SP II ATF?

[gavinl]

Was checking ATF for a friend's Hyundai and the manual specified SP II ATF, what on earth is that standard?

I'm not putting any other ATF in for now, do I need to get factory ATF for the Hyundai transmission? I noticed Mitsubishi has the same spec ATF too.

 

[unDummy]

Its another OEM BS HFM fluid.

If its a topoff, any Dex/merc/synth will OK.

If it is flush or drain/refill time, then buy the right fluid or equal(like honda/toyota...).

Lubegard makes a fluid modifier for converting nonHFM normal/synth ATF to an HFM. So does lifeautomotive.

Amsoil/advancedlubes and others have SPII equivalent fluids.

 

[Ray H]

The "SP" series refer to proprietary Mitsubishi-licensed ATFs. (Proprietary ATFs, i.e. "Mercon V" for Ford and "ATF+4" for DaimlerChrysler are a fact of of life these days...) In addition to Mitsubishi AT-equipped vehicles, Hyundai also utilizes these fluids as factory and service fill in AT-equipped vehicles manufactured since at least 1999 - and perhaps prior to that. The older "SP-II" was superceded by "SP-III" about a hear and a half ago as factory fill in Hyundai ATs. Hyundai issued a TSB about a year ago that directed Hyundai service personnel now use the SP-III ATF in all applications formerly specifying SP-II ATF for improved shift-quality, but the the bulletin made it clear that SP-II would not affect transmission life. The only sources I've found that distribute genuine SP-x ATFs are Mitsubishi, Hyundai, and Kia (itself a Hyundai company), and I'm not even sure whether SP-II ATF is still available. The Kia dealership in my area charges $3.95/qt. for their SP-III ATF. (and if I remember right, the Hyundai dealership quoted $4.69/qt. But, $5.99/qt. at Mitsubishi!) I can only speculate on the chemistry of the SP-III ATF, but since Hyundai advises that the fluid is supposedly good for 100,000 miles (Take that with a large grain of salt! Mine'll come out at 15,000 miles in my 2003 Sonata.), it probably is at least a semi-synthetic with a heftier dose of friction modifiers than SP-II. If your friend has the 10 yr./100,000 mile Hyundai powertrain warranty, I'd hesitate before pouring an unlicensed substitute ATF into a Hyundai AT. (But, then, you're only dealing with a friend's car, whereas, I'm dealing with my car...

)

[ September 17, 2003, 03:32 PM: Message edited by: Ray H ]

 

[Bob Woods]

My Google search turned up,
DEXRON III SUPREME
Valvoline MaxLife ATF
QUAKER STATE ATF Q3 Plus

good luck

 

[Bob Woods]

SP II ATF is Mitsubishis synthetic ATF, do a search for SP II ATF and you will find many products that will work. good luck

 

[gavinl]

I did a google search before and all that showed up was AMSOIL's ATF, I just need some off the shelf for top up

 

[gavinl]

Thanks guys, looks like Maxlife ATF is the easiest off the shelf item to get!

 

[gavinl]

Well I'm just gonna top off about 3/4 of a quart, using Valvoline Maxlife ATF.

According to the spec sheet, it has "performance levels" of SP II

 

[car_junkie_moron]

Be careful man, friend of mine just flushed his mitsubishi transmission DIY way. like dropping the pan, changed filter filled in new ATF SPII type, disconnected one of the cooler line pumped out dirty ATF and replaced with nice new one, car ren fine for a week and then all of a sudden transmission lost power, now he can't drive car more then 45 miles and hour with over drive on, he has to turn of over drive and he drives fine. So I would suggest to be extra careful when you work with these asian vehicles. BTW his OBD II says P1750 which suppose to be solenoid transmission but doesn't say which solenoid.

 

[widman]

I sell Dexron to the Hyundai Dealers in the country and SP III to the Mitsubishi dealers.
FYI - the wholesale price of SP III is more than twice Dexron III. The other glitch is that Chevron offeres SP III in two packages: 55 gallon drums or 6,000 galon bag-in-box.