AT Temp light on - damage??

[ddost8379]

I have an 05 Pilot with 77,000 miles. I was doing a little off roading in Colorado with my AT temp light came on. I had to find a safe place to stop and was able to do so after about 5 minutes. I left the engine on while in park until the light went off(per manual instructions) which took 5-10 minutes. I made it back down the hill and then drove 1,000 miles home over some mountain passes without the light coming back on and the tranny appeared to be running normal.

Other than changing the fluid is there anything else I should do to insure no damage was done? Can the dealer test the tranny to check for damage? Did I likely cause any damage? Any insight you can provide me would be greatly appreciated.

There is no need to call me stupid for doing this as I've been calling myself that plenty. The mountain pass (Yankee Boy in Ouray Colorado if you're familiar) was plenty doable by a Pilot I'm told - however my problem is I had 7 passengers so it was just too much load. If it was just me I don't think this would have been a problem.

Again, any insight, thoughts, comments are much appreciated. Thanks.

[deanmcneill]

Not an expert but it sounds like you've cooked the fluid a bit... hot temperatures, heavy load etc. will do that. Good news is you followed instructions and light went off. Tranny fluid gets a distinctly "burnt" smell when it's been heated too far... pull the Transmission dipstick and give it a smell. if it definitely smells burnt then might be best to have it flushed and replaced. A service station should be able to hook up a scan tool and see if there is any codes stored from the overheat event.

Might want to add a auxiliary transmission cooler... cheap and an easy DIY job!

[theirishscion]

Originally Posted by deanmcneill

Not an expert but it sounds like you've cooked the fluid a bit... hot temperatures, heavy load etc. will do that. Good news is you followed instructions and light went off. Tranny fluid gets a distinctly "burnt" smell when it's been heated too far... pull the Transmission dipstick and give it a smell. if it definitely smells burnt then might be best to have it flushed and replaced. A service station should be able to hook up a scan tool and see if there is any codes stored from the overheat event.

Might want to add a auxiliary transmission cooler... cheap and an easy DIY job!

Generally agree, but remember, Honda specifically recommends against getting fluid flushed only changed. If you want to be particularly paranoid get it changed twice or three times in quick succession, but not flushed.

[dustino8]

Change the fluid (3x drain and fill for extra peace of mind) and don't worry about it.

I'd like to know what temperature the tranny fluid light triggers at. Maybe it's set conservatively .

[rocky]

What exactly was the car being asked to do when the sensor "popped". I've been in Colorado, but not with the Pilot and its a great experience.

The light coming on means one of two things. 1: Yeah the tranny temp was too high. 2; The sensor is defective.

In the short term, I would drain and refill the tranny fluid (under 4 quarts). Its cheap insurance.

While you are at it, add a tranny cooler, especially if you plan to go out and do it again.