BG is generally considered good quality. If you're not comfortable doing it yourself this is probably a good option.

 

I've been following the thread called Transmission Fluid change (poll). In that thread there are a couple recommendations. Mainly dealer service with Acura fluids or Amsoil. It seems most recommendations for the transmission and transfer case seem to be Amsoil.

My local shop gave me a quote for BG transmission fluid and transfer case gear oil. What are your thoughts about BG fluids?

(from the quote)
for the transmission
BG ATF
BG Quick Clean
BG ATC Plus

for the transfer case
BG Gear Oil
BG MGC

I know BG has a good reputation for BG 44K and I know a lot of VW techs recommend adding BG MOA to help reduce oil consumption.

Thanks for your thought's

Just my two cents — but this comes from personal experience and advice straight from a trusted mechanic:

Shops like to push BG fluids because they make more profit on them. BG is a "universal" fluid, meaning shops can stock fewer variants and apply it across multiple vehicles. That saves them money and boosts margins. But OEM fluids are often the same price or even cheaper for you as the customer — and they’re specifically engineered for your vehicle.

OEM fluids are the safer bet, especially on something like the MDX. There are plenty of examples of MDXs going over 250k miles on the original powertrain using nothing but OEM fluids. BG isn’t necessarily “bad,” but it’s designed to cover a broad range of vehicles. That means the additive packages and chemical properties aren’t necessarily tuned to the exact needs of your Acura’s transmission, differential, or SH-AWD system — and this came directly from an engineer involved in OEM fluid development.

If your MDX is still under warranty, I would absolutely stick with OEM fluids only. BG may offer their own protection plan, but there are real-world cases where they’ve denied claims or made the process difficult. Acura, on the other hand, could deny warranty coverage if a failure is linked to a non-OEM fluid. Not worth the risk.

Even after warranty, I personally use only OEM fluids in the transmission, rear diff, transfer case, and cooling system across all my vehicles. It’s a small price to pay for peace of mind and long-term reliability.

 

I've been following the thread called Transmission Fluid change (poll). In that thread there are a couple recommendations. Mainly dealer service with Acura fluids or Amsoil. It seems most recommendations for the transmission and transfer case seem to be Amsoil.

My local shop gave me a quote for BG transmission fluid and transfer case gear oil. What are your thoughts about BG fluids?

(from the quote)
for the transmission
BG ATF
BG Quick Clean
BG ATC Plus

for the transfer case
BG Gear Oil
BG MGC

I know BG has a good reputation for BG 44K and I know a lot of VW techs recommend adding BG MOA to help reduce oil consumption.

Thanks for your thoughts

Look in threads where owners put different fluids in their cars only to regret it. Transfluid, gear lube and transfer case fluids. These other fluids may be good for somethings but not for others. When it comes to fluids you should always use oem.

 

My MDX has the CPO extended warranty and I have no problem sticking to the OEM fluids. I don't think the price was that much different between the dealer and my local shop. Does anyone know how the dealer changes the transmission fluid? From what I'm reading it seems like filling from the top is optional. Perhaps, I'm confused.

 

if you are doing the service regularly, you just need drain and fill.

 

Yes drain and fill always the best option fo transmissions. Flushe are generally risky and some shops won’t do them as they can introduce problems with pressure and contamination via dislodging debris. There is a lot in forums against flushes.

 

FWIW (and do not know whether your generation went back to Honda transmission or still ZF):
1. I would stick with OEM - and have a friend who actually develops tranny fluids / additives who said for auto transmissions = always OEM ("you don't change often and why even bother with non-OEM")
2. as others indicated previously, dealers will do one drain and fill; for our '14, I did 3 x 4 qrt "flush" (basically drain and fill 3 times over a course of 1-2 weeks) around 60-70k then just drain and fill every 30k or so
3. rear diff - always Honda OEM due to SH AWD
4. front diff / TC - just M1 75W90 for years (my manual says 75W85 I think)

 

I was having my '16 MDX serviced at a dealer, and at about 30k miles the transfer case was serviced - almost certainly by a low skill worker. At about 60k miles my transfer case went out, and the fluid that came out of it looked like silver paint (all silver specs). By that time I had been burned enough by the dealer so I had taken it to an independent repair shop, and had them do the repair (about $3k IIRC). It was only later that I remembered that the transfer case had been serviced at the dealer. Unfortunately I did not get a sample for lab analysis, but if I were betting I would put money on them using the wrong fluid. IIRC some MDXes use a different lube in the transfer case, so easy to make a mistake. I draw two conclusions from this: 1) always check carefully and use the correct, OEM fluid, and 2) never trust a dealer unless there is no choice. Of course I can't prove that incorrect fluid is the cause of the problem but it is hard to think of anything else that might turn the bearings into shavings...

 

The other possibility is the dealer never changed the fluid and charged you for the work.

 

I doubt that just running 60k on the original fluid would do that much damage, although it is a possibility. I suspect some incompatibility between the original fluid and whatever they put in that might have created an emulsion or some other change in consistency. I really wish my mechanic had offered me a sample as that would have been helpful to understand, and even get some costs covered. But the big mistake was having the dealer touch the car.

 

Sorry to hear about your transfer case issue, another possibility is that the tech did use transfer case fluid, but maybe he used the wrong spec. You still drove the car for 30k more miles. Last year I change the transfer case fluid myself after a lot or research and bought the fluid from the dealer.