Transmission filter?
I can't find anywhere where there is a transmission filter. Is there a filter?
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Is there a replaceable filter anywhere? I know it's normal in my older vehicles (non-Honda) to drain the fluid/replace fluid and then replace filter at same time. I have 2011 EX-L.
Sure, just remove the transmission from the van first. The external filter is the only filter that can be easily replaced.
Other vehicles often have an external transmission filter or one inside the transmission pan. Honda has not been consistent with including an external filter with their different transmissions.
Wow! You have to completely drop the transmission and remove it to replace the filter that is usually in the pan?! That's a bad design. What do most people do? Just skip that part?
Yes, it's not really needed. Just keep up with fluid changes at least every 30k and you're good to go.
Yeah, my issue is that I bought it with 129k miles on it and the fluid is darker. It's not burnt, but it isn't fresh either. I am changing it soon, but it sucks that I have to bypass changing a filter too.
Best bet for you is to do the 3x drain and fill job. It replaces most of the ATF that way. Just drive a couple hundred miles in between drain and fills if you can manage it to mix the new fluid in there good.
Also consider switching to a synthetic fluid. Honda vans and suvs tend to be pretty hard on ATF so a little extra thermal capacity really helps. Valvoline Maxlife seems to do very well in the 5 speed and is reasonably priced.
Edit: A few people have added an inline filter on the return line so it is possible, but it's not very common or really necessary.
That's the plan, but I already bought a case of Honda fluid. Every mechanic I know and see (these are friends and online mechanics) says with Honda you should only use Honda brand fluids (mainly when it comes to transmission, steering fluid, and coolant. I don't want to risk it.
That should be fine. While other fluids can work, you can't really go wrong with Honda fluid. I usually stick with DW-1. If you don't want to pay the Honda price for it, you can get it from Idemitsu. They're the ones that make the OEM Honda fluid.
After this 3x drain and fill I would check the fluid condition whenever you change the oil and keep an eye on it for a while to see if it would be a good idea to do one more. But once you get it all squared away, you should be good with just one drain and fill every 15-30k.
There is no pan on (most) Honda automatic transmissions. It is built more like a manual transmission than an automatic.
The 'filter' on most automatics generally never needs to get changed if you keep up with transmission maintenance - the one in the pan is normally just a screen anyway. If it gets clogged, you have bigger problems than needing a new trans filter. Not exactly comparable, but I have over 300k miles on my 4Runner transmission on the original filter...
-Charlie
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You should spend a little time under your van. The Honda 5-speed and 6-speed automatic transmissions don't have sump pans at all; the ATF drains from a port in the side of the transmission case itself.
If you're interested in understanding how Honda-designed automatic transmissions work, this link has a really good writeup of the history and design basics:
Honda Global | The Hondamatic Transmission / 1968
Honda Motor Co.,Ltd. Honda Global Site - Visit the official Honda global web site and find episodes about the birth of Honda's first automatic transmission, Hondamatic.
global.honda
If you want to install a replaceable ATF filter on your 2011 EX-L, then a Magnefine filter spliced into the ATF return hose is an extremely good option.
to piggyback on this thread related to the transmission, I just found a video on a 2006 Ridgeline that bypassed the trans cooler in the radiator to avoid a SMOD issue cross contaminating coolant and transmission fluid when the lines in the radiator get corroded. Are the 5 or 6 speeds Odyssey’s vulnerable to this?
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Why exactly are the lines getting corroded? If the coolant and trans fluid are changed on schedule, there should be no problems internally (in the bottom tank heat exchanger). Any corrosion external (this happens on the hard lines attached to the back of the radiator in the salt belt) will just cause a trans fluid leak but it won't mix fluid.
I haven't seen one report of trans fluid and coolant mixing in this generation Odyssey. It theoretically can happen to any vehicle that uses a trans fluid / coolant heat exchanger though...
-Charlie
Yeah, not sure how corrosion would start in the sealed lines. I was asking more as a hypothetical situation. I live in a heavy road salt area so I’m always watching out for rust. I saw that Ridgeline video as a suggested video when I was looking up something else about the Odyssey and wondered if that should be something on our radar.
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Nah, that's only for Toyotas.
I have one of those too. [emoji1787]Nah, that's only for Toyotas.
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When you don't take care of them and they are 20+ years old... (4Runner owner here...) For reference, here is the trans cooler from my 4Runner at 270k miles and around 20 years old. It had semi-regular trans fluid and coolant changes through its life.Nah, that's only for Toyotas.
Notice build up from cheap coolant, but no corrosion. When they do go bad, it is the joint between the outer fitting and the inner heat exchanger. They do go bad when coolant and trans fluid isn't changed, the corrosion inhibitors wear out and allows corrosion around the heat exchanger. If that has a leak or hole internally, it mixes trans fluid and coolant.
4th gen Odysseys are still too young for the problem.
-Charlie
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