ATF info

Post by **confused_al** » 11 Jan 2009, 18:29

I found some info about Valvoline MaxLife ATF and Volvo transmission from another board. Without ability to verify the accuracy, I can only hope its real.

"Here is the question and answer to Valvoline.

"I own a 2001 Mercedes E320 4matic, w/Transmission 722.6. Do you have a
synthetic transmission fluid that is compatable for it? I have been
told I have to use only Mercedes fluid in it. Is this true? If you do
have a fluid, is there a chart that shows this? Thank You."

"Valvoline recommends our Valvoline MaxLife Dex/Merc ATF product, which is a full synthetic fluid that meets the 3403 Mercedes Benz specifications. We have attached the MaxLife compatibilty letter to this email for your viewing and proof of our recommendation."

Here is a copy of the letter.

THOMAS R. SMITH
Technical Director, Valvoline Brand
November 05, 2008
To Whom It May Concern:
Valvoline has received several inquiries regarding the topic of MaxLife ATF and its use in various vehicles. In
response to these questions Valvoline has issued the following statements:
Valvoline recommends MaxLife ATF in a broad range of transmissions. The list below is just a sample of
applications where Valvoline supports the use of MaxLife ATF. Please also note that MaxLife is a full synthetic
ATF.
• Allison C-4
• Allison TES 389
• Allison TES 295 (extended drain with
appropriate used oil sampling)
• Audi G-052-025-A2, G-052-162-A1
• BMW LT71141 or LA2634 fluids
• Ford MERCON®, MERCON® V*
• Ford FNR5
• Ford MERCON® SP, MERCON® LV
• GM 9986195
• GM DEXRON® II, III and VI
• Honda/Acura ATF-Z1 (except in CVTs)
• Hyundai
• JWS 3309
• KIA SP-II and SP-III Fluids
• MAN 339 Type F
• Mazda M-V
• Mercedes Benz Sheet 236.x (except 236.12
and 236.20)
• Mercedes Benz NAG-1
• Mitsubishi Diamond SP-II or SP-III
• Nissan Matic-D, Matic-J, and Matic-K
• Subaru ATF
• Subaru ATF-HP
• Toyota / Lexus Type T, T-III or T-IV
• Toyota WS
• Voith H55.6335.33 (G607)*
• Voith H55.6336.33 (G1363)
• Volvo 1161521 and 1161540
• VW TL52162
• ZF TE-ML-14B, 16L and 17C
• ATF 3403 M115
* Formal Approval
Valvoline has conducted in-house testing to support MaxLife ATF performance in these transmissions. However,
it is important to note that, other than where we have formal approvals, these vehicle manufacturers have neither
evaluated nor approved MaxLife ATF.
Valvoline stands behind all of its products, including MaxLife ATF. Use of MaxLife ATF in transmissions where
recommended by Valvoline WILL NOT void the vehicle’s warranty. Vehicle manufacturers are restricted by
federal law from including the requirement of the use of a specific brand or trade name of product or service as a
condition of their warranty. The following is an extract from the Federal Trade Commission’s web site on
interpretation of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act:
"Tie-In Sales" Provisions Generally, tie-in sales provisions are not allowed. Such a
provision would require a purchaser of the warranted product to buy an item or service from a
particular company to use with the warranted product in order to be eligible to receive a
remedy under the warranty. The following are examples of prohibited tie-in sales provisions.
In order to keep your new Plenum Brand Vacuum Cleaner warranty in
effect, you must use genuine Plenum Brand Filter Bags. Failure to have
scheduled maintenance performed, at your expense, by the Great American
Maintenance Company, Inc., voids this warranty.
Valvoline has conducted extensive testing and has a long history of successful use of MaxLife ATF in a broad range of
applications. In the unlikely event that you or your customer experiences any transmission damage while using
MaxLife ATF, please contact Valvoline at 1-800-Team-VAL for assistance.
While MaxLife ATF is designed to meet the special needs of higher mileage transmissions, new transmissions can
also benefit from its enhanced oxidation protection, shear stability, seal compatibility, and anti-shudder protection.
Many consumers have chosen to take advantage of this level of performance in newer transmissions.
Valvoline currently does not recommend MaxLife ATF where certain specific low viscosity ATFs are called for.
These include Mercedes Benz NAG-2, ZF Lifeguard 6 and 6 Plus, and AUDI G055-162-A6 and G055-005-A2
applications.
Valvoline does not recommend MaxLife ATF for use in most continuously variable transmissions (CVTs) unless
specifically noted nor in automatic transmissions where Ford Type F fluids are recommended.
Sincerely,
Thom Smith
Technical Director, Valvoline Brand
Ashland Consumer Markets"

Its from:
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w210-e- ... atf-3.html

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 11 Jan 2009, 19:06

I added the pink color to highlight the JWS-3309 because this is what goes in the Volvo P2's as well as the later model first generation x70's that have the AW (Aisin-Warner) 5 speed automatic transmissions.
I'm still a bit leery of using this fluid in a Volvo transmission until there are owners who have used it without issue. Btw, when I put the part numbers listed for Volvo in for 850's in VADIS, no matching number comes up...the number 1161540 however DOES come up for the P2's as well as for the S80 (that have a GM transmission).

