I wanted to share a couple of quick reviews posted by two owners that used this fluid from other boards I'm on:

This was John, from Oregon:

Update, Just switched over to Amsoil in the trans and the motor. Holy cow what a difference in shifting and motor smoothness thanks again for all the info you gave me... ...the dealer did not do it. I went to a local oil changing place because I didn't trust the dealer for one and for two I wanted to watch it being done to make sure they would use what I brought. Of course the oil place pointed out to me that I was suppose to change out my cabin filter on my car at 15k, which the dealer never told me about, and boy it was dirty. LOL. Anyways they did the job a whole lot better I feel and cheaper than the dealer as well. I only have 26k on my cruze but glad I did the change . The techs showed me the tranny oil before the change, and boy it was garbage. I highly recommend to change over trans fluid to Amsoil by 25k for peace of mind. Also it smoothed out the shifting issues as well.

John mentioned that previously, he was having these issues, which the fluid alleviated:

Hard shift down or somtimes up. Appeared to have some slippage from 3-4 gear

This was Joe, from Virginia:

Just got my 20k mile transmission fluid flush the other day. I replaced the GM fluid with Amsoil transmission fluid and the difference is truly night and day, power increase, shifting smoothness and cold weather shifting etc. it's a 100% improvement across the board, if you aren't running Amsoil in your transmission, you should be in my opinion.

 

Anything here for us Diesel owners?

 

Not yet. AMSOIL will get information out for that Q1 of 2014.

 

What gets me about using amsoil transmission fluid is that it is a universal product reccomended for use in vehicle transmissions from ford to volkswagen and every manufacturer between. I have always been under the impression transmissions are very specific about which fluid they require and are built and designed around the fluid specifications. Or the transmission fluid is created and engineered depending on the requirements for the transmission.

Im fairly certain the OE cruze fluid used in the m32 transmission would not be reccomended in any other car manufacturer transmissions. How is it that amsoil is able to create such a universal product " compatiable " with im assuming more then 50 different transmissions ? What would you tell somone that feels more comfortable using a product specific for the transmission rather then a universal product ?

 

What gets me about using amsoil transmission fluid is that it is a universal product reccomended for use in vehicle transmissions from ford to volkswagen and every manufacturer between. I have always been under the impression transmissions are very specific about which fluid they require and are built and designed around the fluid specifications. Or the transmission fluid is created and engineered depending on the requirements for the transmission.

Im fairly certain the OE cruze fluid used in the m32 transmission would not be reccomended in any other car manufacturer transmissions. How is it that amsoil is able to create such a universal product " compaitable " with im assuming more then 50 different transmissions ? What would you tell somone that feels more comfortable using a product specific for the transmission rather then a universal product ?

The fluids between vehicles are not as different as you think they are. They have the same base stocks since there are only a handful of companies out there like Shell and Exxon-Mobil that produce them. They have certain additives that they add to change the characteristics of the fluid, but the bottom line is it's still oil. There are some special cases where specific viscosities are required, such as certain Mustangs with a track package that need a 5W-50 oil, or certain Mazdaspeed 3 revisions that have an LSD with a clutch that needs a specific additive for the LSD to work, but otherwise, they are about the same.

If you walk into a store to buy some transmission fluid for your old truck, whether it's GM, Dodge, or Ford, it will be a universal ATF that meets Dexron3/Mercon/etc. There is no specific fluid for a specific vehicle. With the exception of CVT transmissions, the fluids are about the same. Each company has a minimum specification requirement for viscosity, oxidization, volatility, and etc, but at the end of the day, if the fluid meets those minimum requirements, it will be suitable for that car. DEX6 is the specification for the automatic transmission in the Cruze. It is actually a pretty good fluid from the factory being a synthetic fluid with a low viscosity and high heat tolerance. AMSOIL's Signature Series ATL meets and exceeds the DEX6 requirements, so there's really no reason to believe that it will not outperform the factory fluid and provide even better protection.

The OE fluid in the M32 transmission is horrendous. I have been wrenching on cars since I was 15 and I can tell you I have never in my life seen a fluid that performed as poorly as this fluid does in our transmissions. You might be able to get away with it with light all-highway driving averaging 50.2mpg with practically nonexistent stress levels on that fluid, but everyone else has experienced otherwise. Even the guys in the UK hate it. It is a weak petroleum-based fluid that cannot handle the heat and stress of the compact M32 under anything but extremely light driving.

