I asked this question in the tranny forum and it didn't much of a response, so I was hoping it might get more play in this forum.

I recently purchased a '97 Taurus and will soon be getting around to changing the tranny fluid. I was wondering about a product I keep coming across while searching the net, Auto-Rx:

http://www.auto-rx.net/index.html

What do you guys think about it? Does it work? Should I put some in my tranny before changing the fluid? Are there any negative side effects to consider?

Thanks for any feedback.

 

Souds like snake oil to me.

 

I had a sloppy worn out tranny once in my mustang. I put some lucas in it and it was like bringing new life in it for another year. I don't work for them and could care less if anyone else buys it but it do what I needed for that year. I would say its like a band aid head wound, there is no cure but it helps if your hurting.

Just my two,
Rod

 

Funny, I was thinking of draining the ax4n tranny on my wifes taurus as well....

I guess i'm a firm beleiver in good oil and tranny fluid over bandaids in a can, not to say that I have'nt used them time to time.

The only bandaid in a can that I'd use would be "Trans-tune", made by Seafoam. I used some in my wifes tempo before we traded it off, it really did a good job of eliminating the tranny shudder we were getting.

IMO there's no better subsitute than good fresh tranny fluid.

 

Super, I have the ax4s tranny in my '97. Seems like a decent tranny, and very similar to the AXODE I had in my '93 Sable. I think they (ax4s and ax4n) are pretty much the same thing.

Also, I am not looking at Auto Rx as a band-aid or anything like that. Supposedly, it acts as a slow cleaner, so what you do is you add it about 1000 miles before you do a drain or flush, and it's supposed to help clean up the tranny. It's just something that I thought might be worth trying while I wait for the opportunity to do the flush.

I saw in another thread where someone had reccomended Auto-Rx for your engine, and it supposedly cleans your engine in the same manner as the stuff made for your tranny.

I am wondering, has anyone out there ever tried any type of Auto-Rx themselves?

 

This was such a popular thread that I figured I'd bump it.

Actually, the reason I'm posting again is because I want to report my results using Auto-Rx for Transmissions. I figured I'd go ahead and give the stuff a shot in my '97 Taurus with the AX4S tranny. So I ordered it online after my last post and got it a few days later.

My first impression of the stuff was it's sweet smell. Not at all like the rotten smell of ATF fluid. I also noticed that Auto-Rx is the SAME STUFF for both the engine cleaning and the tranny cleaning applications.

It comes in a 12 ounce bottle, so here's is how I went about using it:

(1) I poured 6 ounces in the tranny and drove about 1000 miles.

(2) I dropped the tranny pan, changed the filter, replacing about 5 quarts of ATF with regular Mercon in the process, and then added the remaining 6 ounces of Auto-Rx;

(3) Drove another 1200 miles and then had the tranny flushed (yesterday afternoon) using the T-tech system.

(4) The AX4s tranny requires Mercon ATF fluid. But, I wanted to use at least a synthetic blend. So I considered going with Mercon V (contrary to specs) but ultimately decided to go with ......Mobil1 ATF. Kind of expensive, yes, but I figured what the heck, it's good stuff and it's not like I change the tranny fluid every 3000 miles.

Anyway, to get to the point, there is no doubt that my tranny is shifting excellent now. I've had a day to drive it and make a comparison. I didn't think there was any problems before but now that I've had the full tranny flush I notice a difference in the shifting, no question about it. Nice and smooth, but firm. And it seems to kick down to the proper gear at the right time every time now.

I really cannot say just how much of a direct benefit the Auto-RX has been. Maybe I would have noticed the better shifting after a flush regardless of using the product. And the Mobil1 probably has to be given some credit for the better performance, too.

Just thought I'd pass this along.......

 

Yeah, too many variables. You probably would have gotten the same or at least improved results from any one of the things you did, change fluid, change fluid again, flush tranny, synthetic. Any one of these would improve the performance of a tranny in decent condition. The Auto RX might also work, but no way to be sure from this test. Would have been good to know if it really works.

Jim Henderson

 

You're right Jim,

Even when I was going through the process I was wondering how I would know whether the Auto-Rx worked or not because of all the variables. And some more variables to throw in are that a few weeks before I did the first treatment I changed the plugs and then about a week or so after the same first treatment I changed the wires. So in essence I kinda fiddled with that part of the equation midstream. I learned a while back that better engine performance can play a big role in better tranny performance, as I'm sure you know.

A few more of my thoughts on Auto-Rx:

- While it didn't look or smell anything like the Lucas tranny additive, one thing both products did share was a similar low flowability charactieristic. Anything less than, say, 60 degrees F and it gets difficult to pour out of the bottle.

- When I first opened the bottle, the smell kind of reminded me of Marvel Mystery Oil, with that pine-like aroma. Not the same scent, but along those lines. Since MMO is also marketed as an engine cleaner/performance enhancer I wonder if it shares any ingredients with Auto-Rx?

- Variables or no variables, if my tranny blows up within the next 10K I'm pointing the finger solely at Auto-Rx

 

You misread application for transmission. It is 6 ozs. only and a one time application. My family owns used car lots all throgh south Florida and Auto-Rx works as represented!

 

Hi Pam, welcome to FTE!

Actually, I did read the instructions, but decided to modify them a little for my own situation.