CVT Recall??

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Ronzuki
Posts: 2382
Joined: Wed Nov 17, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: Lancaster County, PA

Ron

2010 Kizashi GTS, CVT, iAWD (3/10 build date)
2011 SX4 Premium Hatch, CVT, iAWD (12/10 build date)
2018 Mazda CX-5 iAWD Touring
2014 Wrangler JKUW (GONE, traded :D :D )
1991 Samurai, 5-Speed, EFI, Soft-Top ( :| sold)
Zeid_Nasser
Posts: 21
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 2:35 pm

Thx! Do you have a procedure for changing it? I’d like to do it myself to save $.
2010 Kizashi GTS AWD
Zeid_Nasser
Posts: 21
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 2:35 pm

Ron any way I can talk to you directly outside of here?
2010 Kizashi GTS AWD
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Ronzuki
Posts: 2382
Joined: Wed Nov 17, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: Lancaster County, PA

Zeid_Nasser wrote:Thx! Do you have a procedure for changing it? I’d like to do it myself to save $.
Added link to the DIY in post above.
Ron

2010 Kizashi GTS, CVT, iAWD (3/10 build date)
2011 SX4 Premium Hatch, CVT, iAWD (12/10 build date)
2018 Mazda CX-5 iAWD Touring
2014 Wrangler JKUW (GONE, traded :D :D )
1991 Samurai, 5-Speed, EFI, Soft-Top ( :| sold)
Zeid_Nasser
Posts: 21
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 2:35 pm

Thanks for that procedure, great job.

Now, where do I get the Suzuki or Shell oil from? I can't find anything online besides Valvoline and Pennzoil stuff that says it works for Suzuki Green1 or Shell Green-1V. I don't know if I can trust them.

And how do I not know it's my TCM that's going bad? The TSB mentions that as Condition 2. I'll do the flush and fill several times if I can get the fluid, but the whole disconnect the battery thing is interesting because it really made a huge difference in how the car drove yesterday on the same road, same conditions.
2010 Kizashi GTS AWD
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OliverB
Posts: 104
Joined: Sun Sep 09, 2018 1:32 pm
Location: Canada

Zeid_Nasser wrote:Thanks for that procedure, great job.

Now, where do I get the Suzuki or Shell oil from? I can't find anything online besides Valvoline and Pennzoil stuff that says it works for Suzuki Green1 or Shell Green-1V. I don't know if I can trust them.

And how do I not know it's my TCM that's going bad? The TSB mentions that as Condition 2. I'll do the flush and fill several times if I can get the fluid, but the whole disconnect the battery thing is interesting because it really made a huge difference in how the car drove yesterday on the same road, same conditions.
The best price I could find in my province was 28$ per quart and the Mitsubishi dealership (ex-suzuki) didn't have it on hand (5-7) days. They never called back...

I just got back from the nearest Carquest store to pick up 18 quarts of Valvoline cvt fluid, the pan gasket and the two filters for a total of 280$. My car is now at 233,000 kilometers and quite frankly, I do not care if I'm not filling the transmission up with Suzuki branded fluid at this point because literally anything is better than what is in there right now.
2007 SX4
2011 Kizashi
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Ronzuki
Posts: 2382
Joined: Wed Nov 17, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: Lancaster County, PA

I used Suzuki fluid because, luckily for me, I can get it at a decent ex-dealer/service center and at a good price. There are several other threads on this forum such as this one where others have found different branded CVT fluid that is marked as Suzuki Green/Shell compatible.

You don't know it's not the TCM...however, the fluid change is the easiest and relatively least costly DIY remedy. As I said, I feel replacing that cooler return filter is a must After that, you will need to find a service center that can diag the TCM/trans based upon the TSB.

As far as disconnecting the battery, they want that done mainly for safety. I don't unless I'm working on something electrical. Just don't go laying tools on the battery where it can sort to chassis gnd. By disconnecting battery for a length of time, you've seen operational data lost from memory, a hard reset so to speak. It will reset as you drive over time.
Ron

2010 Kizashi GTS, CVT, iAWD (3/10 build date)
2011 SX4 Premium Hatch, CVT, iAWD (12/10 build date)
2018 Mazda CX-5 iAWD Touring
2014 Wrangler JKUW (GONE, traded :D :D )
1991 Samurai, 5-Speed, EFI, Soft-Top ( :| sold)
Zeid_Nasser
Posts: 21
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 2:35 pm

Ok.

As for the battery reset, I’m not saying it has anything to do with safety. There’s a thread on this similar issue with 2016 Honda Civics with CVTs, and the dealers were disconnecting the battery as the “fix.” It worked to the amazement of many customers, so clearly for them it’s a software issue that is bound to reoccur.

What I said previously is that Wednesday night I did just that after driving to and from a doc appt earlier In the day and having some very bad RPM fluctuating between 60-80+ MPH. It was doing it with and without cruise control activated.

The batt disconnect was Wed night so Thurs I went back to that doctor and the issue was nearly GONE! What’s that about?? I understand the filter and fluid change, that’s definite, but I’m wondering if it’s not related at all to what I’m experiencing.
2010 Kizashi GTS AWD
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Ronzuki
Posts: 2382
Joined: Wed Nov 17, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: Lancaster County, PA

What year is your car again? Apologies if you'd already mentioned that. There are different TCMs, and CVTs for different years. Not sure why on a measly 3-4 year production run. We'll probably never know.

I truly can't speak to the software voodoo...I doubt anyone can...even the people that wrote it. I can theorize for sure. Who knows, heat issues in the trans caused by spent fluid that should have been replaced long ago coupled w/ operating conditions could be causing the software to act/react in unpredictable ways (that never happens :roll: ). Disconnecting battery wipes data...the proverbial cycle power to reset.

My battery hasn't been disconnected for many, many years...the one and only time, since I purchased it new, was when I installed a new battery. The Kiz sat unused in the garage for several months this past winter. I periodically put a tender on it over those months. Been DDing it again now for the last month or so and all is well CVT-wise.
Ron

2010 Kizashi GTS, CVT, iAWD (3/10 build date)
2011 SX4 Premium Hatch, CVT, iAWD (12/10 build date)
2018 Mazda CX-5 iAWD Touring
2014 Wrangler JKUW (GONE, traded :D :D )
1991 Samurai, 5-Speed, EFI, Soft-Top ( :| sold)
Zeid_Nasser
Posts: 21
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 2:35 pm

2010 GTS AWD. Yeah I’ve read that, odd.

My car was in the same situation; it was in the garage since Nov of last year on a battery tender the entire time. I drove around company cars.

I’ll do the fluid and filter change myself and see from there. Also need to clean the throttle body.
2010 Kizashi GTS AWD
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