Start clutch failure & solution

[lokets]

I went to Honda today and they told me that they don't sell CVT specific oil to retail customers, that they only get it in big 200L drums (I am not really buying that).

They told me to come back next week and then they'll do a test drive etc. of my car for free, and see if it needs an oil change or if it's the start clutch. I have a feeling they are going to tell me it's the start clutch so that I'll need to get it fixed there.

I am pretty sure that the oil in my car at the moment is ATF Z1. Where can I get a hold of the CVT oil, because my local Honda won't sell it to me.

My problem is exactly the same as what you described. The 1/2 second noise is hard to explain, almost like a shudder/humming sound, but only if I accelerate from a dead stop. But if I accelerate very gently, then no noise. Apart from that everything in the car is great. The revs are good and so is the idling (sometimes I think the car has switched off when I stop at the signal lights because it is so quiet and there is no vibration etc.).

Also, did your car's general running noise reduce when you changed the CVT oil?

How hard is it to change the CVT oil myself. I don't have a ramp etc. to raise the car.

What a rip-off, Honda not willing to sell the oil. Try another dealership/spares department. I got my 4L CVT only oil at $81 in Springwood Honda, QLD. No questions asked. You are in Sydney, yes, why not ask the friendly folks here, I'm sure there are lots of Sydney CVT Jazz owners & some do buy their Honda oils for replacement, etc.

You can opt for the free test drive offered but if they don't want to sell you the oil, they would also want to charge you heaps for service fees - for potentially not a CVT start clutch failure. It would be to their interests to offer their opinion to you without you first trying to fix this on your own.

I did not notice any reduction in noise after changing to the CVT only fluid. As you said, the car itself is quite quiet. The most amount of noise comes from the air-con belt/drive. That overrides all other noise.

To change the oil, you unplug the drain plug on the right side of the car at the bottom. Then, put back the plug and pour the CVT fluid at the top - after removing dipstick (you will need a long tube to guide the fluid down as the hole is not easily reached). It can be done within 1 hour but dispose the fluid the responsible way. For the unplugging process, you do not need a car ramp, there should be just sufficient space under the car to do the job without the need to jack it up - well I did not.

BTW, out of curiosity, is your Jazz a 1.5 or 1.3? And is your Jazz a Thailand made Jazz? I'm just wondering the quality of transmission from Thailand Jazz now as mine is made in Japan and my Jazz's problem came up in 125K km (pretty long) and yours at only 60K km (too short).