Planning on changing out the old Honda PS/F in my 1999 Acura TL with 60,000 miles. I see that Autozone carries a PS/F labeled under the Coastal label made for Honda's. Claims to be made to Honda'a specs and recommended safe for Honda vehicles. Anyone have any experience with this product or Coastal products.
Honda P/S Fluid Generic
- Thread starter goldwing
- Start date
- Status
JHZR2
Staff member
does anyone understand what makes honda fluid to be honda fluid? How different can it be?
If it is 'superior' can it be used in other vehicles' PS systems to provide improved protection and performance?
JMH
If it is 'superior' can it be used in other vehicles' PS systems to provide improved protection and performance?
JMH
I asked that question and the concenses was that Honda PS fluid is FM.
Smoky
Smoky
I wouldn't trust that Coastal fluid I've seen at the local AZ. Just get the real stuff from the dealer, it's inexpensive. To err on the side of caution my 2000 TL gets only Honda p/s and ATF-Z1.
It's not a matter of whether Honda fluid is superior, just different as dicatated by the manufacturer's performance criteria and component design.
Honda sells its cars on its reputation for building good, high quality cars; I don't know of anyone who wouldn't otherwise buy a Honda just because the fluids are proprietary.
It's probably not such a simple thing to reverse engineer auto fluids from a clean sheet of paper; however given the specs, it's probably not so hard. Since they can't get a hold of Honda's specifications, most lubricant manufacturers probably don't want to bother labeling a particular fluid as Honda compatible at the risk of possibly being the cause of a customer's damaged vehicle. When I asked RedLine why they don't market a Honda compatible ATF, they said it's because Honda's ATF specification is proprietary and is not disclosed. Leading edge lubricant blender RL has decided not to try and blend a Honda ATF-Z1 "compatible" fluid and that goes for a lot of other lube blenders/manufacturers.
It's not a matter of whether Honda fluid is superior, just different as dicatated by the manufacturer's performance criteria and component design.
Honda sells its cars on its reputation for building good, high quality cars; I don't know of anyone who wouldn't otherwise buy a Honda just because the fluids are proprietary.
Well I'm dang close to it...the next vehicle purchase I *will* factor that inquote:
Honda sells its cars on its reputation for building good, high quality cars; I don't know of anyone who wouldn't otherwise buy a Honda just because the fluids are proprietary.[/QB]
It irritates the ^&&%$ out of me to have to buy their overpriced VTM-4 fluid, which only comes in gallons but a change is 3 quarts, and their overpriced transmission fluid, and to a lesser extent their power steering fluid.
To be honest I'm not all that pleased with their "high quality" on the Pilot. Pretty much incurable vibration at 70mph, lots of road noise and a very creaky interior. I've been happier with the Toyotas I've owned.
When I buy Honda PS fluid from the dealer it is 1.98 for 12oz, and I pay just under $10 for a gallon of coolant. I consider these prices very reasonable.
MolaKule
Staff member
Yes.
The Honda PS fluid is not necessarily "superior" but was developed for Honda's PS design. It has extra AW additives over and above what regular PS fluids will have. It also has special esters for friction modification and for seal swell. It is mostly a GroupIII mineral oil with some PAO (for pour point depressant) and esters for the FM and seal swell.
I feel the same way about my 2000 TL. No vibration to speak of, since the rotors were replaced 3 times.
Lots of road, wind, and cabin noise.
I don't know who was responsible for real-world testing, but they failed horribly. My car is so squeaky/creaky, it's not funny (they should be fired). It's terribly embarrasing to drive my parents around while my car isn't any less quiet than their old accord and still makes random noises.
I know that there's a Honda SUV that's actually made by Isuzu and I think it's the Pilot. The comparable Isuzu vehicle would be the Rodeo. There's an Acura version, too. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but this could explain the odd problems. You're not really driving a Honda.
- Status
Similar threads
- Locked
