Do you have to use mazda type fz fluid in a mazda cx 5? my car has 80,000km on it and I want to change the trans fluid but not sure if I can use an alternative fluid or not i'm able to buy a fluid that meets mazda fz spec and says " Designed to meet friction requirements for low viscosity fluids " would this be good enough?
Do I HAVE to use only mazda type FZ fluid in a mazda transmission?
- Thread starter Dunkaroo
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So do you think if I was to buy this fluid that meets mazda fz spec I should be fine? someone else said on here "and the factory reman facility has seen several FZ (Skyactiv) transmission cores that had failed after being filled with red ATF." so this is why i'm asking if it has to be the mazda oil
What is available to you?
Although it's always a good idea to use the factory ATF in any tranny(especially under warranty), I have used MaxLIFE ATF and Castrol TransMAX(Import Multi-Vehicle/IMV) ATF in many a Honda, Toyota/LEXUS, Mazda & Nissan conventional automatic transmission without a single issue. And all while said vehicles were/are still under their factory warranty.
And I am currently using Castrol TransMAX CVT fluid in the CVT's of the Honda Civic/Nissan Altima in my signature without a single issue after 1 year and they are performing perfectly thus far. If these trannies explode, it isn't going to be from the fluid, it'll be from design.
Although it's always a good idea to use the factory ATF in any tranny(especially under warranty), I have used MaxLIFE ATF and Castrol TransMAX(Import Multi-Vehicle/IMV) ATF in many a Honda, Toyota/LEXUS, Mazda & Nissan conventional automatic transmission without a single issue. And all while said vehicles were/are still under their factory warranty.
And I am currently using Castrol TransMAX CVT fluid in the CVT's of the Honda Civic/Nissan Altima in my signature without a single issue after 1 year and they are performing perfectly thus far. If these trannies explode, it isn't going to be from the fluid, it'll be from design.
If a fluid actually states meets Mazda's spec, I would use it. If "suitable for" Mazda appears, I wouldn't use it. No multi use or Max life fluid will go in any of my transmissions.
Because here where I live it costs $300 for 5 litres of the FZ fluid.
What are your options in Australia for Transmission fluid? What does the dealer charge for a tranny service? Maybe it's best to deal the dealer do this for you. That way if there are any transmission problems, they did the service and it's recorded.
You brang up a good point I didn't think of the fluid I wanted to buy doesn't actually meet the mazda spec it only says that it is "suitable for". So in that case I think i'll just have to pay the $300 for mazda fluid. Then in maybe 3 years when i've put another 40,000km on the transmission then i'll use the other fluid.
The very dear "Volvo transmission oil" is what got me into reading about these fluids. It took years to amass anecdotal testimony from those who ventured away from galling dealership fluid prices.
It turned out, in the case of the AW55-50 series of transmissions, there are suitable generics.
Mobil 3309, Valvoline Maxlife synthetic Dex-Merc LV, Wolf's Head Super Universal Synthetic, PetroCanada synthetic and TOYOTA T-IV all worked.........in that unit.
So, is the FZ anything special or just a pale blue LV fluid?
To the best of my knowledge the FZ fluid has been in cars from 2012, possibly earlier.
That's gotta be enough time for people to have reported on substitutes.
I suggest diving into Mazda owners fora.
You then should add "research time & effort" into your calculations.
Your AUS $60 per liter price is USD $42. I asked nicely at the dealership and they charged me USD $15.
So your FZ is ~3X our price. Ouch.
Trashing your 6 speed or simply impeding optimal operation with incorrect lube is a bigger ouch.
If I was in your shoes and couldn't find any good info on the subject, I'd bite the bullet and use the real thing.
Remember, people who experiment and fail NEVER post about it.
Repair shops which use the wrong fluid never confess either.
A dull, trained invoice jockey once told me there are no differences among transmission fluids. This was at a nationally known quick lube chain.
This does mean that there are careless people working against you.
Best of luck with your decision.
edit: JC1's suggestion of learning the cost of buying dealership service is a good one.
It turned out, in the case of the AW55-50 series of transmissions, there are suitable generics.