Post by **confused_al** » 11 Jan 2009, 19:22

Thanks, MIJ!

I'm not sure what these two trannys are. More research is needed.

Btw, at lease now I dont have to pay $15/liter MB ATF for my truck

.

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 11 Jan 2009, 19:33

That said, the JWS-3309 has friction modifiers in it. People ARE finding that they are fine in their 850 AW50-42 transmissions and if their is slipping some can actually help the slipping, so the above is probably okay in the 850 (although the Volvo part number equivalent isn't listed for them). It would be nice if folks who have put this fluid in their transmissions here would post and tell us their experiences with it.

Post by **confused_al** » 11 Jan 2009, 19:38

Forgot to mention I do use MaxLife for my 95 n/a, it works great!

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 11 Jan 2009, 19:40

Okay...that's one owner!
I recall that there is a 1 liter bottle of Volvo JWS-3309 fluid...could be that part #1161521 is just a smaller portion of part #1161540 which comes in a pretty good size jug.

EDIT: Well, I was partially right. It seems that 1161540 is Volvo's JWS-3309 fluid in a 1L bottle but another part number #1161640 is the same stuff in a 4 L jug. I cannot find #1161521 in their literature to save my life.

: Volvo 3309 Fluid numbers.jpg (66.18 KiB) Viewed 7645 times

EDIT #2: I did a bit more searching (Google) and found the '04 XC90 owner's manual on line which I've copied the portion dealer with ATF types:

: Volvo ATF grades (4 and 5 speed Auto's).jpg (15.53 KiB) Viewed 8261 times

So, from what this is telling us, the #1161521 is essentially Dex III- for automatic 4 speeds. I suppose this part number came out after my copy of VADIS came out so that's why it doesn't come up in my software. One interesting point though is that Volvo claims that their 5 speed auto transmission fluid (which is JWS-3309) is synthetic. That's funny because it's been proven not to be. In my opinion this is one way the dealer's been able to convince people to buy it rather than other JWS-3309 (such as Mobil-3309)- telling everyone that their is synthetic...but it's not. In fact, from what I've read, all testing so far shows that Mobil-3309 and Volvo's 3309 are the exact same thing. Who knows, maybe Mobil makes it for Volvo.

So, from just this little bit of research, it appears that the MaxLife is compatible with all Volvo FWD/AWD's. I still say try at your own risk...let us know how it does.

Post by **confused_al** » 11 Jan 2009, 21:14

...I still say try at your own risk...

Agree, I think whoever consider using MaxLife might want call them, 1-800-Team-VAL, find out more info beforehand.

BTW, MIJ you are more volvoaholic than you think you are

.

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 11 Jan 2009, 21:22

Al...I'm not so concerned about this in the 850's or even my car (S70 that predates the 3309 fluid) but for those w/ auto 5 speed AW trany's especially, I would be concerned and call before putting it in.

confused_al wrote:BTW, MIJ you are more volvoaholic than you think you are .

Yeah, I know...my goal is to hit 10,000 posts by the end of January.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 11 Jan 2009, 21:39

The only thing I can add to this thread is be careful of the crap you find on the road.

I have been traveling about about 1,000 to 3,000 miles / week and I know I have a bad inner CV joint. The CV joint vibrates enough that it has damaged the axle seal on the transmission and I am leaking fluid. I stop every 150 miles or so and check the fluid level but the last two places I stopped at (truck stops in Missouri) had some horribly off brand ATF with no alternatives. One was called Mag 1 and it had, to my eyes, the viscosity of hot Coors beer at room temperature and the other brand that I wound up buying on the road was SuperS brand which had a visibly better viscosity but it claimed to be compatible with any transmission.

I am so waiting for my new Raxles and seals to arrive so that I can fix the underlying problem and do a transmission flush to get the off brand crap out of the transmission but I have more road trips tomorrow and Tuesday. I figure even dumping in the junk is better than running low on fluid.

...Lee

Post by **wheelsup** » 12 Jan 2009, 03:59

I did 3 drain/refills with generic wal-mart "SuperTech" DexIII ATF and my tranny problems were fixed. Did another drain/refill with Castrol name brand Domestic ATF compatible with DEX IIE and III according to it's spec sheet and my car is back to dropping out of gear when coming to a stop when hot. Sometimes that generic stuff works better than name brand.

I might try the maxlife stuff in the summer, or when it gets worse.

Also I saw on Volvospeed, I posted a question about what fluid everyone uses, and someone had used Maxlife for something like 20k miles without issues and the car now has another 20k on it.