DF Sales&Marketing
Oil Tech Moderator
Automatic transmission fluid—atf— is the second biggest category of automotive lubricants sold in north america, after engine oils. Yet for many in the industry, getting a grip on these slippery red fluids has become increasingly difficult thanks to the multiplication of manufacturer’s hardware designs, changing fluid specifications and licensing systems, and a profusion of acronyms.
By 1904, automobile manufacturers were hard at work developing mechanisms that would shift automatically to give the best performance at any combination of engine and vehicle speed. The first devices were completely mechanical, involving flyweights, bands and clutches to select the desired gear. While these were improvements over non-synchronized manual transmissions, they did require the driver’s skill in knowing when to shift and how to make a smooth start. In addition, metallurgy was not up to some of the demands placed on these early transmissions, so mechanical failures were not uncommon.
The real start of automatics came in 1934 when reo and general motors first developed semi-automatic transmissions, utilizing planetary gear sets and hydraulic couplings. They still required a clutch but were easier to operate. Meanwhile, chrysler also was working on fluid couplings for automotive use. While chrysler didn’t adopt them in their own transmissions, the combination of all three features (planetary gears, hydraulic couplings and fluid clutches) was incorporated in the GM hydra-matic transmission. Introduced in 1939, it dominated the automatic transmission market for the next 25 years, with periodic improvements. Two of these improvements were the introduction of a second fluid coupling to smooth out the shift, and the addition of the “park” setting with its locking pawl feature.
The next big improvement was the torque converter which was introduced as the buick dynaflow in 1948.
In the mid 1990’s, the on-board computer became an integral part of powertrains, with impact on transmission design and operation. The computer, in addition to controlling emissions and ignition, was able to fine-tune the selection of the proper gear setting and adjust engine speed for the most efficient and smooth transition from one speed to another.
Today, transmissions are undergoing further change to maximize fuel economy, shift feel and durability benefits. The current north American automobile fleet is predominantly five– and six-speed step transmissions, but new concepts such as the double or dual clutch transmission (dct) and the continuously variable transmission (cvt) are beginning to take their place in vehicle powertrains. In fact, it’s estimated that the dual clutch transmission will become as much as 10 percent of the market in the next 10 years.
Cvt transmissions are primarily found today in asia and are mostly in vehicles with 2-liter and smaller engines. The only exception to that rule is the Nissan product line, including the crossover murano.
Naturally, atf formulations have changed through the years as well. Originally, transmission fluids were simply engine oils or gear oils. As the transmission developed and its unique lubricant requirements surfaced, oil formulators began to develop additive components and to select appropriate base oil fractions to enhance the properties they required.
Nowadays, atf is about as complex a mix of additive componentry and select base stocks as you can imagine. The components are often found in other additive packages such as for engine oil formulations, but the combinations and treat rates are unique to atf.
A list of the ingredients for atf is as follows:
Foam inhibitors control the formation of foam—bubbles don’t lubricate well!
On the marketing side, there are a number of current oem specified atf products. GM, Ford, chrysler, bmw, honda, vw, Nissan, toyota and hyundai all maintain their own specifications. However there are a large number of vehicles on the road which are out of warranty. Many of these are old enough that dexron iii and/or mercon were the only recommended fluids. Dexron iii and mercon were licensed for many years by GM and Ford, respectively, but they are obsolete, replaced for service fill by dexron vi and mercon v. All dexron iii licenses expired as of dec. 31, 2006, and the mercons followed suit six months later. Officially, these fluids don’t exist, but the vehicles do.
So how does the marketplace deal with the problem of multiple fluid specifications and large numbers of vehicles that don’t require the latest product? What appears to be happening is that a two-tier market is developing for atf.
For those vehicles still under warranty, the oem specified product is used. For the unwarrantied masses, there are some products called “multi-vehicle fluids.” these claim to embody many of the properties of the older atf requirements, and can be formulated to meet dexron iii, mercon, and some of the foreign car requirements. Thus, they May satisfy the older vehicles on the road. However, they cannot secure the required product approvals and licenses which oems demanded in the past, so there is no oversight on product quality.
It’s doubtful that new-car dealers will need to carry a product like this, since the new dexron vi, atf+4 and mercon specs are backward compatible and can be used to service older models.
Technically, swepco’s 714 atf can be classified as a “multi-vehicle fluid” as it has been used as a replacement for all of the oem atfs mentioned above, including allison transmissions, very successfully for many years …. In fact before the term was even coined.