Mobil 3309, Valvoline Maxlife synthetic Dex-Merc LV, Wolf's Head Super Universal Synthetic, PetroCanada synthetic and TOYOTA T-IV all worked.........in that unit.
So, is the FZ anything special or just a pale blue LV fluid?
To the best of my knowledge the FZ fluid has been in cars from 2012, possibly earlier.
That's gotta be enough time for people to have reported on substitutes.
I suggest diving into Mazda owners fora.
You then should add "research time & effort" into your calculations.
Your AUS $60 per liter price is USD $42. I asked nicely at the dealership and they charged me USD $15.
So your FZ is ~3X our price. Ouch.
Trashing your 6 speed or simply impeding optimal operation with incorrect lube is a bigger ouch.
If I was in your shoes and couldn't find any good info on the subject, I'd bite the bullet and use the real thing.
Remember, people who experiment and fail NEVER post about it.
Repair shops which use the wrong fluid never confess either.
A dull, trained invoice jockey once told me there are no differences among transmission fluids. This was at a nationally known quick lube chain.
This does mean that there are careless people working against you.
Best of luck with your decision.
edit: JC1's suggestion of learning the cost of buying dealership service is a good one.
You can use Maxlife with no problem 
Well, if you can find an ATF that says it meets Mazda FZ ATF specs, I'd really appreciate it if you'd post the info here.
As to the person who wrote that about the Skyactiv tranny reman facility, what they failed to post probably goes something like this: Most of the Skyactive A/Ts that need rebuilt have pure Mazda FZ fluid in them.
That neither means that the non-Mazda fluid caused any particular failures, nor that the FZ fluid is not good enough. It simply means that a percentage of transmissions fail before they should. There isn't enough info to draw any further conclusions.
I sympathize with your situation. The price you posted for the Mazda fluid is insanely high. I don't know quite exactly what I'd do if I were in your situation, but there have been some good suggestions here (i.e. see what the dealer will charge to change the fluid, making sure they will use Mazda FZ fluid).
Well this fluid says it meets the mazda spec https://www.nulon.com.au/products/a...utomatic-transmission-fluid-low-viscosity.pdf but on the bottle it only says "suits"
Try Ravenol, available in Australia. See here:
Someone on Whirlpool reckons it costs $20.60 per litre. See this thread https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/2749191
Failing that, would you consider Penrite ATF LV for $15 per litre (or less than $10 if you buy 20L)?
Someone on Whirlpool reckons it costs $20.60 per litre. See this thread https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/2749191
Failing that, would you consider Penrite ATF LV for $15 per litre (or less than $10 if you buy 20L)?
Ravenol is the only outfit I have seen which claims a Mazda-specific fluid. Nulon now joins the ranks of the purveyors of universal fluids which claim to also cover Mazda’s FZ. It may do very well.
Mazda don’t publish their spec, AFAIK. I know I don’t have a copy of it. (-:
I am tempted to try a particular semi-universal ATF that I like, in my SkyActive Mazda A/T. However, Mazda’s FZ fluid is available to me for a similar price, so I haven’t bothered.
Mazda don’t publish their spec, AFAIK. I know I don’t have a copy of it. (-:
I am tempted to try a particular semi-universal ATF that I like, in my SkyActive Mazda A/T. However, Mazda’s FZ fluid is available to me for a similar price, so I haven’t bothered.
Valvoline Maxlife MV is recommend for use in applications calling for Mazda M-V and FZ. Given that MaxLife is the most widely used and the most respected ATF on this site, I would have no problems with using it in place of Mazda FZ. I wouldn't get hung up on meeting the manufacturer's spec, because in many situations you would need to pay the licensing fee to say you're an official Mazda FZ, Toyota WS, etc fluid. That would make the cost of an multi-vehicle ATF very pricey, also some specs include things that aren't really relevant to performance like colour (which is added as as dye in ATF and coolant). So you can't meet Mazda M-V and FZ for instance if FZ calls for a blue colour and M-V calls for red.
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i have same concerns https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/t...nique-atf-or-just-rebranded-toyota-ws.347410/
Yeah we already know from that post. It does no good to resurrect this old thread to tell everyone what they already know.
