BG Fluid Exchange Experiences and Advice?

[doitmyself]

Approaching 50K miles and first transmission fluid exchange (my bad). My Hyundai 6 speed PowerTech 6F24 transmission has no user serviceable filter. The SP-4M OEM fluid is about $12/qt.. It will cost me $180 to do 3 drain and fills myself. My OEM dealer uses the BG System and charges $180. It seems like a no brainer to pay for this service.

I asked if they used OEM SP-4M fluid vs. BG Universal and they said OEM SP-4M. HMMMMMM.

- Can I request they NOT use the pre cleaner additive? Opinions?

- Opinions on the BG lifetime warranty program??

- Has anyone had this done and can comment on your experience? I just want new fluid and not particularly interested in the BG aspect.

Thank you.

 

[delirious]

IMO

I think it is a waste of money, especially with only 50k miles

I have never had the BG service but I have tried some of their products with no noticeable change

 

[SatinSilver]

It kind of defeats the whole purpose of using the BG system by putting oem fluid in the trans. They're either lying to you or BG about what they're doing. I'd go with a dealer that does it the way the manufacturer recommends. So skip this dealer.

I think the service rep only said oem to appease you. Because he knew if you asked the question about oem that's what you wanted to hear.

The local Hyundai dealer does good work and is A+ rated by the BBB. They charge $120 for atf replacement.

Link

 

[Ethan1]

Just tell them to use the OEM fluid. It will be easy to tell what they used from the invoice. It will either say the OEM number or it will say something obvious like BG-ATF-KIT

 

[doitmyself]

Some good points. Would a dealer risk putting in a non OEM fluid while under warranty? I would confirm this IF I decide to go this route.

JeepWJ19, I am one of the many here that do not believe in the lifetime fluid claims. While the fluid may have excellent chemical properties, I think its good to get the wear material out of there, especially on these units that don't have a serviceable pan and filter.

 

[delirious]

Originally Posted By: doitmyself

JeepWJ19, I am one of the many here that do not believe in the lifetime fluid claims. While the fluid may have excellent chemical properties, I think its good to get the wear material out of there, especially on these units that don't have a serviceable pan and filter.


Sorry, my whole response was towards the BG service. Servicing your transmission fluid at 50k miles I think is good.

 

[RooflessVW]

Just tell them you want a transmission service using OEM fluid and no additives. Whether or not they use the BG machine to accomplish it is inconsequential, and they will do a final fluid level check before releasing the vehicle anyhow.

Edit: FWIW, the BG Synthetic ATF is top-quality, and it is listed as a "suitable" for your fluid specification per their PDS.

 

[SatinSilver]

See if they will let you observe the service being done and see how they react. If they do let you watch just do that and don't start jabbering away with them while they're working.

 

[Donald]

You can do a cooler line flush yourself for the cost of the total number of QTs + 1 or 2. That's all the BG flush machine does.

A drain and fill only empties the pan not the whole system. How many QTs total and how many in the pan?

The dealer should be using OEM fluid.

No multipurpose ATF except Amsoil. Forget the BG additives. Just adds to the bill.

 

[Astro14]

A340 transmission in a 4 Runner that had regular fluid changes its whole life. It worked flawlessly. I was in a hurry, busy at work, and instead of me performing my usual fluid change, I let my local garage perform a BG fluid exchange just before a big road trip.

300 miles later, at night, in reasonably cool weather, the transmission overheated (hot light on dashboard).

Let it cool for a couple of hours.

Found the transmission overfilled by at least 2 quarts. Limped down the road. Stopping every 50 miles, which was when it overheated. Drained off some fluid after arriving where I could do so.

Lock up function of the torque converter never worked again. Transmission got a big new oil cooler, just to keep it in limits. So, the BG fluid exchange took a perfectly good transmission and permanently damaged it.

Never again will I trust a BG anything.

 

[01rangerxl]

The BG lifetime warranty thing will only apply if BG fluid is used. It won't apply to any other fluid, including OEM. You don't get the guarantee just because they use a BG machine to do the change.

I don't know how good the guarantee is. My truck has had plenty of miles on BG synthetic ATF with no issues though. When I was in college it was easiest to take it to a NAPA shop that had BG products for ATF service. It has mostly Mercon V in it now, but probably still some BG since I have only changed what's in the pan since the last BG change a long time ago. The trans is original with over 194K miles and no repairs or problems.

Yes, you can ask they not use the cleaner. I don't think the BG cleaner is likely to hurt anything, but it's probably not needed either.

 

[doitmyself]

Originally Posted By: Donald
You can do a cooler line flush yourself for the cost of the total number of QTs + 1 or 2. That's all the BG flush machine does.

A drain and fill only empties the pan not the whole system. How many QTs total and how many in the pan?

The dealer should be using OEM fluid.

No multipurpose ATF except Amsoil. Forget the BG additives. Just adds to the bill.


Donald, I've done both pan drop and cooler line changes on past vehicles. This time I have circumstances (wife health issues) that may require me to let someone else do it, thus me inquiring about affordable alternatives. My transmission factory fill is 7.5 quarts and drain service is 5 quarts. With the SP-4M at $12/qt., 9 or 10 quarts will cost $110, so the convenience of having someone else do it for $180 is not a deal breaker. IF I can get trustworthy work done this time and trust that the level is correct, I will probably just start doing occasional drain and fills through the drain plug and replace with the same ounces that came out, avoiding the temperature compensated level checks (assuming I see no leak evidence).

