Some other fluids that I have found that specifically mention DW1

Citgo Multi - Vehicle Low Viscosity Full Synthetic Transgard Automatic Transmission Fluid
Havoline Full Synthetic Multi-Vehicle ATF

I notice there is a JASO mention by Mobil 1 and some others for Asian vehicles, they still dont mention DW1 though

 

2 more..


PureSYN Universal Automatic Transmission Fluid
Amalie Universal Synthetic Automatic Transmission Fluid

 

Red Line D6. Also pricey.

OF

 

Valvoline MaxLife ATF is suitable as DW1 replacement. If you send out an email to Valvoline team, they'll response with a document that is listing the DW1 in it. I don't know why they don't publish this info on the label or at the web site. I have been using MaxLife ATF on my 2012 EXL nearly two years (7K miles) now and so far it works fine for me.

However, the MaxLife doesn't include high friction modifiers so that the shifting characteristics will change. Lack of friction modifiers makes the shifting firm and crisp which is a good thing for the tranny. Not harsh but it'll shift much quicker specially for the downshifting which I hate the hesitation of the Honda transmissions when it comes to downshifting. Maxlife downshift quickly, to me sometimes a little earlier to my driving taste. So I added in half dose of LubeGard Platinum a little while ago that is smoothed out the crispiness of the pure Maxlife which I liked better but the shifting characteristics much better smooth and most of the the times seemless compared to the DW1. Overall Maxlife is a good and Synthetic fluid and available at my nearby Walmart at a very reasonable price. I'm also using Maxlife on my Camry so one type of ATF for both cars make the maintenance more convenient as well

 

...........the shifting characteristics will change. Lack of friction modifiers makes the shifting firm and crisp which is a good thing for the tranny. Not harsh but it'll shift much quicker specially for the downshifting which I hate the hesitation of the Honda transmissions when it comes to downshifting. Maxlife downshift quickly, to me sometimes a little earlier to my driving taste.

Wow! I did not realize that an ATF fluid can change shift characteristics that much. I just assumed it was a function of the transmission programming. I HATE the slow downshifts in our 2016 Ody. It's getting a bit better as the vehicle breaks in, but the slow downshift can be a frightening thing when a quick lane change/ overtake is required.

Has anyone else had similar quicker downshifts using Maxlife??? Thanks for this info Prizm.

 

Castrol Transmax Full Synthetic Multi-vehicle ATF

 

I've used MaxLife for over 40,000 miles with excellent results. It's full synthetic, and I've used it while towing heavy behind my Odyssey on Africa-hot days. Also, Lubegard makes a good additive for enhancing ATF thermal stability

Lubegard Platinum has a loyal following among people who rebuild transmissions. After I finish my stash of Lubegard Red, I'll have over a gallon of Lubegard Platinum in my solvents cabinet in my garage. I like their products that much, and use them in our Hondas.

This is the second time I've heard of Ashland (makers of Valvoline products) responding to individual customers asserting that MaxLife Dex/Merc supports the ATF DW-1 specification. The other time was on the BITOG forums.

Valvoline MaxLife Dex/Merc really is close to Honda ATF DW-1 in terms of measured viscosity against temperature, as well as viscosity index...and it performs very well.

OF

 

I've used MaxLife for over 40,000 miles with excellent results. It's full synthetic, and I've used it while towing heavy behind my Odyssey on Africa

Thanks for that info. How long do you go between drains?

 

Just bought 2-gallons of MaxLife so I'll do (2) drain/refills over the course of the next 2-3 weeks. I don't want to "shock" it too much with new fluid.

Sent from my HTC6545LVW using Tapatalk

 

Mobil 1 full synthetic is another. Ran it before, decided to try Valvoline MaxLife bc its 1/2 the price, but the shift characteristics are enough better with Mobil 1 I will do the next 4X d/f with it.

 

We've had a number of Mobil 1 ATF users post positive results, no negatives, across a couple different generations of this van.

Definitely, it's another good choice.

OF

 

Just did a 3X drain & flush with Castrol Transmax Full Synthetic Multi-vehicle ATF over the weekend. My shifts definitely feel crisper and non slushy. We'll see how this goes long term.

Ive got about 44k on my 2015 TE currently.

 

Taking the high friction modifiers out of the equation makes crisp and fast. How is your Ody's shifting behaviors now? Is it shifting up at the similar RPMs before or goes slightly higher RPMs? How is it downshifting compared to before? I would also keep an eye on the fuel consumption to see if there is any impact there.

You might also consider adding in some LubeGard to improve the heat resiliency of the ATF. Surprisingly the flash point of Transmax is just slightly better than the DW-1. 177 vs 170 degree Celsius.

 

Just remember total volume is your goal. You measure mixed fluid + additive as your required quantity. To put another way, I add the lubegard into the big Maxlife ATG jug and then pour in the appropriate ATF into the tranny. I get the bigger additive bottle (cost-effective) and then mix into container. I use same ATF brand in multiple vehicles.

 

Just remember total volume is your goal. You measure mixed fluid + additive as your required quantity. To put another way, I add the lubegard into the big Maxlife ATF jug and then pour in the appropriate ATF into the tranny. I get the bigger additive bottle (cost-effective) and then mix into container. I use same ATF brand in multiple vehicles.

Would you please add a link for that bigger bottle? Thank you!