That said, I recommend AMSOIL Synchromesh for the M32 for because it has friction modifiers that promote quick synchro engagement, it is the correct viscosity (Gear Weight 75W-80), it is GL-4 compatible as specified by the owner's manual, and it is a synthetic fluid. This allows the fluid to handle the heat of the M32 far better than the petroleum-based OE fluid (which by the way is ridiculously overpriced), it flows better (and allows the transmission to shift better) when cold, and lastly, it has a far higher film strength than the OE fluid, which protects the gears better. All this results in a fluid that performs excellently in the transmission, eliminating notchy shifting and either greatly alleviating or eliminating the 1-2 shift grind some of these transmissions are plagued with. However...that is my recommendation, not AMSOIL's. AMSOIL doesn't have a recommendation for this transmission, so it was up to us to do the research.

It is easier to understand if you have a technical background in mechanics and if you understand how fluids are formulated and what requirements components have. Your biggest concern with manuals is the viscosity of the fluid. As long as you have the correct viscosity, you could probably use any fluid you wanted to in this transmission with the same results as the OE fluid. Gears, synchros, and bearings are fairly simple components that simply need lubrication. Beyond that, you have antioxidants that keep the fluid from "sludging," rust inhibitors that keep components from rusting when the car sits for a long time, friction modifiers and anti-wear additives that protect moving parts under severe heat and stress (which add to the cost of the fluid), and so forth. Some applications require a specific fluid, such as VersaTrak fluid. Those are transfer cases/differentials that also have solenoid-based clutches. Most automatic transmissions, manual transmissions, engines, and differentials are not among the list of applications that require a very specific fluid. I said most because there are some exceptions. The Cruze Diesel is one exception. Since AMSOIL does not recommend any specific fluids for that vehicle, I will not either.

Historically, GM has made some questionable decisions with fluids. One example is recommending ATF in the C5 Corvette manual transmissions. Those owners are switching to a gear lube or synchromesh fluid for a reason. I know you have mentioned that you prefer to use the OE fluid, even though it costs you over $30 per quart. Personally, I have seen the results of the OE fluid as has everyone else on this forum and on four Facebook groups I'm a member of, and nobody swaps out OE fluid for more OE fluid. Everyone swaps in a fluid to fix the issues caused by the OE fluid, and those issues are very well documented.

If anyone mentions they have an automatic transmission (6T40), I recommend AMSOIL SS ATL because it will improve cold shifting, improve cold and short trip fuel economy, last them 2x as long as the GM fluid in severe service intervals (saving them money), and will be protected by AMSOIL's warranty. It exceeds the requirements of the OE fluid.

If anyone mentions they have a manual transmission, I recommend AMSOIL Synchromesh because it will improve cold shifting, eliminate notchy shifting, alleviate or eliminate a common 1-2 shift grind, improve shifting consistency, cost 1/3 the price of OE fluid, improve fuel economy (particularly in cold conditions), extend synchro and bearing life through superior protection, and last 4x as long as the OE fluid in severe service intervals. That, and it has been tried, tested, and proven in our vehicles by well into 100 owners.

There is really nothing special or specific about DEX6 automatic transmission fluid. It is used in almost all of GM's passenger cars regardless of transmission type and is listed as compatible in vehicles requiring DEX3. As a result, there is nothing product-specific about it either.

 

There is Jelly Beans in there Dawg , and all trannies love Jelly Beans ..

 

Got some more info. I cross referenced the Aisin-Warner AF40-6 transmission in the Cruze Diesel and found that it is also found in the 2006-2009 Saab 9-3 mated to the 2.8L Turbo engine. The transmission is also called the TF-80SC. The transmission is also found in the Cadillac SRX with the same 2.8L Turbo.

Recommended fluid for that according to Saab forums is: GM Part # 93165147 or Ford Motorcraft XT-8-QAW.

AMSOIL only has one recommendation for this application in the Saab:
AMSOIL OE Fuel-Efficient Synthetic Automatic Transmission Fluid

However, the 2010 Cadillac SRX with the same listed AF40 transmission does not have any fluid recommended by AMSOIL. Instead AMSOIL refers you to the AW-1 Automatic Transmission fluid from GM.

