I always wanted my son to be interested in working on cars, but it wasn't to be.

I used to live in the Santa Monica mountains, just north of Malibu. I still miss the place a lot. I have to come out and get my "fix" regularly.

Yep it's a good trade to know. Especially when you go to a dealership and they tell you some outrageous price on a repair and the majority of the cost goes to labor.

What made you move to Texas? You heard about all of the fires they have been having down south? Crazy

You got that right. I use to live here in the bay area closer to work, but the price of housing here is horrible, so that's why I moved to Modesto and bought a house, but this was before the economy got so bad. If only I could find a job here in modest to pay me what I get paid in the bay area it would be a life saver.

L.A. traffic is brutal on cars. I used to work on Wilshire Blvd. and remember only too well what it was like.

With the price of labor these days, you can't afford not to use synthetics.

Yep the Labor is something like $65 t0 $75 an hour and that's if you are a return customer and you know someone.

Usually $100+/hour.

Either way it goes you got to pay the $$$, Just like DMV and the Court house. Something you can't get out of paying.

So since I put the 5-30w in this weekend I shouldn't change it for 6,000 miles or 6 months? The reason is because this is a much thicker oil.

With the helps on this site, you can keep a car going strong for 250,000 to 350,000 miles and not spend much money doing it. At most games, you win by playing good defense. It's the same thing with the game of life.

Update: Well on my way home last night it seems like the car was still doing the same thing it was doing before I drained the tranny fluid. On the way into work it seemed fine, but I think after it gets warmed up/stop-n-go traffic it starts the same old act. When I drained the tranny fluid I just drained it from the tranny and not the radiator lines, would this have something to do with it? I didn't do the brakes yet either, will do them on Sunday. Since the plug was so dirty I might have to see if this tranny has a screen and clean it now huh? I hope not.

I would drive it more and see if it improves. It may have been somewhat sludged up. Driving it may help dissolve any varnish and sludge that developed. Internal hydraulic pressures may improve, over time, and it will start shifting better.

Okay, but its not going to hurt anything. I usually drive it 2 days and then drive the Saturn 3 days. So I should drive the Honda the rest of the week then?

Go with your gut, but I would try it.

I'm going too. I'm going to drive it the rest of the week, by letting it sit at home its not going to mix the new tranny fluid up and run through it. I see you are a pretty busy guy on here. I saw all of the other answers you give out too. It must be a full time job for you.

Dropping and cleaning the pan, changing the filter/screen, and replacing the fluid is all most people can do to maintain transmissions. If it's beyond that, you are locking at a big repair bill.

I forgot it doesn't have a pan.

Your's just has a housing--no pan. I think all you will be able to do is to drain it again or undo the return line from the radiator and flush out what's in the converter and lines. After what you've done, I would just drain the housing again, refill it, and let it go at that.

Well I'm going to run it the rest of the week and then I'm going to undo the return line and see what happens. If some improvement then I will redrain all of it.

That's about all you can do. If you think it may be really sludged up, look into Auto-Rx. It is an ester-based product that will safely clean engines and transmissions. Check it out online. I would give the Mobil 1, first, a chance.

Keep in mind that you changed less than half of the fluid last time. Having all of it changed may affect internal hydraulic pressures, so that it will shift properly.

I dropped and cleaned the pan, installed a new filter, and drained the torque converter on a buddy's F-150, with 185,000 miles on it, several months ago. Before you could not even feel it shift; afterwards, it shifted like a new truck. I used Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF. He still can't get over the difference.

So with the Auto-RX should I get the one for Tranny?

I would only Auto-Rx your tranny, if the current "game plan" doesn't work. There's no guarantee even Auto-Rx will solve the problem--it could be something more seriously wrong with it.

This is why having a good preventive maintenance program, where you use the best lubricants right from the start, is the best (and cheapest) way to go. As a records supervisor, start a Maintenance Log on each of your vehicles. Just have Date, Mileage, and Maintenance Performed. Look at it regularly. I keep mine on Microsoft Word--it makes it very easy to stay on top of things. It turns it into a game.

