Why were the tires balanced and aligned? Unless your car was vibrating or not tracking properly, or the tread wear was uneven, it seems like an unnecessary expense. The transmission fluid and filter seems high to me as well although it is an important service. I always have the dealer service my Ody and they run well. I know there are shady dealers out there, but I seem to have lucked out.
2018 Odyssey Elite 50k Mile Service... Didn't know I bought a BMW?
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You are right about dealerships making up for slack business. I have purchased 2 Odysseys and 1 Ridgeline from a dealership 30 minutes from me. Got great prices on purchase, better than dealer 15 min away, but they are killers in the service dept. Wife and I took 2 cars in at same time for recall repairs. Supervisor came out with clipboard, did not say Hello or introduce himself, but went into the car and wrote down the mileage, came out of the car and started spouting off all of the service I needed from timing belt, trans fluid etc. My neighbor has a tire and mech. shop and takes care of all that. I informed the super that all I wanted was the recall/replacement. He was not too happy. Too bad they are great at selling cars at great prices but totally customer no-service in the service dept.
I have an 06, same transmission. I did a 3x drain and fill once around 30k, the I've been doing a single drain and fill every 30k since then. It seems fine to me and I haven't had any issues. But transmission fluid interval differs a lot around here...about as much as the actual transmission fluid used.
Based on posts hear and elsewhere I've been draining replacing the Tran fluid on my 2014 Touring every 15K miles. Hoping that has me covered. Just about at 100K with no issues - but know I'll be needing the timing belt and related items soon.
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I have my synthetic oil changed at tire discounter for $50 and they rotate the tires for free.
Unless you have hit alot of potholes why is it necessary for balance and alignment. This is the service manager trying to pad his income by selling more than what is needed.
Unless you have hit alot of potholes why is it necessary for balance and alignment. This is the service manager trying to pad his income by selling more than what is needed.
I have owned Honda products for almost 40 years. The only wheel alignment issues I've had (consistently) is a little too much front outer edge wear, which is not factory adjustable on these Hondas. I have never hit anything quite hard enough to change the alignment but that's not how it felt at the time. I wouldn't do a wheel alignment if the tires are wearing properly and the vehicle just "feels right", especially not for $180.00.
Improper toe-in or camber from an impact can cause excessive and sometimes rapid, severe wear on either the inner or outer edges of tire pairs. Either will likely affect the way a vehicle steers, sounds and feels. You may be able to see misalignment from impact by looking at the front wheels head-on from a distance.
I'm going to get into camber and toe-in. Other tire wear issues like scalloping and over- and under-inflation are covered on the web, and probably, here on OdyClub.
Years ago, I learned to check wheel alignment at home, but it's not for everyone. First, open the hood. Then check that the car is right-to-left level with a carpenters level. Use a shim under one wheel if necessary. My driveway is level in one area, so there's nothing much to do here, but I will still check the vehicle for level. The front wheels should be centered straight ahead, then drive the car a few feet straight ahead to remove any side loads on the wheels.
For the front toe-in, I use two eight foot lengths of 2 x 2 square aluminum beams, propped up securely against the front tires, maybe eight inches off the ground. I measure across these with a tape measure, near the tires and then near the ends, using a little math to convert the measured difference into inches of toe. I have used about 1/8" to 3/16" difference between the two measurements, which comes to slightly less than 1/16" toe-in. You will have to jack up the car to adjust the toe-in, so you have to re-park the car to check your adjustment.
A few years ago I bought a simple tool that reads camber directly, which makes this easier. You might want to note the difference in camber between the right side and the left side of the vehicle, because most roads are crowned, so the camber is different to offset the natural pull of crowned roads. Improper camber is indicated by outer edge wear on the front tires. Frequent slow speed turns and curvy roads will accentuate edge wear, as will low average tire pressures.
Front camber is adjustable with eccentric bolts (from rockauto.com). I have used a 2 foot level and shims to measure camber. A little trigonometry gives me the degrees of camber using a level. The camber tool is easier.
Rear camber becomes adjustable with aftermarket adjustable upper rear links (again, from rockauto.com). The inner edge on my Odyssey rear tires would wear a little too much because my Odyssey was almost always driven rear-heavy, resulting in too much negative camber for even rear tire wear. First, check the rear toe-in, because if you adjust the rear camber it will change the rear toe-in.
You might think that tire rotation would offset the inner and outer wear, and it will, if edge wear is normal and somewhat limited and pretty much even, compared side to side.
