shortlid Posted March 18, 2008 Share Posted March 18, 2008 So after draining and re-filling the ATF in my Mom' 03 GT Legacy sedan the fluid came out REAL dark red after 30k. I now plan to replace the spin on filter and draina nd refill soon. Can I just use a oil filter that fits or do I risk pressure issues WIX cross looks to be a oil filter! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danz75 Posted March 19, 2008 Share Posted March 19, 2008 DaveI have a '99 Accord and a Civic the older Honda cars take stright oil in "5-speed manual transmisions not the automatics! There is speacial Honda ATF for the automatics but it is FAR from motor oil!! I had a 98 Honda Accord A/T 4cyl that definitely did not take straight oil. It used Honda ATF which is almost like any other ATF and i knew this because I did the drain and fill x 3 times procedure to get the fluid clean. It was brown when I bought the car so was nice to get it red again. A friend who works solely on Honda cars advised to stick to Honda ATF as the trannys can be a little finicky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1075 Posted March 19, 2008 Author Share Posted March 19, 2008 I'm not taking any chances, I went with the Subaru transmission filter. Ordered it for $24 and change from subaruparts.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danz75 Posted March 20, 2008 Share Posted March 20, 2008 I'm not taking any chances, I went with the Subaru transmission filter. Ordered it for $24 and change from subaruparts.com. I did the same thing. Since the tranny filter last a long time, I did not bother with trying to find an alternative just to save some bucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1075 Posted March 20, 2008 Author Share Posted March 20, 2008 I did the same thing. Since the tranny filter last a long time, I did not bother with trying to find an alternative just to save some bucks. Yep, just because it looks like an oil filter from the outside does not mean that the filtering media is the same on the inside. Until someone who knows what they are doing tears a couple apart and can verify that the filtering media are identical I'm playing it safe. I figure that you can buy an oil filter that will fit for about $4 bucks, a Subaru transmission filter online for about $24, a difference of $20 bucks. A damaged transmission is a lot more expensive than $20 bucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porcupine73 Posted March 20, 2008 Share Posted March 20, 2008 Yes there was a good thread some time back showing that the ATF filter has some potentially important differences vs. an engine oil filter. For one the Subaru ATF has some kind of mesh over the bypass, probably to keep at least the larger particles of metal from getting into the ATF cooler and plugging it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortlid Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Yes there was a good thread some time back showing that the ATF filter has some potentially important differences vs. an engine oil filter. For one the Subaru ATF has some kind of mesh over the bypass, probably to keep at least the larger particles of metal from getting into the ATF cooler and plugging it up. Well just went to Advanced autoparts and on a whim asked them if they stoked one since stealership is so far away and only open 9-5. Well they looked up a Pro-King Automatic Transmission Filter part # FK-335. It says right on it made only for ATF applications and it looks the part. It was only $12 and company looks legit? manager says they sell a lot to the local Saturn dealer for there automtic transmission services? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 I have used the Advance brand on Saturns with no issues - they are typically a red filter. For Subaru I usually buy the Subaru or the wix. I personally consider Wix and Purolator to be good quality filters and Purolator doesn't make one for the trans for a Subaru. I think the Wix is about a quarter of the price of a Subaru - but it's been a while. Some here argue that it's a dealer only item. If I had one of the transmissions that cost 1,500 dollars used I may tend to go with the Subaru filter. If I had a 'normal' priced transmisison I may be more likely to go with the Wix. Just some thoughts. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OB99W Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Well just went to Advanced autoparts and on a whim asked them if they stoked one since stealership is so far away and only open 9-5. [...]If the issue is mainly ease of availability, and not so much pricing, online dealers sell the OEM spin-on filter for about $23 plus shipping charges. You could probably have one delivered to your door in a few days. The quality of aftermarket filters is variable -- some may be up to the job, some not. If we're talking about an '03 GT, I personally wouldn't risk the trans versus saving $15-20. However, "Ya pays yer money an' ya takes yer chances". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortlid Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 I have used the Advance brand on Saturns with no issues - they are typically a red filter. For Subaru I usually buy the Subaru or the wix. I personally consider Wix and Purolator to be good quality filters and Purolator doesn't make one for the trans for a Subaru. I think the Wix is about a quarter of the price of a Subaru - but it's been a while. Some here argue that it's a dealer only item. If I had one of the transmissions that cost 1,500 dollars used I may tend to go with the Subaru filter. If I had a 'normal' priced transmisison I may be more likely to go with the Wix. Just some thoughts. Dave The Pro-King Transmission filter I have is black, wrapped in plastic inside the box and has the date of manufature painted on it. The Wix I saw for the application on line said it was a oil filter and that made me scared. I like the fact that this filter says ATF only on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebugs Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 No problem. The ones that I get for Saturns in the past have been red. Perhaps Wix doesn't make one for your application. Like I said if it's an expensive tranny I would go with the dealer part. That's what I did on my VW with a very high dollar auto tranny. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortlid Posted May 29, 2008 Share Posted May 29, 2008 No problem. The ones that I get for Saturns in the past have been red. Perhaps Wix doesn't make one for your application. Like I said if it's an expensive tranny I would go with the dealer part. That's what I did on my VW with a very high dollar auto tranny. Dave I bought the Wix filter as well for $8 but the WIX filter says oil filter on it?? The stealership is juts too far away and there hours don't work either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OB99W Posted May 29, 2008 Share Posted May 29, 2008 [...]The stealership is juts too far away and there hours don't work either.If that's really the issue, see the first two sentences of my post #34 above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortlid Posted May 29, 2008 Share Posted May 29, 2008 If that's really the issue, see the first two sentences of my post #34 above. I hear ya, but have to do the job tommorow! Mainly seeing if some one had use dthese Pro-King ATF filter before. Wix I have heard other members using, have yet to hear issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortlid Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 WOW, the old filter was hard to get off!! It was all gunked up at 65,000 miles. No one warned me that another two qts. come out when you unscrew the filter. Had to make a mad dash for the corner store up the road and pay $5.00 for a qt. of Peak Dexron III ATF. Car shifting much better with Pro-king filter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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