Dex III ATF Shelf Life

[barlowc]

I have an unopened bottle of Valvoline Dex III / Merc that I bought on 07/13/2002. Would it still be OK to use it for an application that sped'd Dex III? I don't what the shelf life of that stuff is and whether sitting on a shelf in my garage over the years subject to the varying hot/cold temperatures of Michigan's seasons would have done anything to it.

It's only a single bottle and I can just recycle it. But if there's nothing wrong with it, there's probably no reason not to use it. Although maybe I shouldn't mix Dex III with other spec'd fluids and just stick with one kind.

 

[Johnny]

If you have an application for a DEX III fluid go ahead and use it.

 

[barlowc]

According to the owner's manual for my mother-in-law's 2002 Honda Civic EX Sedan (with an automatic transmission), "Always use Honda ATF-Z1. If it is not available, you may use a DEXRON III fluid as a temporary replacement. Have the transmission flushed and refilled with Honda ATF-Z1 as soon as it is convenient. However, continued use can affect shift quality."

Is using that one bottle that I have of DEX III along with a bunch of ATF-Z1 as part of a 3x drain/fill flush procedure a bad idea, or would it be OK? I just hate to dump/recycle new/unused DEX III if it's otherwise OK to use.

 

[Johnny]

If you are going to use it as part of the 3x drain/fill flush procedure I see no problem with it at all. No since in letting it go to waste.