Random1

A missing part of my story...

Even when the GMSMFM starts degrading it still shifts amazingly well. I'm over 10k miles on this change and it's still great. Who knows, I might be happy with this fluid for a much higher milage for street driving. Here's my distintion. The real determing factor (for me) for changing GMSMFM is shifting into second during autocross. It seems that at around 6k miles I will get an ocassional second gear grind. When this starts happening I consider putting in a fresh dose.

p0pe

I swear by GMSFM. I started with Honda MTF, it was notchy and grinded shifting into 2nd occasionally. Switched to GMSFM, it ruled, decided to change it after a year and put in some Redline MT-90. Again, it was notchy and gave me gear grinds and would make me cringe when driving my car. Went back to GMSFM. Nothing elimates grinds and provides buttery smooth shifts like GMSFM in MY CAR (results may vary).

latesleeper

I've put Syncromesh in my Evo (traded in) and my S2000. I am very satisfied with the non-notchy shifts. My 1 to 2 shift grind is gone. It's not a big deal if I have to change the stuff out every 10000 miles because the change is pretty easy.

cyber_x

I've noticed this with both Honda MTF and GMSMFM. The gearbox is just grumpy until it's warmed up, period.

In my case, I far prefer the feeling of GMSMFM when cold. It's noticeably decreased the frequency of the 2nd gear grind, although it hasn't completely eliminated it.

[QUOTE]
2) Seems to deteriorate quickly? At first I thought it was the best $22 I ever spent on the car.

Hockey

Dave (XViper), Sir, Guru, etc.

It is not everyday that I get to correct you, but the 60k interval caught my eye. I coulda swore it was every 30k under the "severe schedule". I ran out to my car to check the owners manual (also MY2000) and sure enough, 30k. Can't believe it is 90k for "normal driving" conditions.

To the original poster......I use Redline MTL in my car and most all of my clients cars as well. All but 1 of them have loved the improved feel, and have had no complaints of premature degradation of feel.

Regards,
Hockey

Harpoon

Do you guys who use GMSMFM have any concerns about increased heat? I've read about it being too hot for some cars.

xviper

Hockey, you are ABSOLUTELY CORRECT ....................... for MY'00, that is.

For MY'01 (and I assume later models), it is 60,000 miles under "severe". It is 120,000 MILES under "normal". Honda obviously don't consider changing tranny fluid to be a big issue for this car. However, there are other things that I disagree with Honda about, so this statement can be taken with a grain of salt.

Thanks for keeping me honest.

Hockey

Whew, I was actually nervous about pointing that out.

(Don't want to upset the MASTER - hahaha)

Intrepid175

Given this amazing turn in the conversation , I had to go look at the manual for my '04 model. It still recommends 60k miles under severe usage and 120k miles under normal usage. It also specifies "or" every four (4) years, whichever comes first!

The part that surprised me a little, because I didn't remember it being this short, was the schedule for the differential. How about every 15k miles or one (1) year, whichever comes first!! They obviously want us looking at the diff a lot more often.

On the question of the GMSFM, I tried it mainly because of all the glowing reports on this forum. I was also getting tired of the notchyness in the tranny, particularly in the 1>2 shift. The fluid change made a "big" difference at the time and seems to be holding pretty good so far. I made the change at around 13.7k miles and I'm about 50 miles shy of 23k as of this post. I still get a little crunch when cold but it's still a lot better than it was. It's also still fairly hot around here so the tranny's feeling pretty good even when cold. It'll be interesting to see how it does when winter rolls around again.

Maybe my tranny would have done just as well with the Honda fluid? I'll never know now.

Drive Safe,
Steve R.

124Spider

I switched to the GM Synchromesh a while ago.

1. I get a small second gear grind when cold, just as I got before switching. Otherwise, the transmission works fine.

2. I've had it in there for about 8,000 miles, and I haven't noticed any deterioration in performance. When the transmission is warm, it is buttery smooth, except sometimes on the track it will have a one tooth grind shifting into 4th.

I'll probably try Honda MTF when I change next, but I have not particular issues with the GM stuff.