BG Auto Tranny Additive

[ClimberDHexMods]

The thing about additives is they can do harm. Ask yourself what problem you are trying to solve, and then look for evidence and support that X additive should solve that problem. What is in X additive and what is it designed to do? Also weigh the possible downsides.

 

Our transmissions don't have leaky internal seals, or so the forums suggest. We shouldn't have sludge issues if ATF is changed at regular interval.

[underpowerd]

The thing about additives is they can do harm. Ask yourself what problem you are trying to solve, and then look for evidence and support that X additive should solve that problem. What is in X additive and what is it designed to do? Also weigh the possible downsides.

 

Our transmissions don't have leaky internal seals, or so the forums suggest. We shouldn't have sludge issues if ATF is changed at regular interval.

 

agreed, but i don't suspect that of the bg formula. ~5 yrs and 100k soaking in it.

[ShrinerMonkey]

My disdain was addressed to those who believe all flushes are the same, when in fact that notion is completely ridiculous. I have not seen BG fluid specifications and compared them to Amsoil. When I compared Amsoil to Mobil, I found them to be pretty different, which would explain why they aren't so cross compatible. But BG could be good.

I only have annecdotal evidence to offer and that is my 4eat is definitely behaving better on the BG fluid than on the stock Subaru fluid. Time will tell if this continues to hold true but I have no reason to doubt that the BG fluid isn't a suitable replacement.

[ClimberDHexMods]

4eat and 5eat use different fluid. Also, was your 4eat fluid brand new or old by the time you replaced it with the BG? Just pointing out what some folks overlook.

[ShrinerMonkey]

4eat and 5eat use different fluid. Also, was your 4eat fluid brand new or old by the time you replaced it with the BG? Just pointing out what some folks overlook.

It was old fluid. The BG fluid is better than the original 4eat fluid, shifts are smoother and the cold weather hard shifting is greatly reduced.

[ClimberDHexMods]

My point in saying so is when you replace a used up automotive fluid with an identical but fresh new fluid, it will feel like a superior product. That's why people who compare the smoothness of an engine before/after an oil change are fooling themselves, unless they're changing out 20 mile oil with fresh oil.

 

To drive my point home, put 50k miles on BG fluid, then swap it out for OEM 4eat fresh fluid, and tell me which one feels smoother. Not saying anyone is wrong, just saying there isn't going to be any empirical evidence coming out of old fluid changes.

[ShrinerMonkey]

I hear you and I did offer the caveat that my experience is annecdotal. I do notice from memory that the BG fluid is better than the new 4eat fluid especially when cold. The 4eat fluid that I replaced did not last very long (25k miles, 4 years) and was causing all sorts of hard shifting and AWD binding when turning. We will see how the BG fluid holds up, but being that it is full syn and the old 4eat was dino/blend, I expect it to be better.

 

I mostly went with the BG fluid out of cost and convienience. The Subaru dealer recommended it as they use it for all of their tranny flushes and would have charged me a lot extra for the Subaru synthetic fluid. It was only about $120 for the flush including fluid with a coupon so I couldn't have done it myself for much cheaper and the hassle it saved me was well worth it.

[fishbone]

Any synthetic should last you a good 50K miles even under the "severe driving conditions" interval.

[ClimberDHexMods]

Completely agree, synthetic within spec is superior in every way (except cost, usually) to conventional ATF. Better when cold, can handle more heat, lasts longer.

[fishbone]

Sheds heat easier too, so coupled with a tranny cooler, even better.