HI, i have a client / friend who owns a 2012 Civic automatic with about 180K on the clock. They mentioned to me that the car "shakes" at low speed and they have to apply more throttle to make it stop, so i offered to give it a test drive, and sure enough, it does "shake" as they call it at low throttle/low speed.
To me it feels like a most definite low speed torque converter shutter as i've had a few cars i bought used that would display the same symptoms with old shot fluid, just usually at 45 ish though. I asked the magic question of "when is the last time you had the transmission serviced"... Answer: Never.
So they did offer to take it to jiffy lube to have the transmission serviced, would this be wise? New fluid even if not honda oem has to be better for it then the shuddering.. right? lol or could i do a simple drain and fill a couple times to get the old fluid out? Im a little hesitant to touch it as its their only vehicle, and i'd hate to be blamed for changing it, then having transmission failure or something major. But at the same time this shudder has gotten much worse over the year, i notice it last year but it was very minor so i gave it a pass. Its not the engine misfiring or anything like that, as the honda 4 cyl is smooth as can be.
How would i advise them correctly? Again my thinking is jiffy lube would be "acceptable" as long as they then change it every 20-30K from here on out. The dealer (what i would recommend) has a waiting list a mile long, and i think the shudder is doing damage in the long run. They are the farthest thing from a car person, although i make sure they check and add oil if needed and they do that, but everything else to them is a mystery. lol. They are the fill up the gas a drive type, and wait for the OLM to tell them to change the oil, then drive another 5,000 miles before getting to it. I even thought about offering to put M1-EP in it so they have protection for the 15K+ intervals, but again they do not understand that the fluids are the life of your vehicle... That would be a another thread though lol.
Thanks for your input!
To me it feels like a most definite low speed torque converter shutter as i've had a few cars i bought used that would display the same symptoms with old shot fluid, just usually at 45 ish though. I asked the magic question of "when is the last time you had the transmission serviced"... Answer: Never.
So they did offer to take it to jiffy lube to have the transmission serviced, would this be wise? New fluid even if not honda oem has to be better for it then the shuddering.. right? lol or could i do a simple drain and fill a couple times to get the old fluid out? Im a little hesitant to touch it as its their only vehicle, and i'd hate to be blamed for changing it, then having transmission failure or something major. But at the same time this shudder has gotten much worse over the year, i notice it last year but it was very minor so i gave it a pass. Its not the engine misfiring or anything like that, as the honda 4 cyl is smooth as can be.
How would i advise them correctly? Again my thinking is jiffy lube would be "acceptable" as long as they then change it every 20-30K from here on out. The dealer (what i would recommend) has a waiting list a mile long, and i think the shudder is doing damage in the long run. They are the farthest thing from a car person, although i make sure they check and add oil if needed and they do that, but everything else to them is a mystery. lol. They are the fill up the gas a drive type, and wait for the OLM to tell them to change the oil, then drive another 5,000 miles before getting to it. I even thought about offering to put M1-EP in it so they have protection for the 15K+ intervals, but again they do not understand that the fluids are the life of your vehicle... That would be a another thread though lol.
Thanks for your input!