I wanted to pose a question; I am having an issue with my car. 1997 Mazda Protégé Touring Edition (1.8L). Anyhow, this summer I changed the trans fluid (old fluid was dirty) and all was well. I am now running into an issue whereby the shift into any other gear is harder then usual. Its seems, it an intermittent problem since, yesterday evening the car shift was fine.

I should mention, the issue is only when I try to put the car into gear, however, when driving the car is fine.

It’s an automatic with 93,000 KM's (I from Canada)

Is there a specific trans fluid Mazda recommends? When the fluid was changed a few months back, standard trans fluid was used (Dex 2 or 3 I believe - was done at a Jiffy Lube using a special machine connected to the trans lines)

Thanks in advance.

 

First thing, ATF is very high detergent. You probably did not notice this right away after the change. Due to the new ATF, the valves of the valve body in the transmission are now working more freely and allowing faster transfer of fluid. The car was most likely this way when new, but when we usually drive a car for many years, we do not notice slight changes until something has changed all of a sudden. There is possibly more give in the motor mounts after being 10 years old now, so it can be more pronounced. Old ATF when dirty gets varnished, dirty, and cannot handle heat in the transmission and can lead to slippage and foaming.

Yes, Dexron is the correct fluid.

 

Does "shift into gear being harder than usual", mean that the transmission seems to engage more harsh or that the shift lever itself is more difficult to move forward and back?