Honda Stepwagon RK5

It's difficult to find out some information on the Stepwagon RK5 (facelift) so I thought I'd document my findings here for future reference and to help others.

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CVT transmission fluid

What

The RK CVT Stepwagons need Honda HCF-2 transmission fluid. Not the older Honda CVT fluid. Most Honda dealers can provide it. The standard auto boxes are different too; don't mix the fluids up.

*These are official Honda figures from the Japanese manual but I actually found my RK5 needed more than 4L. Kinda a bummer as the Honda bottles are 4L and not cheap.

Interval

I couldn't find out any official information but the RK Stepwagon uses the same 2nd generation CVT as the later 2016+ Honda CR-V and the general consensus online seems to be every 30-50K miles for these.

Process

Again, there's a fair amount of information out there for the later, 2016, CR-V. This is pretty much the same although I suggest making use of the fill hole rather than measuring what you're taking out and putting the same back in as suggested by some YouTube videos.

1. You'll need to be able to access the underside of the engine so jack the Steppy up (try and keep it level still if you can). A big trolley jack can lift the front up enough to get axle stands under the sides so the jack can be moved out of the way.
2. The transmission is on the right side of the engine when looking at the front. The drain plug is just on the side underneath facing the driver's side and is 1/2" square (so you can just throw a 1/2 inch ratchet spanner on there with no fitting).

3. Drain the fluid out into a receptacle (most local recycling centres should be able to dispose of it; at least in the UK).
4. Refit the drain plug and loosen off the 12mm fill level bolt a little further up. A little fluid might come out of this still.
5. Optional - replace the coolant filter (probably not necessary):
   1. Remove the battery by disconnecting the terminals and loosening off and unhooking the retaining bar. This is not strictly necessary but it makes things more accessible.
   2. The filter is under a fitting with two pipes coming out of it at the front held in by 3 bolts (2 on top, 1 underneath out of sight) with 2 pipes coming off it. No need to remove the pipes. Pop a cloth underneath to catch any fluid and remove the 3 bolts.
   3. Pull the fitting away to expose the filter. You might need to gently persuade the filter out with a screw driver. There is an O ring on the smaller end of the filter and one in the fitting. It's a good idea to inspect these and replace them if they look worn.

      

   4. Pop the new filter in. I had difficulty with the O-ring falling off as I was putting the filter back in. Just make sure it fits all the way in. It shouldn't need any real force.
   5. Replace the fitting back on top and do up the 3 bolts.
   6. Replace the battery if you removed it.
6. Pop the bung off the top of the transmission and start refilling it. It just pulls off. A funnel with a pipe will be useful as it's quite low down. At around 3.5-3.7L (for the RK5) you should start seeing the fluid to start to dribble out of the fill hole.
7. Replace the bung and the fill plug (you don't have to wait for it to stop dribbling).
8. Start the engine and cycle through all the transmission positions leaving about 5-10 seconds in each before returning back to park.
9. Stop the engine, remove the fill plug again and top up the transmission from the top until fluid starts dribbling out of the fill hole again.
10. Replace the fill plug, the bung and clean up. You're done!