From a simple oil change to flushing your transmission fluid, there are some jobs best left to professionals, and some that reward
the urge to push your sleeves up and roll under the hood yourself. This article covers one of each, and includes some useful links to
the fluids, parts, and accessories you’ll need to get the job done.
Servicing Your Car: Oil Filters
Changing your car’s oil is one of the most common and easiest ways to build confidence in your ability to maintain and repair your car. It’s (slightly) cheaper to change your own oil, and there’s the peace of mind you get from knowing the job was done right because you did it yourself.
Another benefit to changing your oil, and one of the ways in which you save money by doing so, is buying your own consumables. Oil filters are reasonably priced, and an OEM oil filter from our store is cheaper than you’ll find on Amazon.
We also carry OEM engine oil, in every weight and suitable for whatever Acura you drive.
Servicing Your Car: Transmission Fluid
Let’s start at the top – you absolutely should regularly check your transmission fluid, and you should flush the system according to the manufacturer’s maintenance schedule. We’ve all had the experience of showing up at the local lube shop on a Sunday morning for a quick oil change, only to have them strongly recommend the full system flush, including transmission fluid. Just because the lube shops give the hard sell on it, that doesn’t mean it’s unnecessary.
Automatic transmissions generate heat. A lot of heat, actually. In fact, they generate more heat than a manual transmission.
That heat means the gears in your transmission are under stress. That stress leads to the degradation of the transmission fluid—meaning the fluid naturally breaks down and becomes less effective as a lubricant over time.
Transmission fluid is trickier than engine oil, but just as important to the long-term maintenance and performance of your Acura. Sticking to the car maker’s scheduled maintenance plan, you would expect to change the fluid in your Acura’s automatic transmission roughly every 45,000 miles, depending on the type of driving you do and a bunch of other factors.
In addition, whereas an oil change in your driveway is just as effective (if not quite as quick) as one at the local lube shop, cycling your transmission fluid benefits from access to specialized equipment. Acura service departments and many lube shops will use a transmission flusher. This allows them to be more thorough than what you will achieve with just gravity to help you along.
The best solution here is to save yourself a few dollars and buy some peace of mind by purchasing OEM Acura transmission fluid for your mechanic to use at your next surface. And you can avoid catastrophe and make sure you purchase the correct fluids by checking out handy infographic for Acura transmission and other non-engine oil fluids.