Transmission fluid change without filter replacement

No issues with the gasket leaking? A gasket would be the way to go.
In old days when the ATF pan using a cork gasket, it leaks all the time. Newer synthetic rubber gasket should be better. But I was wondering if rubber gasket is superior and much easier and quicker to install, why the car manufacture like Mazda would want to use hard to apply RTV during the transmission assembling?
 
I would speculate its cost related.
Back in the days a gasket for the oil pan (early 90s car) was roughly 20-30$.
RTV wholesale is what..5$..
Similar reason why a lot of cars now have plastic-type oil pans vs steel or alu in the old days.
Same for thermostat caps, used to be metal now its plastic all over in the engine compartment. Even water pumps are plastic.
And I dont buy it when they say newer cars parts last longer but people love their big tv screens in the car, touch screen everything and sensors all around.
I read somewhere that average joe (in US) keeps their car for 3-4 years max and then wants a new toy.
Thats the future and the manufacturers know it.
 
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I would speculate its cost related.
Back in the days a gasket for the oil pan (early 90s car) was roughly 20-30$.
RTV wholesale is what..5$..
Similar reason why a lot of cars now have plastic-type oil pans vs steel or alu in the old days.
Same for thermostat caps, used to be metal now its plastic all over in the engine compartment. Even water pumps are plastic.
And I dont buy it when they say newer cars parts last longer but people love their big tv screens in the car, touch screen everything and sensors all around.
I read somewhere that average joe (in US) keeps their car for 3-4 years max and then wants a new toy.
Thats the future and the manufacturers know it.
Cost and speed related. It's litteral pennies, or even a fraction of a penny for some RTV. Plus, the RTV is squirted on by a machine, so it's "perfect" every time. A regular person using a squeeze tube can never be that fast and precise.

The pan gasket has to be put on by hand, with the bolts lined up perfectly through both the pan and the gasket and then into the case, which takes a few extra seconds on an assembly line vs just using RTV. Extra seconds on an assembly line costs money.
 
You can get a Wix filter that comes with a silicone pan gasket from O'Reilly's for under $30. That means you don't have to mess with RTV, which makes the job way faster in the future.

By far the biggest pain in the ass the first time you drop the pan is cleaning up the factory RTV off of the pan and case. That'll take you about 30 minutes, no lie.

The second time you drop the pan, because you used the gasket, takes seconds!
What methods do you use to clean the RTV?

I forgot they made gaskets for this now, will definitely investigate.
 
Razor blade to get the big chunks off, then some steel wool to clean the rest. CLEAN, CLEAN, CLEAN, CLEAN the area afterwards, I use brake kleen. Luckily with the case, gravity is your friend, so if you're careful, getting debris inside of the transmission is kinda difficult.
 
Razor blade to get the big chunks off, then some steel wool to clean the rest. CLEAN, CLEAN, CLEAN, CLEAN the area afterwards, I use brake kleen. Luckily with the case, gravity is your friend, so if you're careful, getting debris inside of the transmission is kinda difficult.
Instead of razor blade, I would try this Non-Marring Scraper Set, (4 Pieces), at least on transmission mating surface side as it’s made of aluminum, to clean up the old RTV.

2016.5 CX-5 Transmission fluid change questions

Steel wool could scratch aluminum mating surface too if not careful.

And be prepared to use rubber mallet and / or above mentioned non-marring scraper to get the ATF pan loose the first time you try to drop the pan.
 
Yes be super careful scraping the surfaces and take a ton of time with surface prep. It is the best chance to get a leak free job. When I was cleaning surfaces for a different project I sharpened popsicle sticks on the grinder, and used them to scrape residue from glued on gaskets. You need a few of them, they wear out during use. And if it is a paper type gasket I would spray it with a gasket dressing to help hold it in place during instillation and also helps make a leak proof seal.
 
A small scratch or nick, with a gasket, could be an issue. With RTV it's no big deal.