Here is the application list from wiki:
AWTF-80 SC - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This following document also suggests that the valve body in the transmission changed based on the application:
https://www.automaticchoice.com/Catalogue/aw_tf80sc.pdf

The changes in the valve body may explain the changes in recommended fluid. All I know is that for the time being, AMSOIL has nothing for this transmission, and based on what I am seeing with the Cadillac SRX, they may not have anything for quite some time, if ever. Unfortunately for Diesel folks, that fluid is $25 a quart. That will make for one very expensive fluid change.

 

How much fluid will I need to buy for a total exchange of fluid. If the dealer does the changing do they need more than what the transmission holds for whatever machine they use?

 

Don't think you find a dealer using a flush machine for transmissions, GM has been a drain and fill only company for some time now. Have heard getting a flush can push debris through the transmission and actually cause issues.

 

This is slightly off topic but related to the transmission fluid. My cruze has always seemed to shift poorly 1st to 2nd when the car is driven cold in cold weather(below 10F). I've even had it a few times shift from 1st to 2nd while accelerating, start to accelerate in 2nd then downshift back to 1st to accelerate quicker(hunting for gears without any extra foot feedback given).

When the weather is warm my car does not behave this way. I began to notice if I remote started my car and ran until the motor was 75degrees(about 3-4minutes) the shifting was much smoother and predicable(no hunting). At least in my car it seems the stock fluid does not preform that well when really cold.

 

This is slightly off topic but related to the transmission fluid. My cruze has always seemed to shift poorly 1st to 2nd when the car is driven cold in cold weather(below 10F). I've even had it a few times shift from 1st to 2nd while accelerating, start to accelerate in 2nd then downshift back to 1st to accelerate quicker(hunting for gears without any extra foot feedback given).

When the weather is warm my car does not behave this way. I began to notice if I remote started my car and ran until the motor was 75degrees(about 3-4minutes) the shifting was much smoother and predicable(no hunting). At least in my car it seems the stock fluid does not preform that well when really cold.

This is related directly to the transmission fluid's ability to flow in cold conditions.

I hate to always sound like a fanatic AMSOIL fanboy, but one of the things AMSOIL is known for is the fluid's ability to flow excellently in cold conditions. This of course also improves fuel economy while the transmission fluid warms up. Transmission fluid is an entirely different lubricant from engine oil because it operates at a different range and has different viscosity and heat tolerance requirements. AMSOIL transmission fluids will hold up to over 350 degrees F and flow well to under -25 degrees F.

 

I can add to this post in that I just drained the transmission and added back what I drained out, in this case it was exactly 4qts. I must say the fluid was way to dark for my liking. It was like the fluid was in there for 150k miles not just 10k miles. Once the weather gets back to being warm again, I plan on doing this about four more times after driving the car for a few miles or so. I have the time and the AMSOIL ATL fluid to go in it since I'm a dealer also. All I can say is if you have an automatic Cruze, I would highly suggest you get the fluid changed out and not wait until what the owners manual states. Unless you plan on trading in often and just don't care.

Our 2011 Acadia's automatic transmission fluid was pretty dark at 30k when I drained and refilled it. Basically the same as our Cruze, drain out measure what came out and filled back up.

Forgot to mention that I send a sample off to get analyzed but it looks like it got lost in the mail because it has been two weeks and I still have not heard anything back from the lab. Good think I saved extra, I'll have to send that off in another week or so to make sure enough time has gone by on the first sample. I know the color doen't always tell that it is bad, from previous samples of ATF that I have sent off, but it still isn't good and the samples that I did send it was showing that the fluid was getting near the end of it's life expectancy.

 

Thanks for reporting back. To clarify something though, the fluid was dark because of the rust inhibitor that GM put inside the transmission, which is wearing off into the oil and causing massive amounts of shifting issues. That is the biggest reason I recommend people change their transmission fluid no later than 20k miles with these transmissions. Rumor is that GM stopped using that rust inhibitor in their transmissions, but we have yet to determine that based on transmission shifting. This is an unusual case where the color of the fluid does not indicate that it is burned, but rather contaminated.

 

Funny you put it like that- we were discussing a situation just like that yesterday. The one guy is the brother in law of the other. They have a relative who is one of those guys, when he has a car problem, it isn't good. '07 Fusion 4 cyl, turns out it broke a piston sleeve, and also managed to take out the A/C compressor. The car was just out of warranty, so he went to Ford and asked for help. Ford agreed to pay a percentage toward the repairs. Knowing that, the Ford dealer he got a quote from upcharged all the parts significantly to cover the extra/non-billable hours beyond the warranty repair spec for that job. So all in all, it would cost him the same whether he got Ford involved or not. These guys got an engine for him and dropped it in for a tiny fraction of that original quote.