The tire wear pattern is what I have always used to determine if alignment is necessary. I have always been satisfied with the results after adjustments to correct edge wear. FYI, my 2016 Odyssey is the first Honda I've owned where the edge wear on the front tires is minimal and alignment seems almost perfect. What helps to reduce edge wear is adding an extra 5-6 psi of air pressure to all tires.
Note that the first few 32nds of rubber on a new tire will wear off faster than the last few 32nds on an old tire.
I have driven over 300,000k on Odysseys and on one Chrysler minivan. I will buy oversize replacement tires, for load capacity, impact resistance and longevity. In spite of what tire warranties offer, the mileage has always been less than the warranty mileage by maybe 25%, and this will vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and tire style to tire style. Putting 50k+ miles on a 70k tire is about right for me, but with some brands and tire models it could easily be less, or more. This will depend on a ton of other factors as well. I usually buy from Sam's Club or Costco because the road hazard warranty is double the rest of then tire stores, and tire service is available nationwide, as it is with Walmart. The prices have been good or better than from other tire sources. Tirerack.com is an excellent source for tire information, and their selection is superior. Tire manufacturers compare their tires to a "standard" tire with a mileage rating of 100, but there are no standards for what that tire is, so wear ratings are not directly comparable between manufacturers. How much remaining tread you can accept is another factor. Other tire wear issues are covered on the web.
Improper toe-in or camber from an impact can cause excessive and sometimes rapid, severe wear on either the inner or outer edges of tire pairs. Either will likely affect the way a vehicle steers, sounds and feels. You may be able to see misalignment from impact by looking at the front wheels head-on from a distance.
I'm going to get into camber and toe-in. Other tire wear issues like scalloping and over- and under-inflation are covered on the web, and probably, here on OdyClub.
Years ago, I learned to check wheel alignment at home, but it's not for everyone. First, open the hood. Then check that the car is right-to-left level with a carpenters level. Use a shim under one wheel if necessary. My driveway is level in one area, so there's nothing much to do here, but I will still check the vehicle for level. The front wheels should be centered straight ahead, then drive the car a few feet straight ahead to remove any side loads on the wheels.
For the front toe-in, I use two eight foot lengths of 2 x 2 square aluminum beams, propped up securely against the front tires, maybe eight inches off the ground. I measure across these with a tape measure, near the tires and then near the ends, using a little math to convert the measured difference into inches of toe. I have used about 1/8" to 3/16" difference between the two measurements, which comes to slightly less than 1/16" toe-in. You will have to jack up the car to adjust the toe-in, so you have to re-park the car to check your adjustment.
A few years ago I bought a simple tool that reads camber directly, which makes this easier. You might want to note the difference in camber between the right side and the left side of the vehicle, because most roads are crowned, so the camber is different to offset the natural pull of crowned roads. Improper camber is indicated by outer edge wear on the front tires. Frequent slow speed turns and curvy roads will accentuate edge wear, as will low average tire pressures.
Front camber is adjustable with eccentric bolts (from rockauto.com). I have used a 2 foot level and shims to measure camber. A little trigonometry gives me the degrees of camber using a level. The camber tool is easier.
Rear camber becomes adjustable with aftermarket adjustable upper rear links (again, from rockauto.com). The inner edge on my Odyssey rear tires would wear a little too much because my Odyssey was almost always driven rear-heavy, resulting in too much negative camber for even rear tire wear. First, check the rear toe-in, because if you adjust the rear camber it will change the rear toe-in.
You might think that tire rotation would offset the inner and outer wear, and it will, if edge wear is normal and somewhat limited and pretty much even, compared side to side.
The tire wear pattern is what I have always used to determine if alignment is necessary. I have always been satisfied with the results after adjustments to correct edge wear. FYI, my 2016 Odyssey is the first Honda I've owned where the edge wear on the front tires is minimal and alignment seems almost perfect. What helps to reduce edge wear is adding an extra 5-6 psi of air pressure to all tires.
Note that the first few 32nds of rubber on a new tire will wear off faster than the last few 32nds on an old tire.
