like the book says and hopefully get good life out of the unit.

 

[86cutlass307]

H & A?

 

[onion]

188,000 on an 04 V6 Accord auto is nothing to sneeze at. Lots of them never made it to 100K. I wouldn't say that this indicated any problem with D4.

Personally I'm running DW1 in my '04 Accord with the 4 cyl. I"m trying to convince myself to switch over to Transynd, though.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: ARB1977
I would use DW1. I was going to use Amsoil Universal since our CRV was speced for the older fluid. Now it's speced for DW1 like other Hondas. DW1 is pretty cheap at H and A. Replace the fluid every 15K like the book says and hopefully get good life out of the unit.


Guess I'm just not a fan of a one size fits all universal fluid in what is one of the worst at designs ever. Now if there is a basis for protection or longevity, great, but ive not seen it...

 

[Sayjac]

188k, though others might disagree, not too shabby for this trans.

As for D4/D6 choice, as said get input from reman co. and perhaps RL as well.

I suppose DW-1 is the logical/safe choice here. But, since Honda chose to go with a new fluid for previous Z-1 apps, I'm going with MaxLife for my 3.0L Accord and 01 Civic (160K) that have seen only Z1 D/F's.

FYI, did you know that the V6 has a trans filter in that Honda transmission? Honda doesn't seem to recommend/recognize changing the filter. After reading this, think I might disagree.

Good luck with the reman.

 

[86cutlass307]

I saw that filter info on the driveaccord forum and changed that little pink filter twice. Can't say that it was my favorite job on her Honda but the first time I changed it that filter was rock hard and dark from age/contamination. I knew her trans was on borrowed time, the mag plug was getting more and more material over the last couple of years.

 

[Sayjac]

Very good. Sounds like you did about all you could do then to keep the trans functioning.

Yes, I haven't done the filter change yet, but it doesn't look to be pleasant. Saw where the OP on DA doing it, had to soak his back after the service.

 

[86cutlass307]

Dead on...I'm 6'6" tall and shocked my wife with some new words periodically when she came out to check on me. Air box and wiring/plumbing were the biggest pain other than that bottom bolt on the filter cover. Once I made a clear work area though it was straight forward. Cheapest place I found for parts was HondaPartsNow.com. No, I'm not an employee, my local Honda dealer parts guy is not jobber friendly. Tried every bribe and lie in the book. I can get most things delivered for cheaper than he wants + tax.

 

[bigdawg74]

Originally Posted By: 86cutlass307
H & A?

handa-accessories dot com

Honda and Acura

 

[Hokiefyd]

188k miles out of any TFWD transaxle is a good service life. I agree: ask what the reman outfit recommends. If "Honda fluid", then I'd probably use the DW-1 fluid.

 

[Sayjac]

Yeah, on the east coast perhaps because of lower shipping charges, Majestic seems to be the low dollar. That said, in the past I have been able to talk the closest local dealer into a price match of the Honda list price as shown on the online sites. It usually works out a bit cheaper than online with S&H included. There is a rare (small town) Honda dealer not too far, that actually quotes the list price. Shows how much mark up there is in the OEM parts.

Much shorter than you, and my back hurt just from spending time looking in the engine bay to locate all the parts to be removed.

 

[Cooper]

I use DW-1 in my rebuilt AT5. It has been working well for us. I would recommend DW-1.

 

[CATERHAM]

Originally Posted By: ARB1977
Replace the fluid every 15K like the book says and hopefully get good life out of the unit.

According to my Acura technician friend, that's the key to maximizing the life of a Honda AT.

 

[lukejo]

I've heard so much about bad Honda transmissions. What years? I bought a 2007 Accord V6 less than a year ago and am hoping the problems were solved by then.

 

[moto94536]

the problem was you used redline d4. why used $10/qt d4 in honda ??? You can buy Honda ATF DW-1 for $6.18 /qt. DW1 is cheaper and safer for your honda transmission..

 

[lukejo]

Originally Posted By: lukejo
I've heard so much about bad Honda transmissions. What years? I bought a 2007 Accord V6 less than a year ago and am hoping the problems were solved by then.

I had Honda perform a transmission flush at 55,000, but have a feeling that this was the first.