I am thinking about getting a used 2010 Mazda6 Touring from a dealership. I checked the transmission fluid and it was virtually black. I have read that it could just be dirty and needs replacing or I should stay away from it as the tranny is likely already damaged or soon will be. The dealership is willing to replace/flush the tranny fluid. It drove fine and I didn't notice any slipping or hard shifting. Thoughts?

 

Mileage? --- very important in this decision.
Automatic or standard?
External tranny cooler may also be required.

 

Mileage is 63k and is automatic.

 

Fairly low mileage, you may be Ok with a change.
I would still consider an external tranny cooler as they work better than stock.

 

One other point I should have mentioned. This is Mazda certified used car which means they extend the drivetrain warranty to 7 years or 100k. So I am covered on tranny failure till around Sept. of 2016. Hopefully any tranny issues would surface by then. Thanks for your input.

 

Not sure what that means. Is it a Mazda dealership? Can you get this in writing? Ask if tranny is part of that warranty, it should be?

 

Make sure they do a full Trans flush ( 8-10 litres) not just a drain & refill. And only use genuine Mazda M-V ATF.

 

I went out and test drove another Mazda 6 a year newer with virtually same mileage and yes that one was slightly lighter in color but still a dirty gray color. Is that just how Mazda transmission fluid looks like or a sign that these cars should have there transmission fluid changed frequently?

 

That trans uses a special ATF JWS3309 and is gold in color out of the bottle. If any other ATF is mixed with it trans damage will occur.

 

Found this reply in an old Post from August 2009 that talked about this in depth:



Makes sense why all the Mazda6 cars I test drive have blackish/grayish tranny fluid.