Quote:
ASTRO14 So, the BG fluid exchange took a perfectly good transmission and permanently damaged it.

Never again will I trust a BG anything.


That seems more like human error rather than the BG process. Anyone could overfill the transmission using any of the methods available. But, I understand. The last time I let someone else do a change for me some 20 years ago, they put in the wrong fluid and I had to take it back and sternly straighten the situation out.

Thanks 01rangerxl for your input. That lifetime warranty is a bit tempting, but difficult for me, who tends to shy away from universal fluids on anything except maybe a beater.

 

[andyd]

I would think that the 50K interval is very generous and could be extended to a more favorable time when you could DIY

 

[Astro14]

It may well have been human error.

The transmission was overfilled. But it ruined a transmission - and I won't let a local shop, or anyone that pushes BG products, near a transmission of mine again. I was hundreds of miles away when the truck broke down, or I would've given the shop a chance to fix it. I couldn't do that because of distance.

Regardless of cause; human error, flush chemistry, incompatible fluid, I don't care.

BG products remind me of MLM hype and in this instance, cost me thousands of dollars.

 

[oilstudent24]

I had a Ford Fusion that had the transmission fluid changed. The Ford dealer used the BG Fluid and flush and it was around $180-200 about 7 years ago. I had one time when accelerating from a stop where the rpms went up and it slipped and went into gear. Maybe it was a coincidence or maybe not, but I just had it done around 40,000 miles as preventative maintenance. Other than that, it worked fine the next year or so before the vehicle was totaled. The BG Fluid may be a higher quality fluid than OEM, but I always wonder if a universal fluid plays nice with all transmissions. If I had it to do over I would just go OEM. Also I'm not sure what chemicals they use to flush before their fluid goes in.

 

[newtoncd8]

Originally Posted By: doitmyself
Approaching 50K miles and first transmission fluid exchange (my bad). My Hyundai 6 speed PowerTech 6F24 transmission has no user serviceable filter. The SP-4M OEM fluid is about $12/qt.. It will cost me $180 to do 3 drain and fills myself. My OEM dealer uses the BG System and charges $180. It seems like a no brainer to pay for this service.

I asked if they used OEM SP-4M fluid vs. BG Universal and they said OEM SP-4M. HMMMMMM.


Am I the only one who read this that they would use the BG machine, OEM SP-4M fluid and put in the BG ATC Plus (not a cleaner but conditioner)? So, they would use OEM fluid and either a 6 or 11 oz bottle of BG ATC Plus.

 

[Thax]

The 6f24 is a good transmission that we see few problems with. I'd say to do a simple drain and fill with OEM fluid. I know alot on here will say do a complete exchange etc... but its so easy to service this trans. Easily doable in the driveway with only a 3/8th ratchet , 24mm socket and 4 qts oem fluid. Procedure I have used hundreds of times with no problems is to remove 3/8th cover on the valve body cover, remove 24mm plug on bottom of transaxle case. Wipe off the metal filings on the magnetic plug , wait for about 4 qts to drain out. Reinstall 24mm plug to about 32 ft.lbs and fill 4 qts of transmission fluid through the access hole in valve body cover. Reinstall 3/8th cover .Start the vehicle , shift into each gear pausing for 3-5 seconds , let vehicle warm up to full temp. Remove 3/8th fill plug , if fluid trickles out your good. If no fluid comes out , more fluid is needed. If it gushes out it is overfilled.
Do this a few times and the transmission should be good for a long service life.

 

[Sam_Julier]

Originally Posted By: Astro14
A340 transmission in a 4 Runner that had regular fluid changes its whole life. It worked flawlessly. I was in a hurry, busy at work, and instead of me performing my usual fluid change, I let my local garage perform a BG fluid exchange just before a big road trip.

300 miles later, at night, in reasonably cool weather, the transmission overheated (hot light on dashboard).

Let it cool for a couple of hours.

Found the transmission overfilled by at least 2 quarts. Limped down the road. Stopping every 50 miles, which was when it overheated. Drained off some fluid after arriving where I could do so.

Lock up function of the torque converter never worked again. Transmission got a big new oil cooler, just to keep it in limits. So, the BG fluid exchange took a perfectly good transmission and permanently damaged it.

Never again will I trust a BG anything.


Amen. My local Volvo dealer pushes all the BG services. One reason I'll never get a service done there.

 

[JustinH]

Ok, I have some experience with this.

My wife had a Toyota Matrix, the fluid was burned at 50k miles.

I had just bought the car, and had the BG flush done.

I should have just drained the fluid using the drain plug and replaced it that way, would have been much cheaper.

I paid about $140 for the BG service but they did a perfect job. Fluid was dark red for the next 50k miles. Never had a transmission problem and car shifted great.

The flush on a working transmission is a very good idea, they are not putting pressurized fluid into the system, just introducing new fluid slowly and taking out old fluid using the trans cooler.

Now, I have a Hyundai Sonata with the sealed transmission.

On this car I would use the BG service. I am not going to mess with introducing transmission fluid into a sealed unit, with a fluid pump system, and make a huge mess. This type of transmission you almost need to use a fluid exchange machine.

So, if you have a car with a drainplug in the transmission plan, and a method of refilling it easily, I recommend just dropping the drain plug, and refilling the system with exactly what you took out of it. That will be dirt cheap and you can use OEM fluid.

 

[4wd]

BIL made 400k on Chevy truck (4L60e) doing the BG transmission thing ... he's not very mechanical so never DIY ...