Mazda dealer refused to change transmission fluid

Do you have the list of the conditions? Mazda doesn't say anything about there severe service for tranny maintenance.
Yeah, these are the severe conditions Hyundai and probably Kia use.

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Do you have the list of the conditions? Mazda doesn't say anything about there severe service for tranny maintenance.
As you say, Mazda doesn't distinguish driving conditions (at least for that car model). It's not like you can tell this one dealer "see, I do that, so you should change it". Go to an independent shop to get this done (or DIY). It has a drain plug and dipstick so fluid changes are absolutely possible.
 
Easier than an oil change.
All fluid breaks down......no matter mileage or time.
If you want to keep the car replenish the fluid....change it.
Dealers, sometimes, are a waste of space.
And find an independent shop that specializes in maintaining/repairing Mazdas and other Asia brands.
 
Here is how to access the dipstick/fill port. In this video, he did not pull the pan and change the filter. If doing this, I would change the filter.
Maybe you could do a drain and refill @30k miles and again with a filter change @ 60k.

Since Mazda says sealed for life, do the service techs even know how to change it? Maybe that's why they don't want to do it?

 
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I'd either take it to another shop or do it myself. When I planned to change the CVT fluid/filters in my '16 Nissan Versa at 30K miles I spoke to the dealer about it and they told me they would change the fluid but they never change the filters. I ordered the fluid/filters online and did it myself.
Sir...Could you please tell what condition was the fluid, pan and magnets @ 30K miles on your CVT transmission? The reason I ask, we own a 2017 Rogue Sport that coming up to 25k miles and I was planning on changing out the fluid and small filter. (Not planning on a pan drop until 50-60k miles.) Very hard to find any info/photo's or first hand personal experience on the web on this service. Thanks for any info you could provide. Bill
 
Sir...Could you please tell what condition was the fluid, pan and magnets @ 30K miles on your CVT transmission? The reason I ask, we own a 2017 Rogue Sport that coming up to 25k miles and I was planning on changing out the fluid and small filter. (Not planning on a pan drop until 50-60k miles.) Very hard to find any info/photo's or first hand personal experience on the web on this service. Thanks for any info you could provide. Bill
The fluid was pretty dark but didn't smell burnt. The magnets had less than 1/16" of metallic fuzz and no large pieces of metal. Your
Rouge probably doesn't have a dipstick either but if it's like my Versa there's a cap near the front of the transmission that locks down and can be pried or tapped off with a screwdriver from underneath and use that tube for refilling. Be sure you can remove the cap before draining your transmission. When I replaced the cap I turned it 180* so it wouldn't lock back down. The cap is sealed with an o ring so no chance of it coming out on it's own. Nissan recommends filling the transmission to a certain level at a specific temperature but since I knew I didn't have any leaks I drained the fluid at ambient temperature then measured the amount of fluid out and replaced it with the same amount of new fluid. As I remember for a drain/fill and both filters my transmission took 3 3/4 quarts and as I remember the total fluid capacity was either 7 1/8 or 7 1/4 quarts so I got slightly over half the fluid replaced and will do it again at 60K. If I'm still around and driving the Versa I plan to do a series of 2 or 3 drain/fills between 90-100K and change the filters on the last of the series. That should replenish the fluid/filters to near new standards. You can also check you tube there are probably some videos there of people changing it in a Rouge.
 
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We got same response for the '18 Accent with the 6 speed auto . Said it would cost about $600 for the service , so not worthwhile . :rolleyes:
I have an 18 Rio which is exactly the same. Super easy to do. I have done it a couple of times now. I can assure you that the fluid was nasty at 40k. I began to experience stiff down shifts in traffic, and slight flare between 5th and 6th. I D & F’d twice and all was good to go. Could tell an immediate difference.
 
*******UPDATE*******

Good day folks,

I called another Mazda dealership which is only 1 hour away from home, and they told me they can check the transmission fluid and if it is very dark and/or smell burnt, they can drain the pan and add new fluid in, which will replace around 70% of the total fluid if I am correct, I may be wrong on this. They are charging me 180$ for the job. they should use around 4-5 liters of ATF fluid, but they will not drop the pan and change the filter. In any case, my car is still under warranty and I don't mind paying 180$ for new fluid, if something goes wrong, its on their end.