I do keep a record on the cars, but since we just got this one I'm going to create one this car too. Yeah I'm going to do the other draining through the radiator and then my last result will be to do the Auto-Rx. So I'm wondering by the end of the week the Mobil 1 that I put in will have at least work its way through some of the tranny. Well I guess it looks like another Sunday of working on cars. So my first step: Drain fluid from radiator hose, now should I drain it out of the tranny again too? I already know to disconnect the battery cable overnight. (neg)

At this stage, I don't think you need to disconnect the return line from the radiator. I would just drain it again and refill it. That should be more than good enough to see if the old ATF was responsible for poor shifting.

If you decide to Auto-Rx the transmission, they don't recommend using it with synthetic ATF. Auto-Rx prefers conventional ATF. Afterwards, you can certainly use your Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF. You just need to reflect on whether you believe sludge/varnish could be responsible for the poor shifting or whether there's something fundamentally wrong with it.

k, will do it this Sunday. Now I noticed when we got the Mobil 1 they had 2 different kinds one was Mercon and the other was for import cars. The guy at Autozone said it didn't matter what one we used.

I would also take a battery squeeze bulb (turkey baster) and partially change the power steering fluid on each car. Your Saturn can use Valvoline SynPower Power Steering Fluid, which is a partial synthetic. It's approved for GM applications. On your Honda, use only Genuine Honda Power Steering Fluid. Power steering gear and rack assemblies can run $2,000 if they go. With the mileage you put on your cars, this area should not be overlooked.

This is the one I would use:

Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF

I'm not familiar with the one for imports. Always check the car manufacturer's requirements with the fluid you are buying. I would never rely on auto parts clerks, quick change outfits, or most mechanics for advice on lubricants. I can't believe what I've heard over the years.

This is the one I used, but I did notice the other kind Mobil 1 - Mercon V.

It is Mercon and Mercon V approved. Ford specifies Mercon and Mercon V. My 2000 Ford Taurus requires Mercon V in the transmission. I use the Mobil 1 product in the link. On Fords, you can use the Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF in the transmission and the power steering unit, which I do.

I know when the guy at Auto Zone told me it doesn't matter which one you use, I was like oh no, he doesn't know what he's talking about. It stated on the back of the ATF Jug for Hondas

Most of these guy don't know what they are talking about, unfortunately. Best thing to do is check your Owner's Manual, or possibly transmission dip stick, and see what's specified.

It sounds like you are fine.

The car didn't come with the owners manual so it's a hit and miss situation. I looked on eBay to purchase one, but nothing yet.

This link, then, should help you:

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/cars-t...tml#post219991

So for the Oil in both cars "Honda & Saturn" use 5-30W Mobil 1? So then I won't need to change the oil as often as I do now. I change it every 3000 miles, but this is a quaker state oil.

Correct. Change it every 6,000 miles or 6 months, whichever comes first. I would also recommend that you use one of the premium oil filters that are on the market; e.g. Purolator's Pure One or the Mobil 1 filter. They have a synthetic filtering medium that filters to 10 microns, rather than 20-30 microns on regular filters. It's not necessary but, if you can get them on sale, it's definitely worth it in the long-run.

Chemistry has a lot to do with properly maintaining a car. Synthetic oil consists of "designer" molecules, precisely engineered for the application. Conventional oil consists of oil molecules of an assortment of sizes and shapes. The light molecules evaporate or oxidize first on conventional oil, which are burned in the cylinders or begin to contaminate the emission system. Since synthetic oil molecules are the same size and shape, they have less friction and are much more chemically stable at high and low temperatures. It's like marbles of the same size versus varying size. All military and commercial jets only use synthetic turbine oil--there's a reason for it. Since the chemistry of synthetic oil is much more stable than conventional oil, service intervals can be safely extended. In Europe, where many drivers have used synthetics for years, the average drain interval is 10,000+ miles.

Similarly, using the proper antifreeze and distilled water affects the car's ability to cool--again, it's chemistry. Distilled water is pure and doesn't have minerals, which will buildup and block the radiator. The wrong antifreeze can attack gaskets and metals in the engine and cooling system. Huge damage can result. I can go on and on from brake fluid to grease. You get the picture.

k, will do. So now I have another Sunday of working on cars.. Yippee..

Using synthetics will reduce your time taking care of your cars by a lot. Synthetics in the engine and transmission should increase gas mileage by 8 to 10%.