The superior additive package of 714 has protected transmissions of all types, lowering operating temperatures, reducing wear and improving shift qualities. It is available in sae 10, 20 and 30 weights, the 20wt is the most commonly used in automotive, pick-up, bus & rv applications. It has also been used in high-performance and racing applications from stock car to drag cars.
By 1904, automobile manufacturers were hard at work developing mechanisms that would shift automatically to give the best performance at any combination of engine and vehicle speed. The first devices were completely mechanical, involving flyweights, bands and clutches to select the desired gear. While these were improvements over non-synchronized manual transmissions, they did require the driver’s skill in knowing when to shift and how to make a smooth start. In addition, metallurgy was not up to some of the demands placed on these early transmissions, so mechanical failures were not uncommon.
The real start of automatics came in 1934 when reo and general motors first developed semi-automatic transmissions, utilizing planetary gear sets and hydraulic couplings. They still required a clutch but were easier to operate. Meanwhile, chrysler also was working on fluid couplings for automotive use. While chrysler didn’t adopt them in their own transmissions, the combination of all three features (planetary gears, hydraulic couplings and fluid clutches) was incorporated in the GM hydra-matic transmission. Introduced in 1939, it dominated the automatic transmission market for the next 25 years, with periodic improvements. Two of these improvements were the introduction of a second fluid coupling to smooth out the shift, and the addition of the “park” setting with its locking pawl feature.
The next big improvement was the torque converter which was introduced as the buick dynaflow in 1948.
In the mid 1990’s, the on-board computer became an integral part of powertrains, with impact on transmission design and operation. The computer, in addition to controlling emissions and ignition, was able to fine-tune the selection of the proper gear setting and adjust engine speed for the most efficient and smooth transition from one speed to another.
Today, transmissions are undergoing further change to maximize fuel economy, shift feel and durability benefits. The current north American automobile fleet is predominantly five– and six-speed step transmissions, but new concepts such as the double or dual clutch transmission (dct) and the continuously variable transmission (cvt) are beginning to take their place in vehicle powertrains. In fact, it’s estimated that the dual clutch transmission will become as much as 10 percent of the market in the next 10 years.
Cvt transmissions are primarily found today in asia and are mostly in vehicles with 2-liter and smaller engines. The only exception to that rule is the Nissan product line, including the crossover murano.
Naturally, atf formulations have changed through the years as well. Originally, transmission fluids were simply engine oils or gear oils. As the transmission developed and its unique lubricant requirements surfaced, oil formulators began to develop additive components and to select appropriate base oil fractions to enhance the properties they required.
Nowadays, atf is about as complex a mix of additive componentry and select base stocks as you can imagine. The components are often found in other additive packages such as for engine oil formulations, but the combinations and treat rates are unique to atf.
A list of the ingredients for atf is as follows:
Foam inhibitors control the formation of foam—bubbles don’t lubricate well!
On the marketing side, there are a number of current oem specified atf products. GM, Ford, chrysler, bmw, honda, vw, Nissan, toyota and hyundai all maintain their own specifications. However there are a large number of vehicles on the road which are out of warranty. Many of these are old enough that dexron iii and/or mercon were the only recommended fluids. Dexron iii and mercon were licensed for many years by GM and Ford, respectively, but they are obsolete, replaced for service fill by dexron vi and mercon v. All dexron iii licenses expired as of dec. 31, 2006, and the mercons followed suit six months later. Officially, these fluids don’t exist, but the vehicles do.
So how does the marketplace deal with the problem of multiple fluid specifications and large numbers of vehicles that don’t require the latest product? What appears to be happening is that a two-tier market is developing for atf.
For those vehicles still under warranty, the oem specified product is used. For the unwarrantied masses, there are some products called “multi-vehicle fluids.” these claim to embody many of the properties of the older atf requirements, and can be formulated to meet dexron iii, mercon, and some of the foreign car requirements. Thus, they May satisfy the older vehicles on the road. However, they cannot secure the required product approvals and licenses which oems demanded in the past, so there is no oversight on product quality.
It’s doubtful that new-car dealers will need to carry a product like this, since the new dexron vi, atf+4 and mercon specs are backward compatible and can be used to service older models.
Technically, swepco’s 714 atf can be classified as a “multi-vehicle fluid” as it has been used as a replacement for all of the oem atfs mentioned above, including allison transmissions, very successfully for many years …. In fact before the term was even coined.
The superior additive package of 714 has protected transmissions of all types, lowering operating temperatures, reducing wear and improving shift qualities. It is available in sae 10, 20 and 30 weights, the 20wt is the most commonly used in automotive, pick-up, bus & rv applications. It has also been used in high-performance and racing applications from stock car to drag cars.
not for use in dct or cvt transmissions