I have driven over 300,000k on Odysseys and on one Chrysler minivan. I will buy oversize replacement tires, for load capacity, impact resistance and longevity. In spite of what tire warranties offer, the mileage has always been less than the warranty mileage by maybe 25%, and this will vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and tire style to tire style. Putting 50k+ miles on a 70k tire is about right for me, but with some brands and tire models it could easily be less, or more. This will depend on a ton of other factors as well. I usually buy from Sam's Club or Costco because the road hazard warranty is double the rest of then tire stores, and tire service is available nationwide, as it is with Walmart. The prices have been good or better than from other tire sources. Tirerack.com is an excellent source for tire information, and their selection is superior. Tire manufacturers compare their tires to a "standard" tire with a mileage rating of 100, but there are no standards for what that tire is, so wear ratings are not directly comparable between manufacturers. How much remaining tread you can accept is another factor. Other tire wear issues are covered on the web.
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Flushing the transmission is not recommended. Once something goes wrong, it will be too late. Just drain and refill yourself. Honda ATF only!
I think a lot of people get confused including service advisors between flushing and changing the transmission fluid.
Flushing became the new big upsale in the 90’s for dealers like paint sealant and was supposed to rejuvenate and clean your dirty old transmission. What was discovered was that not only was this power flushing dislodging crap in the transmission that was perfectly fine where it was but it was also recirculating trash from equipment that wasn’t maintained properly. This was destroying transmissions and was eventually phased out.
Today they basically are letting the transmission pull clean fluid in and disposing of the old just like the transmission does when it’s running and the fluid is going through the cooler. So as long as they use the correct fluid no damage will be done. I still am not comfortable having this done though.
Finally the easiest and safest is just a drain and fill but you probably only get about 50% of the fluid changed with this method.
If it was mine I would wait till 30,000 miles then do a drain and fill then at the next oil change another drain and fill and not worry about it again until 60,000 miles.
Flushing became the new big upsale in the 90’s for dealers like paint sealant and was supposed to rejuvenate and clean your dirty old transmission. What was discovered was that not only was this power flushing dislodging crap in the transmission that was perfectly fine where it was but it was also recirculating trash from equipment that wasn’t maintained properly. This was destroying transmissions and was eventually phased out.
Today they basically are letting the transmission pull clean fluid in and disposing of the old just like the transmission does when it’s running and the fluid is going through the cooler. So as long as they use the correct fluid no damage will be done. I still am not comfortable having this done though.
Finally the easiest and safest is just a drain and fill but you probably only get about 50% of the fluid changed with this method.
If it was mine I would wait till 30,000 miles then do a drain and fill then at the next oil change another drain and fill and not worry about it again until 60,000 miles.
I would skip the tire balance, it's not needed. I would skip the alignment too, unless you are getting uneven tire wear. The transmission flush is also something you should skip. I have done the drain and fill myself which is easy and not very expensive. The engine air filter is trivial to change, I would not pay someone else to do it. Samething for the cabin air filter.
Find yourself an independent Honda shop / mechanic. You won't have to talk to a service writer, but the mechanic that will work on your van. You'll also save a same bucks. My Ody has only been to the dealer for warranty repairs and recalls.
The place where I bought my tires will rotate and balance them as necessary - for free. They prefer you bring it in so they can make sure it gets done. Almost every tire shop in my area does the same.
The place where I bought my tires will rotate and balance them as necessary - for free. They prefer you bring it in so they can make sure it gets done. Almost every tire shop in my area does the same.
Just had my 2018 10 speed Canadian touring transmission done at the dealer. $161 CAD plus tax. drain and fill.
I was quoted $161 on the phone when booking the service along with a couple of recalls they needed to do and had a dealer coupon for alignment and battery check. Went in for the service was told its $595 for the transmission service. I specifically asked is that a "drain and fill" and was told "YES, the fluid is ~$70 per quart", I said forget it and i'll get it done somewhere else as i was quoted $161 and whoever booked the appointment quoted me had to have pulled up my vehicle information and model to confirm that I had uncompleted recalls. Stayed for the recall and service rep came back saying his mistake, $161 is the price. After the service he came back with a list of others items and told me it was still coming up in the system at $220 for the transmission. Ended up paying 161 plus tax. all extra fees were removed including shop fees.
I was quoted $161 on the phone when booking the service along with a couple of recalls they needed to do and had a dealer coupon for alignment and battery check. Went in for the service was told its $595 for the transmission service. I specifically asked is that a "drain and fill" and was told "YES, the fluid is ~$70 per quart", I said forget it and i'll get it done somewhere else as i was quoted $161 and whoever booked the appointment quoted me had to have pulled up my vehicle information and model to confirm that I had uncompleted recalls. Stayed for the recall and service rep came back saying his mistake, $161 is the price. After the service he came back with a list of others items and told me it was still coming up in the system at $220 for the transmission. Ended up paying 161 plus tax. all extra fees were removed including shop fees.
