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Brake Fluid and Transmission Fluid Advice (FN2)

R

Rocky

Messages
10
Brakes:
My brake fluid is due to be changed - how much do I need of the Dot 4 Honda stuff (comes in 500ml bottle). Will 1 litre be enough?
Also, is there a forum discount when ordering from Cox?

Transmission Fluid
I have crunchy gears when changing quickly in vtec. Otherwise shift is fine. Fluid was last changed in 2013, so due a change. Should I go go for Amsoil fluid? What is the specification and how much will I need? Finally, where is the best place to buy it?

Thanks!
 
Rocky said:
Brakes:
My brake fluid is due to be changed - how much do I need of the Dot 4 Honda stuff (comes in 500ml bottle). Will 1 litre be enough?
Also, is there a forum discount when ordering from Cox?

Transmission Fluid
I have crunchy gears when changing quickly in vtec. Otherwise shift is fine. Fluid was last changed in 2013, so due a change. Should I go go for Amsoil fluid? What is the specification and how much will I need? Finally, where is the best place to buy it?

Thanks!
Click to expand...
When you say changing quickly, which gears is it in and does it only allow you to change gears once the revs drop below 6500rpm? If that is the case then your clutch sounds like it's on the way out.

1 litre should be enough for the brakes alone, I bought 1.5 to do the brakes and clutch and used most of it because my system was really dirty!

I used motul RBF600 on mine as everyone was recommending it, couldn't say how much difference it makes in comparison to others as I did my pads at the same time but I'm happy with it.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
 
Forgot to mention there is a discount for Cox, think it's an extra 5% or so. I'll try and link the forum for you



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BennyJH said:
When you say changing quickly, which gears is it in and does it only allow you to change gears once the revs drop below 6500rpm? If that is the case then your clutch sounds like it's on the way out.

1 litre should be enough for the brakes alone, I bought 1.5 to do the brakes and clutch and used most of it because my system was really dirty!

I used motul RBF600 on mine as everyone was recommending it, couldn't say how much difference it makes in comparison to others as I did my pads at the same time but I'm happy with it.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Thanks for this information (and forum discount info) Benny.

The crunch happens in all of the gears, but particularly 2nd, 3rd, and 4th (maybe even 5th). I can change gears well above 6500 rpm (in fact very close to the rev limiter) and most times it will be fine, but on the odd occasion there is a crunch. Despite the crunch, the gear selects without issue. The car is only on 42k miles, and clutch does not slip at all. I have read the amsoil can really help with the crunchy gears, but not sure who stock it in the UK.

RE: the brakes - I was going to get the RBF600, but I wont be doing many trackdays, and do not want to change the fluid every 12 months (I have read that it is more hygroscopic than the Honda stuff).
 
Rocky said:
Thanks for this information (and forum discount info) Benny.

The crunch happens in all of the gears, but particularly 2nd, 3rd, and 4th (maybe even 5th). I can change gears well above 6500 rpm (in fact very close to the rev limiter) and most times it will be fine, but on the odd occasion there is a crunch. Despite the crunch, the gear selects without issue. The car is only on 42k miles, and clutch does not slip at all. I have read the amsoil can really help with the crunchy gears, but not sure who stock it in the UK.

RE: the brakes - I was going to get the RBF600, but I wont be doing many trackdays, and do not want to change the fluid every 12 months (I have read that it is more hygroscopic than the Honda stuff).
Click to expand...
No worries, glad to help.

That is weird, although the clutch doesn't usually start to slip, it gets more and more crunchy and stops you going into gear above 6500rpm. It's useful to know in case it starts becoming more of an issue.

I completely misunderstood what you meant by transmission fluid, my bad! Have a look on Opieoils, they sell loads and aren't too bad on price. Let me know how you get on with yours, if it helps your gearbox then I may swap mine out in future with it just to be safe

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I'd strongly recommend using the Honda MTF-3 for the gearbox. Others may have specific additives and some of those (particularly the higher sulphur content ones) will cause further faster degradation of the brass-based synchros in the Honda gearbox.

