Anyone use non-mitsubishi tranny fluid for tranny service

[dmc888]

i'm planning on having the tranny flushed soon. i don't need the mitsubishi brand oil right. it specifys that in my manual mitsu atf fluid only. is the dexron 3 the same. i don't want to pay too much. i think i paid 4 bucks a quart, car was a little low on oil. the dealer wants 160 for tranny service with a coupon. i would rather go somewhere else cheaper. if you have used another atf fluid let me know if there was any problems after. thanks

[Reelax]

i had my tranny fluid replaced w/ mobil 1 synthtic but our "in-house-tech" [manybrews] who has 10+ years experience as a mitsu tech, suggests the mitsu tranny fluid as the only option. i personally have not experiencecd any degredation in performance and have 70K+ miles on my ES V6. dealer service pricecs are steep but i trust that they will do the job right.

[manybrews]

do NOT use a generic dexron 3 substitute.. you will probably regret it.

the ONLY correct fluid is the mitsu fluid. i cant tell you how many trannies ive had to fix over the years because someone didnt use mitsu fluid. Ordinary dexron 3 can cause slip shifting, shuddering, and generally shitty shifts.

its not garanteed to happen, but id say there is a good 50 - 75 percent chance of suffering torque converter shudder if you do not use mitsu fluid.

[Auto-9]

I'm going to back up Manybrews on this one...I had mine replaced at 15k miles with I forgot what brand it's not Redline though...maybe that Royal thingy...anyhows my car didn't like it much at all. Dunno if my car is the only exception or not but I went back to the dealership to get my fluid replaced...I shouldn't have replaced it at 15k anyhows.

[ASTIG]

ive had redline C+ atf in the galant for 15K miles and have NO problems.

[mochanges]

I researched the issue extensively and have to agree with Manybrews. Stick with the Mistu stuff. If you are worried about your tranny while under extreme use (such as track days) get an auxiliary oil cooler.

-Mohammad

[DJ Galant]

hey manybrew i got a question for u. Since u now Mitsu stuff well i want to ask an expert. What kind of oil does U.S. Mitsu use????
I mean what are the source of their oil. I know there is a companies called Nisseki Mitsubishi and Nippon Mitsubishi Oil, which produce oils and lubricants in Japan, but when i went to the dealer i didn't see any information on the bottle of Automatic Tranny Fluid about the origin of the product. What do they use then?

[manybrews]

honestly, i have no idea the source of their factory fluids. It could be anyone.

as far as actual engine oil is concerned, well, thats a dealer decision. we use mobil.

[HondaKillerGTZ]

Manybrews: Can I use Castrol Dexron3/Mercon with no problems??

[manybrews]

Manybrews: Can I use Castrol Dexron3/Mercon with no problems??
absolutly not.

it WILL work. however, you will PROBABLY experience the previously mentioned issues with slip shifting, shuddering, and other poor transmission performance issues.
mitsu ATF 3 is the ONLY fluid that is garanteed to prevent those issues.. and trust me, its the only one worth using.

[Gilhuly]

I have a friend who runs an AAMCO shop. He has done my fluid with Mitsubishi fluid and I know he got it not from the dealer, but a distributor like Exxon. I'll ask him tomorrow.

[Coldshot]

im gonna do a tranny flush soon, i work at a ford dealership, and our top tranny fluid is Mercon 5, could i use this, or am i asking for trouble?

[manybrews]

im gonna do a tranny flush soon, i work at a ford dealership, and our top tranny fluid is Mercon 5, could i use this, or am i asking for trouble?
as i stated, use ONLY mitsu fluid or you ARE asking for trouble.

[NRG]

Here is a good question.....Since I don't wanna be paying 150 just for ATF flush, I would rather do it myself....So do you think the dealers would just kindly sell me the Mitsu ATF stuff??

[manybrews]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(NRG)</div><div class='quotemain'>Here is a good question.....Since I don't wanna be paying 150 just for ATF flush, I would rather do it myself....So do you think the dealers would just kindly sell me the Mitsu ATF stuff??</div>
of course they would.. they do have a parts department, you know :roll: :roll:

[NRG]

I meant the fluid, not parts..........Sometimes they like to be dicks about it and want me to do it there.........

[manybrews]

I meant the fluid, not parts..........Sometimes they like to be dicks about it and want me to do it there.........
yes, they will sell you the fluid.

[T.S.]

I went against mr manybrews earlier warnings and used AMSOIL full synthetic ('http://www.amsoil.com/products/atf.html') in mine, cost me about $8 a quart though :?

