transmission fluid advice

[Eduardo Castrejón Elbjorn]

Hi,

I recently rebuilt the trans, please let me know which fluid to use ?

let me know

regards

[red-beard]

80W90 Gear Oil.

[lmcchesney]

Red-Beard, do you believe there is a SIGNIFICANT difference between standare 80-90W gear oil vs the synthetic vs Swepco?
I appreciate your experienced opinion.
L. McC

[red-beard]

I can't find any real information that Swepco is anything but 90W gear oil.

[Dave at Pelican Parts]

With nifty blue dye in it. And probably (not sure!) their own particular additive package.

We recommend it, but then again we do sell it! Mechanics that I trust have very specifically recommended it to me, so that's what I have gone with.

--DD

[red-beard]

Yeah, and at $40/gal it has substantial margin...

I use Coastal at $6.99/gal.

[AaronM]

Personally, I like Mobil 1 synthetic gear oil. It definitely made a difference in shift quality in my 924S and the Mobil 1 synthetic gear oil is much less expensive than Swepco or RedLine while providing more than enough benefit for street applications.

While Swepco and RedLine are indeed "better", the amount by which they are better is not enough to justify their extra price. My personal opinion is that Mobil 1 sits at a sweet spot in the cost/reward payoff curve.

Aaron

[BigD9146gt]

Aaron, so do you use the synthetic in your 914 gear box? Last time i tried to use synthetic i was forced to become a double-clutch pro. Now as re-beard said, the Swepco is more expensive, but i don't take my trans apart all the often anyways...

[AaronM]

Originally posted by BigD9146gt
Aaron, so do you use the synthetic in your 914 gear box? Last time i tried to use synthetic i was forced to become a double-clutch pro. Now as re-beard said, the Swepco is more expensive, but i don't take my trans apart all the often anyways...

I have not put it into the 914 box yet (it's not due for a gear oil change). I probably wouldn't be putting it into the 914's gearbox even if I weren't selling the car because I am not having any problems aside from the "normal" 914 caveat of no speed shifting.

I switched over in the 924S because I was getting 2nd gear "lock-out" on cold mornings in the middle of winter.

I will say that if using synthetic causes your synchros to stop working effectively, then there was a pre-existing condition in the transmission that was almost certainly being masked by very, very dirty gear oil. before synthetic was put in.

Aaron

[red-beard]

Originally posted by AaronM
I will say that if using synthetic causes your synchros to stop working effectively, then there was a pre-existing condition in the transmission that was almost certainly being masked by very, very dirty gear oil. before synthetic was put in.

Or the very dirty gear or, or lack of gear oil, is causing the problems.

Decent fresh gear oil is the best gear oil.

[wrongpew]

I have to agree with Aaron. Putting Mobil 1 in my gearbox eliminated 90% of the shifting stiffness I was experiencing in a fresh, professionally rebuilt tranny.

[red-beard]

I used Mobil 1 in my 914/6 box. I had no shifting issues. I agree. If you are having shifting issues, get the tranny fixed. Oil will not fix the tranny.

[Kenny Powell]

Originally posted by red-beard
80W90 Gear Oil.

use tranny Juice of your choice!

[Dave at Pelican Parts]

Originally posted by red-beard
Yeah, and at $40/gal it has substantial margin...

Actually, I was a Swepco believer before I started working for Pelican. Both of the local mechanics that I trust the most will only use it. One of them was, umm, rather uncomplementary of my choice of Redline MTL quite a few years ago...

But to each their own.

--DD

[BigD9146gt]

Back when i did use the synthetic, the trans was on its way to needing new syncros. However, everytime i've driven a car with a 901 gear box running sythetic, double clutching was better because the syncros were too slippery, there was no bite for the dog teeth on the selector rings. Once i drained the synthetic out and replaced with swepco, it was like night and day. Granted, at the time it still needed a rebuild, i comfortly got several thousand miles out of it before overhauling it.

[Cokeaholic]

I am kind of new at the whole transmission deal. I had to get a new engine for my 914 and i also took the rear off the end of my transmission to check my first gear. Now I'm trying to figure out how to replace all of the lost fluid. Is there a dipstick anywhere on the tranny? How would i go about gauging my level of tranny fluid and then replacing it?

Thanks- Corey

[SGB]

Two big allen-head screw things (maybe 22MM?) on the right rear side of the transaxle for draining and filling. Do remove the fill plug before the drain plug, so will be able to refill without tipping the car on it's side!

[BigD9146gt]

Cory, they are 17mm hex (allen) sockets. You'll probably need to by the tool (a 1/4" socket 17mm hex) to get the job done (i tried to make a tool with a 17mm bolt, nuts and a wrench, but sometimes those suckers are in there tight). With the trans on level gound (either on the work bench or in the car), make sure the bottom plug is secured in the drain hole, then start filling the trans with new oil. I do this with a oil hand pump which can be purchased at any autoparts store. Stop filling when the oil starts flowing out the hole. Its that simple.

Cheers, Don.

[Cokeaholic]

haha thanks, i'll go do that now then.

[JayDarden]

The only place I could find the 17mm 1/4 drive socket localy was a Snap On truck. Met the guy on the side of the road. $12 - Keep the socket in your glove box, because you will never need it for anything else.