If it's already grinding when shifting then it may not be the clutch (assuming the clutch still feels light and engages a decent distance from the floor, and that the pedal doesn't have so much play that you're only partially disengaging it when changing gears) but the synchros. If it is the synchros (normally most noticeable going in to 2nd as this is the gear people abuse most) then it's a bit of an expensive job.

Changing fluid may improve things for a while though.
 
mike.h said:
I'd strongly recommend using the Honda MTF-3 for the gearbox. Others may have specific additives and some of those (particularly the higher sulphur content ones) will cause further faster degradation of the brass-based synchros in the Honda gearbox.

If it's already grinding when shifting then it may not be the clutch (assuming the clutch still feels light and engages a decent distance from the floor, and that the pedal doesn't have so much play that you're only partially disengaging it when changing gears) but the synchros. If it is the synchros (normally most noticeable going in to 2nd as this is the gear people abuse most) then it's a bit of an expensive job.

Changing fluid may improve things for a while though.
Click to expand...
Isn't one of the main issues if the synchros are worn is jumping out of 2nd and 3rd?

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
 
mike.h said:
I'd strongly recommend using the Honda MTF-3 for the gearbox. Others may have specific additives and some of those (particularly the higher sulphur content ones) will cause further faster degradation of the brass-based synchros in the Honda gearbox.

If it's already grinding when shifting then it may not be the clutch (assuming the clutch still feels light and engages a decent distance from the floor, and that the pedal doesn't have so much play that you're only partially disengaging it when changing gears) but the synchros. If it is the synchros (normally most noticeable going in to 2nd as this is the gear people abuse most) then it's a bit of an expensive job.

Changing fluid may improve things for a while though.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this informative post.

I have actually just bought Amsoil MTF fluid from Opie Oils. I was reading a lot about fluids on various forums, and in addition to the fact that my current fluid was changed 3 years and 17k miles ago with MTF3, the occurrence of the crunch and occasional difficulty in selecting gear suggests that the MTF3 hasn't had the longevity in preventing these problems.

The Amsoil may be no better for longevity, but it's specs says it exceed Honda's MTF fluid and it must be worth a try. I will keep you informed once I have it changed within the next two weeks.

RE: the clutch - the pedal feels light, clutch engages decent distance from floor, and the pedal does not appear to have play (although I am not sure how play would feel like).

I will likely also buy 1.5 litres of brake fluid, so that I can get the clutch fluid changed at the same time.
 
So long as it's a GL-4 spec at 75w-80 it should be okay, but my recommendation still stands: use MTF-3 from Honda, don't use anything else unless you have a plated diff (you don't) which requires something different.
 
mike.h said:
So long as it's a GL-4 spec at 75w-80 it should be okay, but my recommendation still stands: use MTF-3 from Honda, don't use anything else unless you have a plated diff (you don't) which requires something different.
Click to expand...

You have got me worried! This is the one I ordered: https://www.opieoils.co.uk/p-1051-amsoil-manual-synchromesh-transmission-fluid-mtf.aspx

and the spec sheet does not mention GL4: https://cdn.opieoils.co.uk/pdfs/amsoil/g2080.pdf

Can you have a quick check to see if it is the right product? Otherwise I can return once I receive the order.
 
It claims to replace Honda MTF, one would hope then that it's a GL-4 equivalent. The only reason I brought that up is because someone a week or so ago was going to use a GL-5 fluid in theirs and that does have the brass-affecting sulphur compounds at a much higher level.
 
It makes claims that it's fine for brass synchros, so maybe it's okay.

You have an FN2, is it post 2010 and has the LSD? I only ask because the application notes on that fluid say:
Not for use in engines, hypoid rear axles, limited-slip or wet-clutch applications.
Click to expand...

That may just be for plated diffs though, hopefully someone else chimes in here.

If you don't have the LSD then it's probably compatible.
 
I changed my transmission fluid a few months ago as the gear changed felt a bit rough and 2nd was slightly crunchy. I used Honda mtf3 and my gearbox was transformed. I still have a slight notch changing into 2nd but nothing like it was before. I would say if your gears are crunching an oil change will help but it is more than likely the synchro's in the gearbox that will need replacing. Honda mtf 3 works well in our cars, there's no need for more expensive transmission fluid, personally if you could return it and change for mtf 3 then I would
 
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