 

i finally remembered to look at my trans fluid today and it is a medium brown and has a slightly burnt smell and decided i should probably change my fluid. i want to do this myself and finally become a true car guy, and i have some questions to make sure it turns out to be a happy experience and not a "how to tow a cruze to the shop with a nissan altima" experience.

1. is cooler line draining the transmission safe and/or effective and/or as easy as it seems?
2. if i dont have a friend to help, will running the trans in park/neutral for a few seconds without fluid while i run to turn the car off jack up the trans?
3. do i have to worry about air being trapped inside or will it sort itself out?
4. does the tranny take all 12 quarts or is it for multiple flushes or what? what is the actual capacity for a 2012 1.8?
5. where is the overflow plug located? after the trans is drained do i just fill it up until it starts coming out of the plug?
6. do i have to do it with the transmission hot or cold or does it not matter?

 

1. It will not work. The cooler lines are way too hard to get to.
2. Why would you be running the car with no fluid?
3. Air is not an issue. Just make sure the level is checked.
4. Trans holds 9 quarts. You drain 4.5 each time you pull the plug. Perform two drains and refills, with some driving in between to mix the fluid.
5. Overflow plug is by the driver CV shaft.
6. Transmission needs to be hot when you pull the level plug.

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hypothetically if i could reach the cooler lines, is it a safe method?

i meant that i would drain the entire transmission at once and if i didnt have a friend to turn it off immediately after all of the fluid is out would it running for 2-3 seconds without fluid when i go to turn the car off be really bad for it.

do you mean i need to drain it hot or fill it hot?

 

If you could reach the cooler lines, you'd be fine doing it that way. The fluid doesn't drain quite as quickly as you think. I used this method before on other vehicles and it works fairly well.

Fill it, then get it hot, so the correct level is adjusted when removing the level plug.

 

I ordered 6 quarts, lookin forward to put those in!

 

Just an FYI, each change replaces 4.5 quarts out of 9, and you need to change it twice to get 75% of the old fluid out. That's the dealer service procedure.

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ATF Fluid Exchange Worksheet

 

The risk of transmission damage from introducing foreign materials, improper fluid level or other mistakes is greater than the risk from OE transmission fluid. Especially if you let some $10/hr technician do it. Just my opinion from experience with more frequent than necessary car maintenance. Its usually not worth it. May be different if you have expertise and do it yourself.

 

You must not have seen what the OE fluid looks like after 30k miles and the difference replacing it makes.

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It is foolish thinking to blindly believe that everything any auto manufacturer tells you is the "best you can do for your vehicle", is 100% true. There are many, many ulterior motives in any big business when it comes to how any manufacturer of any product represents their products to the consumer.

 

Does the advertisement "100k miles maintenance free" ring a bell?

Always remember, GM's liability expires at 5yrs/100k miles.

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GMonly recommends what makes them money. They want a monopoly on what you buy foryour vehicles and their owner’s manuals and propaganda are designed to affectthat end.

 

Did we ever find out if the diesel auto transmission has synthetic fluid from factory?

 

Negative. That said, it is becoming increasingly rarer to find an automatic transmission that doesn't use a synthetic fluid.

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Having my Wife's fluid changed on Friday. Her car is overdue with 60k miles on it, but the dealer has been booked for the last 6 months.

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I just changed my Tranny oil, i just drained 4.5L and put the same amount in of Amsoil Premium Fuel eff oil and right away i noticed the smoothness of shifting !

Since our Autobox have 9 litres of oil and since i dont want to use a machine or change oil 3 times in a row to purge, i decided that i would drain and put 4.5L every year.

 

Thanks for reporting back. Your experience echoes that of everyone else who has run this fluid in their car. Once a year sounds like a good plan.

 

DEXRON-VI is made from a blend of Group II and Group III base oils plus the additives package.
It does not contain any PAO(polyalphaolefin) which would make it a "true synthetic" Group IV. The word synthetic has been "bastardized". It's come to mean lots of different things.

 

I am in process of doing a transmission drain, fill, and repeat myself.

I have a 2011 that is just a hair under 70,00km or 44,000 miles.

I started today, with engine warm after a short trip, by running the front end up on rhino ramps. Drained the fluid. Then I jacked rear end up to level and checked to see how much more would come out. Only about 1/2 liter or quart more. Measured the total of what drained out, like many others, 4.5 liters. I filled with Valoline's Dex VI. I will run this for day or two.