What do you guys think?

Thanks for the inputs guys, it really helped!
 
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*******UPDATE*******

Good day folks,

I called another Mazda dealership which is only 1 hour away from home, and they told me they can check the transmission fluid and if it is very dark and/or smell burnt, they can drain the pan and add new fluid in, which will replace around 70% of the total fluid if I am correct, I may be wrong on this. They are charging me 180$ for the job. they should use around 4-5 liters of ATF fluid, but they will not drop the pan and change the filter. In any case, my car is still under warranty and I don't mind paying 180$ for new fluid, if something goes wrong, its on their end.

What do you guys think?

Thanks for the inputs guys, it really helped!
3.5 liters will come out and that's after a longggggg drain.
It's about 50% of the trans capacity.
Push them to change it......
 
FordMan59...Thanks for your reply. I believe I'll just replace the fluid and the small filter @ 25k mi. The front of the car w/be on ramps and I'll do a drain when the engine is cold. (Sitting overnight and I'll put 5 qts of new fluid outside.) I made an improvised dipstick, so I know the "Cold/Hot" reading. (I'm assuming the factory put in the correct amount, but there's also an overflow plug you can check w/the car level and at a certain temp.) It sounds like there's some magnet fuzz on the magnets but it is not too excessive. Thanks once again. Bill
 
I have an 18 Rio which is exactly the same. Super easy to do. I have done it a couple of times now. I can assure you that the fluid was nasty at 40k. I began to experience stiff down shifts in traffic, and slight flare between 5th and 6th. I D & F’d twice and all was good to go. Could tell an immediate difference.
Have watched a few videos of " how to " for 6 speed auto of Hyundai ACCENT and Kia Rios . Thanks
 
I wanted also to mention, the second dealership I contacted, who will proceed with the transmission service, said that the fluid was lifetime too BUT could be changed if it was very dark/black and smelled burnt. Apparently this was mentioned somewhere in his notes on the computer by Mazda. He may have just said that to get my business and my money, but I don't really care at this point since he is willing to do the job with the correct Mazda stuff. I am going for my appointment tomorow, will ask him again where he got that information. Will keep your guys posted about it.
 
Don't overthink this. Your vehicle has a drain plug and dipstick. They don't add those just for instances of transmission repair, they're there for maintenance. I suspect that vehicle uses the same transmission as other Mazdas from other years and those models have a service schedule for ATF. Putting the same transmission in a different model, using the same fluid, doesn't magically make the fluid a "forever fluid".
 
When I asked my Audi dealer about changing the fluid in my B5 S4 (This was years ago; probably 2005 - 2007) they told me it is a lifetime fluid. I told them there is no such thing. They quoted me $650 for the change with filters. I asked why so expensive and they told me that the fluid was $40 a quart and it was only semi-synthetic. I ended up going to a 3rd party, buying Amsoil ATF (before they had the signature ATF and the other one) and they replaced the fluid and filters. I think it took 7 quarts. Something about the filter holding a lot of fluid. I forget what I paid though. I planned on replacing it again at 100k but after all these years I'm still not at 100k and I don't drive it at the moment. I think I am at 99800. I have other things to fix on that car before I do the ATF again. I have to re-register it before I can start driving it.
 
**** UPDATE ******

Dealer drained the pan and filled with oem mazda fluid, which is only 50% of the total fluid. It seems to shift a bit better, but seems clunky still to downshift when city driving stop-and-go. At this point I dont know what to do, should I get them to drain more and add another 3.5 quarts of new fluid in? I am not sure what to do now...
 
but seems clunky still to downshift when city driving stop-and-go.
If 50% of the fluid is new, I'm not sure if you'll see a complete fix / solution. Another drain and fill will get you to 75% new fluid (mathematically). Are you sure it only holds 7 quarts ? Usually a drain only gets about 1/3 out.

Found a reference saying it holds 8.2 quarts

Look up how to reset the transmission's "adaptive learning", if it has this. Try that first.
 
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