The

Aisin is a Japanese corporation that develops and produces components and systems for the automotive industry. Aisin is a Fortune Global 500 company, ranked 359 rankings. Aisin is a member of the Toyota Group of companies. Aisin was founded in 196 ...

AW AF33 is a 5-speed automatic

transaxle A transaxle is a single mechanical device which combines the functions of an automobile's transmission, axle, and differential into one integrated assembly. It can be produced in both manual and automatic versions. Engine and drive at the s ...

developed and manufactured in Anjo,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

by Aisin AW, a division of

. It is designed to be used in

transverse engine A transverse engine is an engine mounted in a vehicle so that the engine's crankshaft axis is perpendicular to the direction of travel. Many modern front-wheel drive vehicles use this engine mounting configuration. Most rear-wheel drive vehicle ...

configurations in both FWD and AWD configurations. The actual model codes are ''AW55-50SN'' and ''AW55-51SN''. Manufactures have sometimes chosen own designations such as ''AF23'', ''AF33'' or ''AF33-5'' (GM), ''RE5F22A'' (

Nissan , trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun bra ...

and

Infiniti is the luxury vehicle division of the Japanese automaker Nissan. Infiniti officially started selling vehicles on November 8, 1989, in North America. The marketing network for Infiniti-branded vehicles included dealers in over 50 countries in ...

) or ''SU1'' (

Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufactured ...

). Other manufacturers use the original designation(s) or minor variations of it such as ''AW55-50 LE'' (

Volvo The Volvo Group ( sv, Volvokoncernen; legally Aktiebolaget Volvo, shortened to AB Volvo, stylized as VOLVO) is a Swedish multinational manufacturing corporation headquartered in Gothenburg. While its core activity is the production, distributio ...

), ''AW 55-51 LE'' (

Opel Opel Automobile GmbH (), usually shortened to Opel, is a German automobile manufacturer which has been a subsidiary of Stellantis since 16 January 2021. It was owned by the American automaker General Motors from 1929 until 2017 and the PSA Grou ...

) and ''FA57'' ( Saab).

Maintenance

Several manufacturers list the transmission in their owners manuals as fill for life, meaning that there are no scheduled transmission fluid changes under normal operating conditions. Transmission experts recommend regular fluid changes for severe driving condition, every . Specific fluid must be used. If incorrect fluid is used it could result in improper operation and lead to transmission damage. Aisin recommends to follow the scheduled maintenance. A badly done oil change can destroy the transmission.

Reliability

Some AF33 transmissions – specifically the variants used in Volvo vehicles – were very unreliable, with failures occurring within on some vehicles. Volvo eventually released an upgrade package to address the issue.

Fluid

Fluid must meet the JWS 3309 specification. The fluid can be found under varying designations. GM Saturn: Aisin AF23/33-5 type T-IV P/N 88900925 (in Canada, P/N 22689186). Volvo AW55-50/51SN P/N 1161540-8. Nissan RE5F22A Nissan Matic "K" Fluid capacity 8.2 qt. (7.8L) Synthetic. Exxon/Mobil manufactures a specific synthetic mineral fluid for this transmission simply called "3309".

Applications

Ford Motor Company : Ford :* 2008–2012 Ford Kuga 2.5T AWD General Motors : Chevrolet ::* 2004–2009 Chevrolet Equinox (GM code M09 (FWD), M45 (AWD)) ::* 2006–2010 Chevrolet Captiva ::* 2006-2007

Chevrolet Epica Epica or EPICA may refer to: * Epica (band), a Dutch symphonic metal band * ''Epica'' (Kamelot album), 2003 * ''Epica'' (Audiomachine album), 2012 * The European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) * The Epica Awards (International Adver ...

: Opel / Vauxhall ::* 2002–2004

Opel Vectra The Opel Vectra is a mid-size car ( large family car) that was engineered and produced by the German automaker Opel from 1988 until 2010. Available in saloon, hatchback and estate body styles, the Vectra was also sold by the Vauxhall marque ...

C ::* 2002–2004

Opel Signum The Opel Signum is a large front-engine, front-wheel drive, five-passenger, five-door hatchback manufactured and marketed by the German car manufacturer Opel from 2003 to 2008, exclusively over a single generation, derived from the Opel Vectra ...

::* 2006–2015

Opel Antara The Opel Antara is a compact crossover SUV which was marketed by Opel from 2006 to 2015. Based on the Theta platform, the Antara closely shared its underpinnings and powertrains with the Chevrolet Captiva. However, it only offered five seats ...