I am picking up two gallons of Amsoil ATL tomorrow from my local rep. I will drain and fill again with a 50/50 Valvoline and Amsoil. Since I have leftover Valvoline. I then run that for a bit and then finally swap a third time with straight Amsoil ATL.

My fluid was still clean and clear, but turning brown. No horrible burned smell. I look s dark in the jug and drain pan but you could still see through it as it drained. Time for road testing.

Adm

 

What are all the tools I would need to perform a transmission fluid change on the Cruze the correct way that the dealer would do it? I had the dealer do my Wife's car, but for $190 I would be willing to buy the tools to do this myself from now on if possible.

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Last I remember, a socket and an allen bit. There's a tutorial in the how-to section I believe. It's not all that difficult and doesn't require any special tools. People seem to be having good success putting back exactly as much fluid as they've drained without having to worry about leveling the car and pulling the drain plug when the transmission is warmed up.

Remember, that $190 uses, (as I've just discovered) a group 2/3 synthetic blend. The AMSOIL fluid is at least a group 4 if not with some group 5 Ester in there. It is no wonder that they guarantee it for 2x severe service intervals. Let me know if you want to order some and I'll set you up.

 

Many thanks to XtremeRevolution for all his research on Amsoil products. I have already used Amsoil engine oil from my first oil change onward. This is the first time I've used Amsoil trans fluid in my Cruze. Since I prefer to do things the right way, I had my dealer do a complete trans flush.
I gave the mechanic 12 quarts of Amsoil Signature Series Fuel Efficient trans fluid.
The tranny holds 9 quarts and the extra 3 quarts are used in the flushing process. This ensures that there is no more factory trans fluid left in the system. I feel the car now has more torque and predictable shifting.
Do it the proper way and get rid of the factory fluid completely. After all it is your car...

 

This is one reason I recommend that people order a case of oil if they're going to take it to their dealers. While the service manual recommends to drains and refills, I have found that some dealerships still perform a full flush of the system, allowing the internal fluid pump to cycle the new fluid in and old fluid out. That is ultimately the best way, so buying a case of the fluid would be ideal. Just make sure that if they don't do it that way, that they give you back what they didn't use.

I saw earlier back that you mentioned a scan tool of some kind to check the fluid temperature to get the fluid level accurate. Is that something that would help me out if I change the fluid myself?

My car currently has 10,000 miles on it, and I plan to change my fluid at 25,000. After reading through this post I will be putting better fluid in when I do mine which will be AMSOIL.

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I had thought this at first based on what I had been told by a technician, but having a manual transmission in my car, I never verified. I have now talked to dozens of people who have drained and refilled their fluid on their own, by measuring what came out and putting back in exactly that much, which I believe to be a good (and much easier) alternative, as long as you can assure a reasonable level of accuracy.

My personal recommendation is that you get the fluid swapped out ASAP and not wait till 25k, but that is only so you would be running a higher quality fluid instead of the OE fluid, which is already contaminated with rust inhibitors. It really is up to you. People have noted greatly improved shifting when changing the fluid out at anywhere from 10k miles to 60k miles.

 

It's odd though how much better my 14 shifts compared to my Wife's 12. Even when hers was new it never acted as smooth as mine does. Hers was clunky, and rough, mine has never acted like that. That's why I wasn't to worried about new fluid yet.

I'm leery on changing mine out on my own. I need to read up on it more, and figure out my plan exactly to do it on my own. If I can do it on my own I'll probably do it soon. If I have a shop do it then it probably won't happen until the 20,000 mile mark or so. Not in the budget at this point.

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Supposedly GM went around telling dealer techs about the corrosion inhibitor problem with the fluid and said they'd stop doing that. I know it was a problem for 2011, 2012, and 2013, so maybe by 2014 they fixed it.
Still, being what is apparently a synthetic blend, I'd change it for something better if you want to keep it long-term. It's just not quite as urgent.

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I just had the fluid done on my '13 LT when I had the halfshaft recall done. I took in 3 gallon jugs of fluid and was charged $65 to do the "flush" and total replacement. On my car with 13k miles it made a world of difference in shifting smoothness. I highly recommend switching out the fluid as early as you can make it happen, you won't regret it.

 

The dealership did it for you for 65$? Transmission holds 3 gallons? what?