Joined
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898 Posts
I'll take a shot.
No, it's not necessary, if you intend the word to mean "essential to being able to drive it over the next few months". I'm sure that there are a lot of older Pilots out there running on factory VTM fluid.
I assume that as a relatively recent buyer, you're hoping for another 50-100k miles. If that's the case, then the real question (at least in my mind) is "what's the upside / downside in deferring recommended maintenance?"
You can save a few bucks by deferring or skipping a refresh. Environmental impact is probably a nothing, assuming you recycle your old fluids responsibly. So upside is cost of a jug of VTM.
Downside is bigger. The clutches in there are probably why the refresh interval is short. Cook one of those and you could buy a few barrels of VTM for the cost of the repair.
I think it comes down to a familiar bottom line for older Pilots: either maintain it as best you can to keep it alive as long as possible, or stop spending non-essential dollars and just drive the wheels off it. Make that choice and you'll know what to do about your VTM fluid, and everything else, too.
No, it's not necessary, if you intend the word to mean "essential to being able to drive it over the next few months". I'm sure that there are a lot of older Pilots out there running on factory VTM fluid.
I assume that as a relatively recent buyer, you're hoping for another 50-100k miles. If that's the case, then the real question (at least in my mind) is "what's the upside / downside in deferring recommended maintenance?"
You can save a few bucks by deferring or skipping a refresh. Environmental impact is probably a nothing, assuming you recycle your old fluids responsibly. So upside is cost of a jug of VTM.
Downside is bigger. The clutches in there are probably why the refresh interval is short. Cook one of those and you could buy a few barrels of VTM for the cost of the repair.
I think it comes down to a familiar bottom line for older Pilots: either maintain it as best you can to keep it alive as long as possible, or stop spending non-essential dollars and just drive the wheels off it. Make that choice and you'll know what to do about your VTM fluid, and everything else, too.