Good job sticking to the price.
FYI, they are crazy as this is the MSRP of the 2.0 Fluid, not $70.
DESCRIPTION
Transmission Fluid.
VEHICLE APPLICATIONS
Refer to your owner's manual
Purchase ATF Type 2.0
- ATF Type 2.0
- by American Honda Motor Company
Retail Price:$11.54
| Our Price: | $9.69 |
lol... "trouble free". It's a CPO I've had for almost 3 years and has spent 30+ days in the shop for electrical issues, infotainment issues, and recalls. It's my first Honda, and will be my last Honda.
As an overall update, a trusted independent mechanic about 1 mile away from this Honda dealership quoted $166 for the transmission service.
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That's a much better price.
Just to be on the safe side, confirm that he is using the factory spec fluid, which I think is Honda Type 2 for your 2018 Elite. (It used to be one fluid for all, but not anymore.)
Correction:
I was not aware that the Honda 10 speed transmission used Honda ATF 2.0. I didn't even know there was a Honda ATF 2.0 fluid. Thank you for the corrections to my post.
Thank you for taking the time to correct this error, which could have caused others to make a very serious mistake.
In this thread, there seems to be only one mention of Honda ATF type 2.0 and it isn't connected to the 10 speed transmission. The lesson here is to double check and verify information you get from the web and other sources. There is a plethora of differing opinion and misinformation about almost everything I research. As an example, I just looked up transmission fluid for the 2018 Odyssey Elite 10 speed on several resellers' websites (including rockauto.com) and came up with their recommendation for the 10 speed transmission - Valvoline MaxLife ATF!
On this forum we are fortunate to have some contributors who are very knowledgeable, who share their knowledge with others, whose opinions are qualified with their experience and factual information.
...............................................................................................................................
Original post:
Many of us here have been using Valvoline MaxLife Synthetic transmission fluid in Honda transmissions with very good results. It costs $18 + tax for a gallon from Walmart. A drain and fill uses a little less than a gallon in the Honda 6 speed. Amsoil is mentioned here occasionally, but because of their recommendation on engine oil change mileage years ago, which damaged my friend's engine (he was selling Amsoil products at the time), I don't use their products.
MaxLife is synthetic. The Honda transmission fluids (Z-1 and DW-1) are not. In simple terms, synthetic oils withstand about 20 degrees higher in-service temperature resistance than mineral base oils, and offer better viscosity stability.
If you change your own oil, a transmission drain and fill is just about as easy as an oil change. The hard part is getting the fluid level correct. Here's how - warm the vehicle by driving a few miles. Shut off the engine, then within 60-90 seconds, read the dipstick.
He took my VIN and put it into his computer and it spit out a bill-of-materials for the job. No reason to doubt the fluids they're using.
Interestingly, I was emailed by Honda to review the service I received. I commented that I was satisfied with the service I received, but the pricing for the services I declined was borderline extortionary. The dealership service manager replied to my survey saying " I know there is a proper procedure that has to be done with the laptop computer to perform this service and the fluid is different than most fluids which creates a higher expense. ."
Be very careful with this..... Valvoline MaxLife ATF does not list Honda ATF 2.0 approved (10 speed transmission).
It does list, "Honda ATF Z1 (Not in CVT), DW-1 and Type 3.0 and 3.1.
Valvoline MaxLife Tech Sheet
Once again that particular service manager has proved he doesn't have a clue.
This advice doesn't apply to 2018+ Odysseys - neither the 10-speed Honda nor 9-speed ZF automatic transmissions have dipsticks. They have three separate access ports on the side of the transmission housing; one to drain, one to fill and one for fluid level. It's the fluid level one that creates the greatest complication for a DIYer because it is set up to give an accurate reading when the van is sitting level, either on the ground (which is super hard to reach) or on a hoist (I don't happen to have one in my garage - do you?). If you tilt the transmission by putting the front of the van on ramps or jack stands, the fluid level may not show properly.
It is still possible to DIY an ATF change (there are other threads on it I've seen here) but it is not nearly as easy as it was in previous generations of Odyssey. But honestly, I don't blame people one single bit for deciding to pay a shop to service the ATF in a gen 5 Odyssey.
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