I changed it out on my "sealed for life" BMW almost exactly at 100k. The mechanic said the fluid was grey from all the metal.
The shifting has improved a lot after the change. I put another 60k on the car without any issues.
Sealed 100K Mile Transmissions with No Dip Stick (ATF Change) ?
- Thread starter ChrisD46
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I changed it out on my "sealed for life" BMW almost exactly at 100k. The mechanic said the fluid was grey from all the metal.
The shifting has improved a lot after the change. I put another 60k on the car without any issues.
Ya there's a tiny valve.
I’ve never changed it in my 2012 Fiat 500 automatic and I’m almost at 200,000 miles. Shifts like new 
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Here's my (aftermarket) magnetic transmission drain plug after 34,732 on the fluid. Car has ~179K on it, runs like a kitten; trans fluid has been changed 3 times; ~90K, ~144K and now. Transmission is a 4t65e behind a 3800 in an old Lesabre. Factory square magnet was also saturated. I added 4 magnets to the pan area; 2 glued to the pan and 2 more on the filter near the intake. In my mind, I just thoroughly convinced myself to do 30K transmission fluid changes forever, regardless of manufacturer claims otherwise. Thoughts? Criticisms?
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How many passenger vehicle have ATF cooler? I thought about putting on in my Fit but decide against it after seeing that it gets enough air flow being that the vehicle doesn’t have the underbody plastic. And my 30k ATF OCI is very sufficient. I know I’m the fluid can last past 50k miles so I may extend it to that seeing that it has 180k miles and 12 years and Honda’s automatic on I4 is generally bulletproof but that would be a backup plan for ease of mine and not to save time and money; it is easier to change ATF than oil on the Fit and the fluid isn’t expensive and I have been driving a lot more aggressively now that the Fit isn’t new anymore and the need for Italian tube-up once or twice a month helps prevent carbon deposit and oil sludge.
Does your Fit not have a ATF cooler that goes through the radiator? Contrary to popular belief, the radiator fluid to fluid cooler is very efficient for vehicles that aren't towing, etc.
I would have done the first change at 20k miles as that is when the most sm metal shaving occurs and 30k-50k thereafter depending on driving style and conditions. These older American tanks are tough and when they ladt they really last so I think your new 30k ATF OCI would definitely not hurt since I think American autos use more common and cheaper ATF than Asian and European autos. If you’re in mild climates and out more than 10k miles annually without abuse, you can even extend that to 40k but we’re talking less than $10 in saving so why bother.
Be sure to change the filter if it has one. That is a lot of shaving but at least the magnet caught that. Those bottom magnet is good but they do have capacity too and once enough shaving get one, they can catch more shaving. This is why I change the filter on mine as that should be the first mechanism to trap shaving and debris.
30k ATF OCI is my jam.
It would not surprise me if auto makers still start removing oil dipsticks and then call it lifetime fluid. They haven’t done that yet because motor oil makers would revolt but give it time. BMW removed oil dipstick years ago and people think the in-car scan tool would be able to predict accurate amount. Most cars can’t even predict true amount of gasoline in the tank, let alone ATF.
Dipstick removal was done to reduce crankcase emissions.
Honda replaced the dipstick by relocating the fill-hole no one used before to that location and use the rubber cap, which is much easier to pop out than the dipstick. So your statement doesn’t hold true for Honda. And they could make dipstick that screw in like Mazda and Ford but make it accessible from the top like Honda instead of the bottom in a well hidden spot.
Ya well I couldn't care less about why Honda does what they do. Interestingly. BMW bringing them back because dealerships were complaining about how long it was taking to perform an oil change.
What about the reason to remove them in the first place?
I call bs on this.
You are correct. The transmission fluid dipstick does not affect crankcase gas emissions. The motor oil does not mix with the tranny fluid. My wife's 2017 Honda Pilot Elite doesn't have a dipstick. I just measure how much old ATF drains out (3.75 qts) and refill or I just put in 3.5 quarts like the owner's manual says. Close enough for me.
Oh you're talking about transmission dipstick. I thought you were talking about oil dipstick. You'd have to ask ZF. They stopped using dipsticks around 20 yrs ago.
On longitudinally mounted engine and transmission setups, routing a dip stick tube from the transmission all the way to the engine bay is quite a challenge, I can see why BMW would get rid of it. Their engine bays are pretty tight already.
However on transverse mounted setups, it’s just pure cost cutting and directing the owners towards dealer service bays.
However on transverse mounted setups, it’s just pure cost cutting and directing the owners towards dealer service bays.
The the Fit, pulling a ATF dipstick reveal a ATF puddle through the opening, which is a large refilling location unlike a traditional dipstick hole. I love this design. I will definitely check on newer Fit to see if they removed the ATF dipstick and whether fluid level can be seen through the hole.
On a new Civic SI also witj. 1.5 l engine, the ATF fill hole is in almost same location as the Fit but there is visible gears just like engine oil fill hole so I don’t know if a dipstick can be use there. Several people had used their oil dipstick to double as ATF dipstick by figuring out the fill level from the universal dipstick chart and make new mark on the backside of the oil dipstick. It is probably doable on some vehicle but not others.
On a new Civic SI also witj. 1.5 l engine, the ATF fill hole is in almost same location as the Fit but there is visible gears just like engine oil fill hole so I don’t know if a dipstick can be use there. Several people had used their oil dipstick to double as ATF dipstick by figuring out the fill level from the universal dipstick chart and make new mark on the backside of the oil dipstick. It is probably doable on some vehicle but not others.
You got lucky...
That fluid is basically water by now...
