93 MTX, Auto-RX and synchromesh.

[drdave]

I decided to give my transaxle a transfusion. The car has 160+K on it. 1000 miles ago I removed 4-ounces of fluid and added 4-ounces of Auto-RX for cleaning. When I pulled the fluid it was dark brown/black/gray, barely translucent, and had a bit of a burnt smell. I did this as preventive maintenance, as it shifted pretty well. The only noticeable issues were that it was a little notchy going into 5th, and going into 1st while rolling slowly was notchy.

Completely drained it by removing the 13mm bolt and pouring a quart of ATX through it. After 1000 mile of Auto-RX, it was slightly more translucent.

Replaced the fluid with synchromesh. Now, my findings. The car feels exactly the same as it did before. This is not a big deal since this was strictly a maintenance procedure anyway, but I did expect to notice something.

Strangely enough, I gave the power steering a flush last week and replaced it with synthetic. Haven't noticed any difference in that either.

I do feel better knowing that it has fresh blood in it.

For daily driving, majority highway, what's the recommendation of the day. Good quality ATF, synthetic, or synchromesh? A very long time ago, Doug Lewis told me that ATF for regular driving was better than synthetic. And syncromesh seems to be more of a recent fad for us.

<small>[ May 25, 2003, 10:44 PM: Message edited by: drdave ]</small>

 

[philw349]

As far as I know, syncromesh acts as an additive for our cars. Something that helps your existing fluid work better. I've heard people use 2 parts ATF and 1 part synchromesh for good results.

 

[rendyx]

Nope, just pour in the Synchromesh. It is a usable fluid on its own. But I wonder how it would work when mixed with something?