I used my Dremel with some brass brushes to clean the RTV off both the pan and the block. Worked great and the (softer) brass brush won't scratch the (harder) aluminum surface at all.

You can see my photos from when I dropped and re-sealed the pan on page 3 of my thread here, and then follow up on the next page after a 1,000 mile road trip showing zero leaks.

 
A small scratch or nick, with a gasket, could be an issue. With RTV it's no big deal.
This could be part of reasons why the car manufactures use RTV instead of rubber gasket on oil pan and ATF pan.

I used my Dremel with some brass brushes to clean the RTV off both the pan and the block. Worked great and the (softer) brass brush won't scratch the (harder) aluminum surface at all.
This definitely is much easier to clean up the old RTV than any manual work, and it should work out great.

You can see my photos from when I dropped and re-sealed the pan on page 3 of my thread here, and then follow up on the next page after a 1,000 mile road trip showing zero leaks.

Yes people should also read your valuable experience of dropping the ATF pan and replacing the filter cartridge in addition to Digbicks1234’s thread posted above. I updated my previous post to include your thread, and bookmarked both threads for my future reference. I will re-read them again when I plan to do the ATF replacement.

What was the reason of your decision using RTV instead of seemly more convenient rubber gasket for ATF pan?

theblooms said he uses brake kleen to degrease the sealant area, which product did you use? I remember someone mentioned another product which is designed only for this purpose, but I can’t remember the name. I believe you mentioned “gave it a final IPA wipe down”?
 
I thought I remembered reading of people having leaking issues with the gasket. I just did the Mazda RTV to keep it as close to factory OEM as possible. Plus the Mazda RTV was already available at the local Mazda dealer, and I was up there for other stuff anyway.
 
I’m likely going to be trading or selling my ‘13 CX-5 in about 4 years time. I’m currently at 91k miles and looking to drain and fill 3x at 100k miles. I was going to do the filter at that time, but I don’t think it’ll be worth the effort for me if I’m hanging on to it only a few more years after that.
If you are only going to get it up to around 135K miles, doesn't seem worth the time and effort to touch.
 
I’m likely going to be trading or selling my ‘13 CX-5 in about 4 years time. I’m currently at 91k miles and looking to drain and fill 3x at 100k miles. I was going to do the filter at that time, but I don’t think it’ll be worth the effort for me if I’m hanging on to it only a few more years after that.
IMO it depends on each person especially you’re thinking about doing drain-and-fill 3 times. When I was following PatrickGSR94’s thread and he originally planed doing only drain-and-fill 3 times like you. But he changed his mind and dropped the pan during the 3rd drain-and-fill. He’s an experienced DIYer like you, and dropping the pan may be just a piece of cake、one afternoon job to both of you, especially if you choose to use rubber gasket.

My current plan is doing drain-and-fill 3 times and dropping the pan to replace the filter cartridge during the 3rd drain-and-fill. Currently my 2016 CX-5 has 43K miles, plan to do it around 55K miles.
 
Good to know. I may go that route with that silicon pan gasket once I am near 100K miles. I'm only ay 63k miles on my '15 and fully did the 3x drain and fills back in mid 2019 @ 50k miles.

You can get a Wix filter that comes with a silicone pan gasket from O'Reilly's for under $30. That means you don't have to mess with RTV, which makes the job way faster in the future.

By far the biggest pain in the ass the first time you drop the pan is cleaning up the factory RTV off of the pan and case. That'll take you about 30 minutes, no lie.

The second time you drop the pan, because you used the gasket, takes seconds!
 
I would do it earlier than 100K if I could go back. The stuff that came out of mine at ~112K was pretty nasty.
100%! I wish I did my first service closer to 40k miles instead of at 70k. But I was not as educated about it at that point in its life.
 
I did D/F at 30,000 miles. Approaching 50,000 miles. The A/T has a wee bit of hesitation at lower gears I am seeing. I want to proceed with D/F again. Can someone tell me how much quarts and what's the correct part # please? Should 1 D/F be sufficient or should I be driving for a week and doing it again mirroring as if I have flushed the AT?

