How to Check Transmission Fluid?
Maintaining your vehicle is important to keep it functioning at its best. At Maple Acura, we provide numerous services and helpful guides to help drivers with their vehicle ownership. If you have not checked your transmission fluid before, it might be a good idea to do so, and you might want to visit our Service Centre if your fluid change interval is coming up.
Steps For How To Check Transmission Fluid Level
- Park your vehicle on level ground and open the hood.
- Start the engine, leave the vehicle in park, then let the engine warm up for a few minutes.
- Double-check your owners' manual for your specific vehicle's transmission fluid check procedure and transmission fluid dipstick location.
- Locate the transmission dipstick, pull it out, wipe the fluid off, then reinsert it to get a fluid reading.
- Lastly, pull it out one last time and check the fluid against the labelled indicators.
Things To Look For When Checking Your Transmission Fluid
There are three things you will want to look out for when checking your transmission fluid: colour, consistency, and smell. You will be looking for a bright red colour, so it might need to be changed soon if your fluid is darker. For consistency, you will be looking to compare the fluid to when it was new, but most importantly, you will want to look for any metal shavings or anything that can indicate an issue. New fluid almost has no smell, so if your old fluid smells burnt, you might want to get your transmission fluid changed.
How Often Should You Check Transmission Fluid?
Depending on your driving conditions and habits, transmission fluid could require earlier change intervals. However, as a general rule for most drivers, you will want to change the fluid around every 50,000 kilometres. As for checking the fluid, you should do so every six months.
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