[HondaKillerGTZ]

I had no luck with my local dealers, so I used the castrol dexron 3 atf and now I have the smoothest shifting I ever had https://www.thegalantcenter.org/style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif

[xmojox]

Does the ATF get so dirty it needs to be flushed? If so, how many extra quarts do we need to flush it out if we are doing the service ourselves?

[T.S.]

Does the ATF get so dirty it needs to be flushed? If so, how many extra quarts do we need to flush it out if we are doing the service ourselves?

It does get fairly dirty, its hard to "flush" it yourself, that takes equipment most people dont have. Dealerships and Oil change places can flush it. The manual that came with you car says how many quarts it holds, I believe around 9 without going out to my car to look. You can do a drain and fill yourself, but about 2-3 quarts wont come out by just draining it. You would probably pour a couple quarts through with the drain plug open and get most of the old fluid out, but it would be hard to get it all.

[Jeff]

Ok...got my tranny flushed and filled at a valvoline shop by my house...filled with Valvoline Maxlife ATF. I know that I'm only supposed to use Mitsu fluid, but the Maxlife is guaranteed...if anything goes wrong, valvoline will replace my tranny. so far, it is absolutely the smoothest shifting i've ever felt...i know i'm gonna catch shit for this from manybrews, but i figured i'd post it anyway.

[Auto-9]

i know i'm gonna catch shit for this from manybrews, but i figured i'd post it anyway.

Nah you won't. He's just telling you what he'd recommend, ultimately it's up to you to decide what you want to do. If you had gone and made a statement like, "Mitsubishi fluid is worthless junk" etc I think you might though https://www.thegalantcenter.org/style_emoticons/default/smile.gif

[Jeff]

i wouldn't unless i had a viable comparison. i don't judge unless i have personal experience.

[Faction]

what the hell mitsu fluid got, a special potion??? i use mobile 1 and theres no shitty shifting or shitty sounds

[pinoyesv6]

what the hell mitsu fluid got, a special potion??? i use mobile 1 and theres no shitty shifting or shitty sounds

see thats the thing. mitsu uses what they trust. and the big part of this that you might see if ur warranty. mitsubishi reccomends to use only their products in a mitsubishi car because it is know to work in their cars. other types, they can't vouch for. now lets say something goes wrong with ur tranny, and the fluid had a part to do with it for some reason, mitsubishi can't honor the warranty since the fluid used wasn't the ones that mitsubishi recommended.

[Jeff]

that makes sense

[firemen42]

well i had a small problem with my tranny. the fluid truned brown. so i was told to just drain and fill back up with a new filter. i got that done from the dealer for $140.00. now i thought the smart thing would be to get it flushed but the dealer did'nt have a flush mechine. did dealer made it same that the work that i got done there would do the job because the did'nt a flush thing so am i okay???? anyone????

[Jeff]

did dealer made it same that the work that i got done there would do the job because the did'nt a flush thing so am i okay???? anyone????

alright...you started out alright, but did you pause to get sauced halfway through? when you sober up, i recommend editing your post...from what I got out of it though, if the tranny was brown instead of red...depending on how long it has been since the car was flushed last, i would've gotten it flushed.

[Andoy]

This is a big debate. Recently got a transmission fluid change at Valvoline and although the guy assured me everything's fine, "it's just Chrysler fluid", I don't think it's shifting 100% right. Must be something to the Mitsu fluid, although I haven't used it myself yet. Frankly, I may invest in the Mitsu fluid down the line just for preventative reasons ...

[Gladiator]

What exactly is flushing the transmission? I want to do it, but not at the dealer. So I plan to buy some Mitsu ATF fluid and find a mechanic that will do so

[VegasMatt]

I use the Mitsu fluid.

But I do know someone here in LV that didnt use the Mitsu fluid and they had problems. Then they went to Mitsu and got the fluid and it fixed the problems.

Take that for what its worth.

[manybrews]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Andoy)</div><div class='quotemain'>This is a big debate. Recently got a transmission fluid change at Valvoline and although the guy assured me everything's fine, "it's just Chrysler fluid", I don't think it's shifting 100% right. Â*Must be something to the Mitsu fluid, although I haven't used it myself yet. Frankly, I may invest in the Mitsu fluid down the line just for preventative reasons ...</div>
hes wrong.
its NOT just chrysler fluid. In fact, we have to stock two different types of auto trans fluid, as the 95 to 99 eclipses that were non turbos came with a dodge neon powertrain, complete with a chrysler tranmission.. and chrysler says the same thing... do NOT use anything but their trannie fluid in their trannies.

so we have mitsu and chrysler fluid in stock.

