[jackburt0n]

Hi! I just purchased a used 13 ft. Boston Whaler with a 25 hp motor. Got a great deal, so I had to put the cart before the horse and nab the boat before installing a hitch. I have 166,000 miles on the van and have had the tranny replaced (under Warranty ) @ 90k. I have maintained it well (although need to replace center roller on driver side slide) and so far has been an awesome van. I don't have a P/S cooler or a tranny cooler on it yet, but according to the posts I'm reading, I guess I'll have to do those. I am just curious if anyone out there might have some advice regarding trailering the boat. I'd like to keep the van alive as long as possible so I don't know if trailering a boat is actually a good idea. I live in south Florida and don't plan on driving very far with it. With as many miles as it has, will I be lowering its Life expectancy? Will the Honda replaced tranny handle it? Thoughts, Suggestions, Comments . . .


Thanks,

Jack

 

[OdyinNH]

Personally I wouldn't worry about towing it, sounds like the boat is on the smaller side. I pull a pop-up camper that is near the max the van is listed for. Aftermarket trans cooler is a must, some say synthetic trans oil and aftermarket filter too. You may want to add airbags to keep the rear from squatting too much.

 

[0dyfamily]

I've towed an 18-ft bass boat with a big Merc V6 all loaded with household goods during our move from the east coast to Oklahoma. Maxed out the gross weight rating, probably a good bit over it considering the interior was stuffed to the gills with tools and a firearms collection. This was my tow vehicle for fishing for a couple years, too. I sold that 2001 EX to a neighbor's brother-in-law, and he's probably got 180,000 miles on it by now...it's the original tranny.

That Whaler should be no problem.

OF

 

[jackburt0n]

Thanks!

Thanks for the encouragement! I started looking at some pictures of what other Odyssey owners pull and I can't help but feel a bit bashful. :duh:
Some of you guys are pulling way more than I am considering!

Thanks Again!

 

[0dyfamily]

jack, I was the second owner of that 2001, and the original owner was faithful in changing the ATF using the severe service schedule. When I purchased it, I installed the Honda hitch & coolers and always did a single drain/refill of the ATF with each oil change. Jerry O has been using Lubegard Red for years in different cars, and I did the same. I mean, if Lubegard could make a woeful Chrysler 41TE transmission last the way it did (he put lots of trouble-free miles on his Chrysler minivan), I figure it could only help the Ody 4-spd A/T.

AmSOil ATF is proving to be a winner in my wife's Ody and mine as well. We've got Magnefines spliced into the ATF return lines from the cooler.

It's definitely good to be cautious when towing in any minivan. If you're careful on starting out of traffic lights, and giving plenty of distance to stop, not only will your Ody last longer, but you make the driving experience a lot safer. Whenever you tow, whether it's with a 3/4-ton truck or towing with a small car, the slow lane is your friend.

I miss that 2001. I think it handled a good deal better than my 2002 EX or my wife's 2003 EX. It seemed to have more roll stiffness in turns, and I do miss that Honda silver paint job. The 4-spd A/T seemed to have perfect gear ratios. Every now and then my neighbor's B-I-L drops in, and I ask to take a look at "my van". He puts a lot of miles on that baby.

OF

 

[jackburt0n]

"always did a single drain/refill of the ATF with each oil change"

How involved is the drain / refiill? I do my own oil changes, but haven't attempted the drain / refill.

Much Thanks,
Jack

 

[0dyfamily]

Jack, for your 2000 Ody, I could not give you any better details than nwf snake does in this very thorough thread:

http://www.odyclub.com/forums/14-periodic-maintenance/14375-transmission-drain-fill-picture.html

It even has some good pictures. Draining is fairly simple. The ATF drain plug has a square recess in the bolt head that is exactly 3/8" square...perfect for inserting the end of a 3/8" ratchet. This plug requires 36-ft-lbs. of torque when you reinstall it.

The 17mm hex-head fill plug is on top of the transmission (the 1999-2001 Odys are much easier to refill ATF than our 2002 & 2003 vans).

This thread gives details on draining, refilling & driving....and doing a total of 4 drain-refills (driving in between each one to more around fluid in the torque converter). This is the "complete" change that one accomplishes when directed by the owner's manual at a certain mileage interval, depending on whether you drive under normal or "severe service" conditions.

RinconVTR has a good post where he does just a single drain & refill every 15,000 miles on his much newer Odyssey (4-shaft transmission), and he sent used ATF samples to Blackstone Labs for analysis. Blackstone Labs felt that his single changes to periodically "refresh the additives package" (my wording) was a good idea. From what I read on the lab report he posted, they liked his method (as opposed to waiting 60,000 miles [I think that's the interval for his newer Ody] to do 4 drain-refills). So, I do something similar.

Your tranny, like mine, is the older and somewhat less durable 3-shaft design. I was going 7,500 miles between each oil change, but am stretching that oil change interval to 8,500 miles...I still drain-refill the ATF once each time I drop the engine oil for a change.

For your 2000 tranny, my Honda shop manual says the ATF total capacity is 7.6 quarts. That's the total amount of fluid held in the hydraulic power circuits, cooling lines, torque converter, and drain sump. When you drain the sump, only 3.1 quarts will come out. The reason the manual calls for a total of 4 drain-refills (when done all at once at the service interval) is that it is a means of successively diluting the used fluid by successively introducing fresh, new ATF.

OF

 

[0dyfamily]

Another "edit timeout"....sucks. Here is another attempt at the link:

Picture worth a thousand words