I did do the rear differential oil but not the front transfer case. This time I'd like to do both. Any advice on what's the product (part #) and quantity required? I think those two take the same fluid.
 
I did D/F at 30,000 miles. Approaching 50,000 miles. The A/T has a wee bit of hesitation at lower gears I am seeing. I want to proceed with D/F again. Can someone tell me how much quarts and what's the correct part # please? Should 1 D/F be sufficient or should I be driving for a week and doing it again mirroring as if I have flushed the AT?

I did do the rear differential oil but not the front transfer case. This time I'd like to do both. Any advice on what's the product (part #) and quantity required? I think those two take the same fluid.
Mazda says it needs 3.70 ~ 5.18 quarts with filter cartridge replacement. But for drain-and-fill only, people usually use about 3.75 quarts.

Mazda Genuine ATF-FZ, part no. 0000-FZ-113E-01 (MSRP $15.65)

ATF drain plug washer, part no. 9956-41-400

A single D&F gives you about 50% fresh ATF. 2 D&F’s give you about 75%; 3 D&F’s give you about 87.5% fresh ATF. Most people do 3 D&F’s if they prefer doing it multiple times. And they do it with 1 ~ 2 weeks interval in between.

If you plan to drop the pan and change the ATF filter cartridge, here’re 2 excellent write-ups by Digbicks1234 and PatrickGSR94:

2016.5 CX-5 Transmission fluid change questions

2014 CX5 Tune-Up items to replace?

As for gear lubricant change on front transfer case and rear differential, you need 0.48 quart Mazda Long Life Hypoid Gear Oil SG1, part no. 0000-77-SG1-QT (MSRP $30.85!), for transfer case; ~0.70 quart SG1 for rear differential. Don’t get fooled by owner’s manual which lists 0.48 quart for the rear differential, and just buy 1 quart SG1 to cover both changes. You need 2 bottles.

Here’s an excellent write-up by CX5-SO:

Rear Diff and Transfer Case Fluid Change: Tools, Parts and Links
 
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Mazda says it needs 3.70 ~ 5.18 quarts with filter cartridge replacement. But for drain-and-fill only, people usually use about 3.75 quarts.

Mazda Genuine ATF-FZ, part no. 0000-FZ-113E-01 (MSRP $15.65)

ATF drain plug washer, part no. 9956-41-400

A single D&F gives you about 50% fresh ATF. 2 D&F’s give you about 75%; 3 D&F’s give you about 87.5% fresh ATF. Most people do 3 D&F’s if they prefer doing it multiple times. And they do it with 1 ~ 2 weeks interval in between.

If you plan to drop the pan and change the ATF filter cartridge, here’re 2 excellent write-ups by Digbicks1234 and PatrickGSR94:

2016.5 CX-5 Transmission fluid change questions

2014 CX5 Tune-Up items to replace?

As for gear lubricant change on front transfer case and rear differential, you need 0.48 quart Mazda Long Life Hypoid Gear Oil SG1, part no. 0000-77-SG1-QT (MSRP $30.85!), for transfer case; ~0.70 quart SG1 for rear differential. Don’t get fooled by owner’s manual which lists 0.48 quart for the rear differential, and just buy 1 quart SG1 to cover both changes. You need 2 bottles.

Here’s an excellent write-up by CX5-SO:

Rear Diff and Transfer Case Fluid Change: Tools, Parts and Links

Yep, mine was about 3.7 quarts...maybe it was 3.75. My catch pitcher didn't have the most accurate of measure points beyond quart and half quart.

That said, I drained about 3.5 in the first drain/fill. Like many others, I discovered my CX-5 to be a bit underfilled on the factory ATF per the proper measuring procedure on the ATF dipstick. ~3.7 quarts brought the level to the proper "box" on the dipstick.
 
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