Out with the oil, in with the Amsoil

[Klutch9]

about 2 and a half weeks ago i flushed out the trans pan of my 97 grand am. the car is spec'd for dex 3 but i had 3 bottles of Amsoil atf lying around, so i figured i'd buy a couple more and refill with that. the old fluid wasn't completely black, but it still looked pretty nasty. i then refilled with Amsoil atf (i didn't replace the old filter by the way either). and what a difference! i waited some time to post this because sometimes the effects of new fluids aren't noticed immediately. but it seems that every day since then the tranny shifts much smoother, both in upshifting and downshifting. i highly recommend this stuff

 

[Steve S]

Aren't all synthetic oils the same? no some are not as good as others

 

[c3po]

Originally Posted By: Klutch9
about 2 and a half weeks ago i flushed out the trans pan of my 97 grand am. the car is spec'd for dex 3 but i had 3 bottles of Amsoil atf lying around, so i figured i'd buy a couple more and refill with that. the old fluid wasn't completely black, but it still looked pretty nasty. i then refilled with Amsoil atf (i didn't replace the old filter by the way either). and what a difference! i waited some time to post this because sometimes the effects of new fluids aren't noticed immediately. but it seems that every day since then the tranny shifts much smoother, both in upshifting and downshifting. i highly recommend this stuff

I am glad you posted this, I noticed the same thing when I put in Amsoil ATF. It made my Turbo 350 transmission's shifts so much smoother.

 

[Whitewolf]

Originally Posted By: Steve S
Aren't all synthetic oils the same? no some are not as good as others


You are right. Some of the synthetic products are terrible. Aside from the confusion about what 'synthetic' actually means, some companies have the 'skill' to make real synthetic (PAO/Ester) based fluids that are far worse in performance than many mineral based products.

 

[Turk]

I'm running Amsoil ATF in the tranny for over 50,000 miles - shifts great!

 

[Klutch9]

what i really like about it is the shift quality, even when the tranny isn't fully warmed up. the vast majority of my trips are quite short, and my transmission doesn't operate very often at full operating temperature, so putting the Amsoil in was a great decision

 

[Pablo]

Originally Posted By: Whitewolf
Originally Posted By: Steve S
Aren't all synthetic oils the same? no some are not as good as others


You are right. Some of the synthetic products are terrible. Aside from the confusion about what 'synthetic' actually means, some companies have the 'skill' to make real synthetic (PAO/Ester) based fluids that are far worse in performance than many mineral based products.


I suppose one could say that about any fluid!! OTOH - I've been in the business for a wee bit, and try as some folks do, Amsoil ATF is fairly hard to bad mouth.

 

[hounddog]

I have been in contct with Valvoline.They say their Full Synthetic Atf exceeds Amsoil and Mobiles at 1/2 the price.Their bottles say FULL SYNTHETIC.Also they brag that they are the FACTORY FILL for Chrysler.That I know is true.What about their claim about being better?

 

[Pablo]

Originally Posted By: hounddog
I have been in contct with Valvoline.They say their Full Synthetic Atf exceeds Amsoil and Mobiles at 1/2 the price.Their bottles say FULL SYNTHETIC.Also they brag that they are the FACTORY FILL for Chrysler.That I know is true.What about their claim about being better?


Chrysler uses Full Synthetic Valvoline in all their cars for factory fill?

May I have some proof of that?

Better? Better in what way?

 

[Whitewolf]

Originally Posted By: hounddog
I have been in contct with Valvoline.They say their Full Synthetic Atf exceeds Amsoil and Mobiles at 1/2 the price.Their bottles say FULL SYNTHETIC.Also they brag that they are the FACTORY FILL for Chrysler.That I know is true.What about their claim about being better?


Are you talking about ATF+4?

 

[Johnny]

Unless the world flipped upside down last night, Valvoline does not make the factory fill ATF+4 for Chrysler.

Actually, the only factory fill Valvoline does for Chrysler is the Cummins Blue that goes in the diesel pickups.

 

[hounddog]

Yes ATF+4

 

[Whitewolf]

Last time I looked Valvoline was listed a an approved supplier for MS-9602. That does not necessarily mean that they are an approved supplier for factory fill.

 

[G-MAN]

ExxonMobil used to have the ATF+4 factory fill contract with Chrysler. Don't know if they still do or not.

 

[hounddog]

Yes

 

[440Magnum]

I don't have a clue who currently supplies ATF+4 to Chrysler, but weren't both the +3 and +4 versions initially developed by Chrysler and Texaco/Havoline? Who the heck even owns the Havoline brand now, come to think of it... Chevron?

 

[oilboy123]

The Amsoil ATF is arguably the best Syn ATF on the market IMO.

I ran a test in my Dads van for 80k Amsoil ATF with a magnifine. The fluid looked real good with a nice red tint to it. I am sure that it would have tested still usable.

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: oilboy123
The Amsoil ATF is arguably the best Syn ATF on the market IMO.

I ran a test in my Dads van for 80k Amsoil ATF with a magnifine. The fluid looked real good with a nice red tint to it. I am sure that it would have tested still usable.


So what was your test? You ran it for 80K miles and the transmission did not grenade? I assume you did not do a UOA. Don't get me wrong, I think Amsoil is the best ATF and adding a Magnefine is a great idea. Amsoil ATF is good for 100K in non severe applications, 50K in severe.

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: Klutch9
about 2 and a half weeks ago i flushed out the trans pan of my 97 grand am. the car is spec'd for dex 3 but i had 3 bottles of Amsoil atf lying around, so i figured i'd buy a couple more and refill with that. the old fluid wasn't completely black, but it still looked pretty nasty. i then refilled with Amsoil atf (i didn't replace the old filter by the way either). and what a difference! i waited some time to post this because sometimes the effects of new fluids aren't noticed immediately. but it seems that every day since then the tranny shifts much smoother, both in upshifting and downshifting. i highly recommend this stuff

You say flush and pan in same sentence. I assume you did not do a flush but just did a drain and refill of the pan. If you just did a drain and refill of the pan, then you have a lot of old fluid in the system. The most cost effective way to change all the fluid with expensive ATF (like Amsoil) is to do a cooler line flush.

 

[oilboy123]

Originally Posted By: Donald
Originally Posted By: oilboy123
The Amsoil ATF is arguably the best Syn ATF on the market IMO.

I ran a test in my Dads van for 80k Amsoil ATF with a magnifine. The fluid looked real good with a nice red tint to it. I am sure that it would have tested still usable.


So what was your test? You ran it for 80K miles and the transmission did not grenade? I assume you did not do a UOA. Don't get me wrong, I think Amsoil is the best ATF and adding a Magnefine is a great idea. Amsoil ATF is good for 100K in non severe applications, 50K in severe.


My Dad is a maniac it was his van......that was the test. I was not running it for your satisfaction.

I took pictures on here and some people said they would have still run it just from the pics. The pan was spotless and the fluid was very red in color and it shifted great.

I give the Magnifine some credit for this. In hindsight I should have just run it for 100K. I would say his driving was between severe and normal.
I should add this was the 91 Dodge Caravan rebuilt trans run from day 1 with Amsoil ATF, no break in. This trans was known to grenade from the factory.