7mt Transmission Fluid Service @ 1 year/7500mi -- fluid results

[rret]

Actually its a stretch to call the Mazda rotary a "good" engine. Early engines had a history of seal failures and gas mileage was subpar. The new RX8 redesign had major issues too, and engines had to be replaced under warrantee. And it lagged behind conventional reciprocating engines in power and mileage. Kudos to Mazda for giving it a go, but there is a reason why no models today are equipped with the rotary engine. At one time, Popular Mechanics predicted it would replace the reciprocating engine, and GM had already scheduled it into their production runs. GM pulled the plug when they couldn't achieve the same mileage as the reciprocating engine (this was during the 70's oil embargo). Today with normally aspirated reciprocating engines making 600+ HP, the rotary has an uphill battle. Is it cool, YES, and that is why enthusiasts like it and the fact it is unique and rare.

bashing the rotary is common, especially by people who never owned one. Which Mazda with a rotary did you own? I had a 1st gen RX-7 and had *zero* issues with the engine. yes, they consume oil (as designed), in order to lubricate the seals, much like a 2-stroke (oil in gas). so meeting emissions was/is tougher. MPG was meh, but at the time, when gas was cheap, no one cared. First Japanese car to win Le Mans outright was a rotary Mazda. Mazda will use a rotary here: https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a42433264/mazda-plug-in-hybrid-mx-30-rotary-engine-announced/ As for Government Motors?...well enough said.

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[NorthShoreBronco]

It's slow at work today, so I had some time to change the trans fluid in my Bronco. I'm a bit over 7500miles, just hit the one year mark. Since it's hot here in AZ, and fluids get cooked throughout the year, figured it's a good time to change it.
Fluid seems pretty dark after one year.

I used a different style bit, instead of an allen socket. Grips the allen fasteners better, with less chance of rounding out.

On the rack, checking torques and stuffs.

Fluid sample.

Cornwell Gripedge sockets. Better version of allen bits. Other brands have similar style bits.

Pretty straightforward service. Bolts/plugs were easy coming out. I noticed I had to move the lever next to the fill plug forward a bit to get the fill plug started. Transmission took pretty much all three quarts of the DCT fluid.

So did you get it Analyzed? Curious to see if it was worth doing.

Speaking of Turbo'd vehicles and oil changes... I work at a dealership. Someone brought their Escape in with a failed turbo.... 35 000 miles..... 0 oil changes. After getting rejected for warranty, they come back with 4 receipts each about 6 months apart from a local garage... only problem is that the invoice numbers were all in a row..... So either that shop only does 1 oil change every six months or.....

 

[Sitruc_btb]

So did you get it Analyzed? Curious to see if it was worth doing.

Speaking of Turbo'd vehicles and oil changes... I work at a dealership. Someone brought their Escape in with a failed turbo.... 35 000 miles..... 0 oil changes. After getting rejected for warranty, they come back with 4 receipts each about 6 months apart from a local garage... only problem is that the invoice numbers were all in a row..... So either that shop only does 1 oil change every six months or.....

Naw I didnt get it analyzed. Maybe I should have, just out of curiosity.

 

[SvgOne]

These are laughable intervals. Yes new tech in oil and other fluids is great and they are way better than they used to be but come on, this stuff still gets dirty. These are nuts. I keep my vehicles a low time, so my maintenance schedule is a little more aggressive than these crazy time and mileage periods.

I have worked on multiple vehicles over the last couple of years that have utilized the higher mileage maintenance intervals and failed. Seemed to be more of a problem when full synthetic oils started being the norm for factory vehicles from 2008 to about 2013ish. Some vehicles are still having engine issues, like Kia. I have wondered about the use of incorrect designations (using a SN designate instead of using a SM) plays a factor in these failing engines? IDK. I do know, many vehicles on the road just get an oil change at any place they think will do it cheaply. Just my opinion though.

 

[SvgOne]

Furthermore, owners manuals used to a Maintenance A and maintenance B section. A was for the normal everyday driver. Some highway, some city no really hard driving. That schedule was for the higher mileage intervals. The B section used to be for Taxi, towing and Police service, sometimes called "severe duty", there was a caveat to the B schedule, in the notes it also recommended drivers that idle for long periods of time adhere to the B schedule. The B schedule was typically, half to 3/4 of the a schedule. Just some food for thought.

 

[FloridaBurgBronco]

I have worked on multiple vehicles over the last couple of years that have utilized the higher mileage maintenance intervals and failed. Seemed to be more of a problem when full synthetic oils started being the norm for factory vehicles from 2008 to about 2013ish. Some vehicles are still having engine issues, like Kia. I have wondered about the use of incorrect designations (using a SN designate instead of using a SM) plays a factnot oor in these failing engines? IDK. I do know, many vehicles on the road just get an oil change at any place they think will do it cheaply. Just my opinion though.

Yeah, I had watched one video where an engine rebuilder said that the taxis and police cars had pretty good engine internals despite the wear because they not only had very regular and tight intervals but also used the same oil brand and formula all the time. I guess that makes for less chance to sludge up. He seemed pretty knowledgeable, but who knows. I stopped adding additives to my oil as well. I do my Bronco (turbo) and F-150 (202,000 miles) every 4K miles because they are severe duty and my Flex every 5K miles jsut because 7500 is too long and it also has over 108,000 miles now. I have never had, (knock on wood) a mechancial failure of any sort in the drivetrain of any vehicle I have owned, believing that oil is cheaper than new engines. And I usually keep my stuff until it hit 6 digits (miles) and on up. I think the higher failures rates of late are because we source a lot of crap and I mean crap from China and now we are paying for it. I usually believe they build stuff way better than they used to, but recently, our quality controls have fallen off a cliff.

 

[Sitruc_btb]

For anyone watching, now that it's cooler out here in AZ, morning temps in the 50's; this morning was 47 degrees, I have not noticed any rotational scraping during cold start. Did my trans fix itself? Was it the fluid change? Was it me pretending I'm driving a Viper on a track, and straightening out those synchros? No idea. I'll keep tabs on it and provide updates if it still happens.

Edit* Noise still present, though not as loud, and doesnt happen as frequently in the colder AZ mornings. 45-50 is a cold morning here.

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