 

When selecting on amazon, 10 oz is 10 and 32 oz is 20:
https://www.amazon.com/Lubegard-609...nt/dp/B000F2EPFY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1473262881&sr=8-1&keywords=lubegard+red

 

In case someone is searching for the platinum.
https://www.amazon.com/Lubegard-630.../B002MB57UI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1473266192&sr=8-1&keywords=lubegard+platinum

 

Red is additive without friction modifiers. Platinum is additive + modifiers. Platinum makes your aftermarket ATF "like" honda/toyota ATF. That translates to silky smooth shifting, not crisp/harsh. Much info and discussion on this topic is in this forum, lots in 2nd gen.

See post 17 above. Crisp vs silky is a matter of preference. Main thing is you get the additive in there.

 

good to know that. pre-mixing much convenient for sure

 

Shake well, before use. LOL

 

I never used the ATF fill location. I've been using a long funnel that snug fit on the dip stick tube. I don't think the fluid is going to splash out from the fill port as the car on park but I might be mistaken

 

Hi Guys,
After researching and studying hundreds of posts regarding to the Odyssey transmission problems...My conclusion of the shuttering, thumping and slipping of transmission in our Odyssey roots back to insufficient ATF cooling capacity and basic transmission design problems...Since we can't do much on the design, we can at least trying to minimum and prevent the problem....

So when my transmission had all the problems above, I did "flush" about 15,000 miles ago. Now, my car has about 87,600 miles....My transmission has been acting up again since the SoCal weather has been hitting over 100 all week long.... Harder shift, slightly chattering... is back temporary? So I dig out this post and found out the "[FONT=&quot]Lubegard 60902 Automatic Transmission Fluid Protectant" might help.

My questions is, my ATF fluid still light pink color, should I do a drain and refill and add new factory ATF fluid, or can I do the same amount of drain and refill but just add Lubegard directly? Also I am confused on how much to add the Lubegard,,, It says 1 oz per qt... Touring has 3.6 qt, so how much should I mix? 1/2? 1/3? 1/4?

Really appreciated for your help! [/FONT]

 

Total capacity of atf is 8 qts, you can add 8oz of LG directly to the dipstick by first using a siphon to extract 8 Oz of atf and then add in your LG into dipstick and disgard the 8oz of atf you removed. But since you're almost at 20k mile interval on the atf (especially with the high temp and if you've been towing) you can do a drain and fill and add the LG to your new container of atf with the above metioned ratio of 1oz LG to 1 qt atf.

Hope this helps!

 

Hi Mnuovo19,
Thank you for the explanation. Now, how much do I need to "drain" the old ATF for the typical drain & refill?

 

When you drain the atf, via the drain bolt. Measure the contents that came out before you disgard it. That way you will know exactly how much to refill with the new atf, and by having the LG premixed in the new atf, youll be all set. Just be sure to follow the procedure in you owners manual for checking the atf fluid level on page 352 to ensure you will be good on the d&f procedure prior to and after the drain and fill.

Also, reference the thread below, post #6 by Navar. There are many threads on this topic and some very knowledgeable guys have contributing to them. Be sure to read up if you haven't been or don't know the service history of you atf.

http://www.odyclub.com/forums/54-2011-2017-odyssey/309969-dw1-maxlife.html

cheers

 

I would not be worried about +/- 8 oz. If you're ready for a D+F anyway, and you want to be as careful as possible, you can carefully check the level meow before doing any draining or filling.

Then when you drain (it may not be obvious, but you remove the drain plug and just wait until it stops coming out), you can pour the drained fluid into an empty milk jug to see meow much came out. If you're like me, rather than eyeballing it, you will have pre-calibrated your milk jug by pouring in water and making sharpie marks as you go.

Then you'll have a better estimate for how much needs to be added.

At the end of it all, you should check level using the procedure in the owner's manual, but the above steps should help avoid any errors.

 

Sorry for the amateur question..... So when I just do D&F, I will drain all old ATF out, then top off with the new ATF just once correct? I am thinking swtich to Maxlife from Walmart... So I will need:

2x gallon Maxlife
1x 10oz Lubegard Platinum

Anything else I will need to perform D&F?

 

Sorry for the amateur question..... So when I just do D&F, I will drain all old ATF out, then top off with the new ATF just once correct? I am thinking swtich to Maxlife from Walmart... So I will need:

2x gallon Maxlife
1x 10oz Lubegard Platinum

Anything else I will need to perform D&F?

Good question. Answer is that ... NO ... you will not get ALL the old fluid out.

You only get about 1/3 of the old fluid out by draining. Exactly how meowch drains out varies with the specific AT type, but this is a common feature of virtually all automatic transmissions. Search on here and you will find many more details, including using multiple consecutive D+F's (with diminishing returns).

 

Also just realized, there are different packaging from Walmart & Autozone, anyone know if there is any difference between the two..?

Autozone:
Valvoline 1 gal. MaxLife multi-vehicle automatic transmission fluid 773775 - Read 3 Reviews on Valvoline #773775

Walmart:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Valvolin...584&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=online&wl12=15125768&wl13=&veh=sem

 

No, you will only drain about 3.3 to 3.6 quarts with a single d&f.

As Navar said in the above link;

Keep in mind, a single D&F replaces ~45% of the ATF fluid. 2x D&F replaces ~70%, 3x ~83%, and by the 4th (assuming reasonable mixing) you've replaced about 91%.

 

I purchase it from the walmart link (cheaper) and use it in my 12 ody and 02 f150. I also add in the LG Platinum for smoother shifts. Great stuff!