: Pontiac ::* 2006–2009 Pontiac Torrent : Saab ::* 2003–2007

Saab 9-3 The Saab 9-3 (pronounced ''nine-three'') is a compact executive car initially developed and manufactured by the Swedish automaker Saab. The first generation 9-3 (1998-2003) is based on the GM2900 platform, changing to the GM Epsilon platfor ...

::* 2002–2009

Saab 9-5 The Saab 9-5 is an executive car that was produced by the Swedish automobile maker Saab from 1997 to 2012. The first generation 9-5 was introduced in 1997 for the 1998 model year, as the replacement to the Saab 9000. At the time, the car repr ...

: Saturn ::* 2002–2003

Saturn Vue The Saturn Vue is a compact SUV that was sold and built by Saturn, and it was Saturn's best-selling model. It was the first vehicle to use the GM Theta platform when it was introduced in 2001 for the 2002 model year. The Vue was later facelifted ...

::* 2003–2004 Saturn Ion (GM code M43) Lancia * 2002–2008

Lancia Thesis The Lancia Thesis (Type 841) is a full-size car produced by Italian automaker Lancia between 2001 and 2009. It was available with naturally aspirated and turbocharged engines ranging between 2.0 and 3.2 litres, in both straight-5 or V6 configu ...

Nissan * 2004–2006

Nissan Maxima The Nissan Maxima is a full-size car manufactured and marketed by Nissan and offered as Nissan's flagship sedan primarily in North America, the Middle East, and China — and currently in its eighth generation. Having debuted for model year ...

(code RE5F22A) * 2004–2006

Nissan Quest The Nissan Quest is a minivan manufactured and marketed by Nissan for model years 1993–2017 over four generations. The first two generations (internally designated V40 and V41) of the Quest were short-wheelbase models co-developed and manufac ...

* 2004–2006

Nissan Altima The Nissan Altima is a mid-size car that has been manufactured by Nissan since 1992. It is a continuation of the Nissan Bluebird line, which began in 1955. The Altima has historically been larger, more powerful, and more luxurious than the Niss ...

Renault * 2001–2007

Renault Laguna The Renault Laguna is a large family car that was manufactured and marketed by Renault for 21 years in three body styles: hatchback, coupé, and estate. The first generation Laguna was launched in 1994, the second generation was introduced in 200 ...

(code SU1) * 2003–2015

Renault Espace The Renault Espace is a five-door car manufactured by the French carmaker Renault since 1984 for five generations. It is classified as a large MPV/ minivan within the M-segment. The first three generations of the Espace were amongst the first ...

* 2002–2009 Renault Vel Satis Suzuki * 2007–2008

Suzuki XL7 The Suzuki Ertiga is a car manufactured by the Japanese carmaker Suzuki since 2012. It is a multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) with standard three-row seating. The first-generation model is heavily based on the Swift while the second-generation model int ...

Volvo * 2000 Volvo S70 (FWD) * 2000

Volvo V70 The Volvo V70 is an executive car manufactured and marketed by Volvo Cars from 1996 to 2016 across three generations. The name ''V70'' combines the letter ''V'', standing for ''versatility'', and ''70'', denoting relative platform size (i.e., a ...

(FWD & AWD) * 2000–2004 Volvo C70 (FWD) * 2000–2004 Volvo S40 (FWD) * 2000–2004 Volvo V40 (FWD) * 2000–2009

Volvo S60 The Volvo Group ( sv, Volvokoncernen; legally Aktiebolaget Volvo, shortened to AB Volvo, stylized as VOLVO) is a Swedish multinational manufacturing corporation headquartered in Gothenburg. While its core activity is the production, distributio ...

(FWD & AWD) * 2000–2005 Volvo V70 II (FWD & AWD) * 2003–2007 Volvo XC70 (AWD) * 2000–2006 Volvo S80 (FWD & AWD) * 2003–2006

Volvo XC90 The Volvo XC90 is a mid-size luxury SUV manufactured and marketed by Volvo Cars since 2002 and now in its second generation. The first generation was introduced at the 2002 North American International Auto Show and used the Volvo P2 platform ...

(FWD & AWD) * 2004–2013 Volvo S40 II (FWD & AWD) * 2004–2013 Volvo V50 (FWD & AWD) * 2006–2013 Volvo C30 (FWD) * 2006–2013 Volvo C70 II (FWD)

Notes

References