[pinoyesv6]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Gladiator)</div><div class='quotemain'>What exactly is flushing the transmission? I want to do it, but not at the dealer. So I plan to buy some Mitsu ATF fluid and find a mechanic that will do so</div>

when you just drain and fill, you dont' get all the fluid out. when you flush, you run clean fluid thru everything til all u got is clean fluid coming out. this ensure that almost all of the old fluid is removed.

[Gladiator]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(pinoyesv6)</div><div class='quotemain'>

when you just drain and fill, you dont' get all the fluid out. when you flush, you run clean fluid thru everything til all u got is clean fluid coming out. this ensure that almost all of the old fluid is removed.</div>

I asked my mechanic today and he said it is not necessary to flush. Plus I don't think he has the machinary. Then he said a simple ATF change would be sufficient :roll:

Although now I'm running Mobil 1 synthetic motor oil 8)

[00GTZ00]

Well I just cot mine changed...Used the "chrysler fluid" and my car actually is shifting MUCH better then it was before.

[galant2003]

I'm a newbie but could someone give an explanation as to why Mitsu ATF is better than Mobil synthetic ATF. Synthetic is better overall compared to a regular ATF, so why would the Mitsu fluid be better?

[manybrews]

I'm a newbie but could someone give an explanation as to why Mitsu ATF is better than Mobil synthetic ATF. Synthetic is better overall compared to a regular ATF, so why would the Mitsu fluid be better?
different coefficients of friction.
different additives.


all designed by the engineers specifically to work with the clutch elements in a mitsu trans.
generic fluids have to cope with 40 different car manufacturers specs, making it impossible to work perfectly with everyones.

[Gilhuly]

I think you guys who are going with non-mits fluid are looking at this cock-eyed. What is the risk-return on your decision. What is the upside? What is the downside? Tranny problems suck.

[pinoyesv6]

trust me...i know first hand. my tranny is acting pretty funny when not using the mitsu fluid. its acting worser than it did with teh mitsu fluid...my mechanic says he's gonna fix it though.

[Los]

Here is what I found that seems to be the same standard as mitsu fluid.
The 8g service manual recommends that you use "Diamond ATF SP-IIM or SP-III or equivalent".
According to this product this will work for our cars. Not to go against manybrews however i can't believe mitsu is the only place you have to go and get the correct type of ATF.




http://www.amsoil.com/products/prodpics/2003/atf_qt_600pxh.jpg

Synthetic Automatic Transmission Fluid

Improves fuel efficiency, reduces transmission temperatures and increases transmission life. Provides unsurpassed thermal stability and up to five times the service life of conventional ATFs. Delivers maximum protection for towing and other severe-duty applications. Product Code: ATF

For DEXRON®III, MERCON®, Ford M2C138-CJ, Ford M2C166-H and Chrysler ATF Plus, MS-7176B Applications.

Recommended for use in applications requiring Honda Z-1 transmission fluids.

Use where ATF is recommended in Mobile or Stationary Hydraulic and Power Steering units.

Transmission Fluid Evacuation Service - Bulletin From Filters Manufacturers Council (PDF File 16k)


Recommended for applications requiring the following specifications:

GM Dexron II, Dexron III
Ford Mercon, Mercon V
Chrysler ATF+, ATF+2, ATF+3, ATF+4
Mitsubishi Diamond SP II & III
Allison C-3 & C-4 and TES-295
Caterpillar Powershift Transmission TO-2 & TO-3
Voith Commercial Transmissions
GM Strasbourg (European Imports) and Opel
Applications requiring Honda Z-1 transmission fluids
Toyota Type T and T-IV
[/img]

[jmoney37]

i have an 01 auto with about 35500 miles on it. DO i have to get my transmission fluid flushed and changed or do you only do that when u start feeling problems with the transmission. THe guy where i got my oil changed at said he'd do it for $45 dollars but after reading what everyone's said i'd only go to the dealer to do it. SO should i go get it done as fast as possible or am i still ok? (as of now i feel a slite if any shift problems)

[pinoyesv6]

its ok for tyou to change your fluid without you feeling any problems. its kinda like when you go to the doctors and you pee in the cup. they can tell if you have any problems from your pee. same thing with changing the tranny fluid. it can show you if you have any tranny problems, sometimes even before you can feel the problems

[jmoney37]

Ya but i dont have $140 to go to the galant doctor if i dont have a problem know what i mean. But i guess i'll jus wait a couple weeks till i get some more money and then i'll take it to them. Would u do it though if u felt no transmission problems?