2004 accord 4-cyl: ATF filter?

Interesting article about ATF replacement in your Honda Accord:
http://www.driveaccord.net/forums/showthread.php?t=14714&page=2

Anybody knows why Honda does not call for replacing the filter
mentioned there in any of their maintenance schedules?

Do you replace this filter in your Accord? How often?

 

if someone told you the filter has sufficient capacity to last the
lifetime of the transmission without being changed, would you believe
them? would that knowledge make you feel more comfortable about not
driving a p.o.s from detroit that won't last, regardless of filter changes?

 

Honda automatics do not have a replaceable filter. They use a series of
inaccessible screens within the transmission.

 

What about the filter mentioned in the linked discussion thread on
driveaccord.net?

 

Not sure why a simple looking paper filter could last so much longer
than the similarly looking engine oil filter...

Do you really know what is the purpose of this filter or you are just
speculating based on no data?

 

1. it's not being exposed to the temperatures or chemicals or combustion
product load of what's going on inside the engine.

2. they bothered to test.

3. a "paper" filter is not newsprint. it's a highly sophisticated and
extensively researched piece of equipment.

er, no, i have no idea what the filter does or how it works - i'm just
pulling this out of thin air.

 

By golly they're right. There /is/ in fact an inline filter spliced into
one of the cooler lines. This is true for Civic-based cars as well.

I cannot fathom why no replacement interval is specified. If it were me,
I'd be replacing it every few years.

An ATF filter would last considerably longer than an engine oil filter
because there are no combustion byproducts to deal with. Plus, I'd guess
there would be a lot less particulate matter to filter out.

 

Is the temperature of the engine oil flowing through the oil filter
greater than the temperature of the ATF in a working transmission?
Any data to support this claim?

You guess or you know it? If you know, based on what data?

The same thing you can read about FRAM paper filters for $2

I am curious, could you please explain why this filter is there at all
and why is it located in this particular place... I would appreciate this.

 

Very strange, isn't it?

I agree that it could last longer, but how much longer?

I am always suspicious when I hear "will last a lifetime"...
What does it exactly mean? What is the "lifetime"? The time
the car is under warranty? The time the car is under lease
contract and is sold to 2nd owner? Is it 100k miles the car
is designed for? What if I want it to last 200 or 300k ?

 

Evidently Honda seems to think it will last long enough not to care about
specifying a replacement interval.

Apparently these filters are meant to catch any debris that may have ended
up in the transmission during manufacture or remanufacture. It seems to be
sort of like the dryer in an A/C system: used once, then not needed again.

I found an old Honda Service News issue (Sept 1992) that mentions slow
idling and stalling (especially when hot) as a symptom of a blocked ATF
filter.

As of 2007, dealership techs are specifically instructed to return the
filter along with the tranny when a unit is sent back under warranty.

 

I'd never seen that before, but now that you point it out, I find there is
one on my '06 CR-V as well, mounted in the middle of one of the ATF cooler
lines at the bottom of the radiator. There is no mention of it that I can
find in the FSM, even the picture that shows it does not identify it.

I know there was/is no such filter on my '96 or '00. Must be a new thing.
At least you don't have to open up the transmission to get to it.

Oh, well... One more thing to change...

 

They've been there on factory remans since at least the early '90s.

All 2001's came with them from new. I haven't determined yet exactly when
the factory began installing them, but there is no mention of one in the
'00 Civic manual, nor in any of the earlier manuals I have.

 

Considering the fact this filter is on the lines leading to the ATF cooler
it would imply that blocked ATF filter would cause fluid overheating...
For less than $20 I would say it will not hurt to replace it every 60k
miles!

Interesting... thanks for this info!

If you read the thread I linked from the driveaccord.net you will notice
some claims that replacing this filter with some other one improves
shifting - it is hard to believe... Sounds like an autosuggestion to me
Unless the overheating fluid trully causes delayed shifting...

 

timing coincides with the other honda transmission problems. that
indicates to me some kind of q.c. policy change.

 

dude, why do you bother? look this stuff up. if you can't find it on
the web, go to your local library and look in the automotive tech
section. better yet, go to school and sign up for some of the
automotive engineering classes. just because /you/ don't know something
doesn't mean /i/ don't.

 

where did you get this number from? was it:

a. a wildly uneducated guess
b. meticulous lab research
c. some secret internal source at honda
d. er, give up.

 

That's what I was wondering...

 

I just asked you couple of questions and seems you do not have the answer.

 

I took it from the same place you took the info it will last the "lifetime".

 

Well, Honda's transmission problems were at least partially due to
debris clogging the strainer in the tranny. At least in 98-99
differential bearing failures.

http://www.magnefine.com/

This type of inline filters have come with rebuilt transmissions to
catch leftover debris. Magnefine recommends 12-month intervals.
Strainer based filtration is just OK, bare minimum. But that' why
there are:

http://perma-cool.com/Catalog/Cat_page25.html