ATF for Kia specifying SP-III ATF?

[nbpt100]

I have a 2010 Kia Sedona with an automatic trans. It specs Kia SP-III ATF. It now has 220k miles and I have owned it for the past 30k miles. It runs very well. I want to keep it going. You can not change the ATF filter with out pulling the Transaxle so it has never been done and likely never will. It has a magnetic drain plug that makes draining and filling easy. Many on the Kia forum suggest the Valvoline MaxLife ATF. When you do a drain and fill you get about 50% out. I just did one with the Valvoline MaxLife and I noticed a slightly smoother shifting right a way. After about 1000 miles I noticed when taking my foot off of the gas the trans sometimes will not clutch out the engine as soon or as well. Does that make sense to folks? I am wondering if the seal conditioners in the Valvoline MaxLife ATF is effecting something? I do not have any leaks but I thought at the mileage and age I am at, it would not hurt and may help going forward. I am thinking of doing another drain and fill with a different ATF. Maybe the Valvoline Full Synthetic Extended Protection? It is more money but it does not have the seal conditioners and it claims to protect better. Another $25 or $35 is nothing in the big picture if it prevents a problem. Heck, $100 more may be well spent money. At the age and mileage , I am reading against doing a flush. Looking for thoughts from the good knowledgeable people here.

p.s. I asked Perplexity "Is SPIV backward compatible?" I am paraphrasing here but It said only if it claims to be on the packaging. Interesting and safe answer. I think my Mail man could have given me that answer. Bar tender or who ever you want to substitute.

 

[JayhawkRoy]

Think I would talk to a dealer first. I have gone thru this with a 2014 santa fe and gave up. dealer service only. good luck. Trans OK at 135K miles so far.

I don;t like multipurpose fluids, so that leaves me out of maxlife world.

 

[walterjay]

At that mileage I would advise against a complete flush. As far as which fluid I don't think it would much matter. I have always used the Max Life in my Hyundai/Kia products without problems. At 220K mileage I suspect something is just wearing out.

 

[HyundaiAbuser]

Went through this with mine and a couple colleagues older Hyundais. Nothing I tried has made a greater difference than just having fresh fluid. Maxlife, import mv, Castrol import, atf +4. I would try the aisin application specific spIII personally but maxlife is just fine

 

[SilentType]

I too used Maxlife in a 2007 Sportage and it ran great. However this was a few years back before Valvoline added CVT coverage. Can't say how the current brew would work but likely is fine. I don't know if it's the same transmission but I also got right at 50 percent capacity to drain out. You should try 2 more drain and fills with Maxlife then go from there. As an aside Valvoline Import ATF is a hair thicker if you want to go that route.

 

[Sequoiasoon]

I have the blue bottle Valvoline Multi Vehicle Import in my son's 2010 Forte. It had the Maxlife red after a 3x flush for a while, maybe I'm imagining but the Multi Vehicle blue I think shifts a bit better, he's at 202k miles.

All the places say the newer lower viscosity versions are backward compatible and fresh of something is best. In another vehicle, '08 CRV, I had choice between the lower viscosity or the slightly higher viscosity. I emailed the company, High Performance Lubricants, and they recommended the higher viscosity as it was closer to the original Z-1 it came with. I went with that and all is well. I applied the same logic to the Forte.

 

[Tempest1]

The newer Restore and Protect ATF might be a good idea to help clean up the internals. Also, adding Lubegard Red to what you have now and running it about 2K might help as well.

 

[Rand]

https://www.amazon.com/Idemitsu-SP-III-Automatic-Transmission-Hyundai/dp/B0G53N7G3V?th=1
10qts for $83

Idemitsu ATF Type HK (SP-III) Automatic Transmission Fluid for Hyundai/Kia – 5 Quart, Pack of 2​

 

[Egg_Head]

You bought the car with 190K miles and have done your first D&F at 220K miles. Any idea of the maintenance history and if SP-III has always been used? What was the condition of the fluid that came out? Burnt smelling? You should celebrate that tranny has lasted that long, is the vehicle a 4 cyl or the 3.5L V6? My son's 2010 Santa Fe 3.5 had the tranny go out at 160k and it was serviced every 40-60k miles.

 

[Brons2]

I've had an SP-III vehicle, a 2007 Kia Rondo. I had good luck using Castrol Transmax, it was more similar in viscosity to the SP-III at the time I used it, in the low 7s CST at 100C. Not sure if they still make it. It was available at Walmart in the era that I owned this vehicle.

The Maxlife is more like an LV fluid, I believe below 6CST. I've had issues using Maxlife on a Toyota with shift flares and whatnot. I'm not opposed to using universals, but I'd stick to similar viscosities.