manual transmission fluid - is redline necessary?

[Yorb]

What's something I can get at, say, advance auto parts that will work in my s13 transmission? I hear talk of redline mt-90, but it seems like there must be something that they sell INSTEAD of redline.

and a similar question for differential oil? the fsm says 75w-90 for transmission and 80w-90 for diff.

EDIT: i'm not boycotting redline, i just can't get it here, and i dont have a credit card so ordering online means using somebody elses and thats a pain. =)

[Neil]

Ive never seen a store sell Redline except for $14 a quart at this ricer shop across town. There's a few stores around here that sell AMSOil, it's better in my opinion, after having used both brands.

I've heard of people mixing up 2.5q of Mobil-1 ATF and adding half a bottle of Ford Friction Modifyer (from the dealership) but i dunno how I feel about that...

Go to the bank, order your debit card, and get some Amsoil from Jegs
Modified by Neil at 2:19 AM 6/4/2006

[Red coupe]

I belive its GL-4 gear in, in the weight listed by the FSM....Most places try to give you GL-5, but it has additive that can allegedly damage brass parts such as the synchros in the transmition.

Edit: just went and check...GL-4 gear oil is what you need for the manual trans.You can use any brand as long as its that type, pretty much any oil made now adays is better then what was around when the car was made anyways, the better stuff is nice but not nessisary.

Also if im not mistaken ATF is much lower viscosity then the oil in a manual trans, and isnt the trans supped to take 2.4 quarts? if they use that much atf, then even more of something else I would think they would deffinatly be overfilling.

[Neil]

i meant mixing 2.5 quarts with half a bottle of friction modifyer (the modifyer is supposed to bring it to the right viscosity), and then pumping as much of that mixture as you can into the transmission.

Better to go with 75w90 GL-4 ONLY tho. meaning, don't get something that's rated GL-3/4/5. That's why people like RedLine, is because its relatively cheap, it's a decent brand and their MT-90 is specifically 75w90 GL-4.

I really suggest using a friends debit card and giving them cash to order some AMSoil or RedLine. It's not a lot of money and you know youre getting a good product in lieu of settling for whatever 'Global' brand organic crap you can get your hands on at pep boys.

[180fan]

Redline isn't all that expensive considering how much of an improvement you get for a marginal amount more in cost. You can go hunt around run of the mill gl-4 gear oil but I'd recommend redline at the very least or if budget permitting, motul.

[KRUZNBY]

You can get Redline products at Carolina Mustang (I think that is the name) in Cary, NC. It's downtown Cary. That's where I got mine.

[S13ean]

i put Mobil-1 synthetic 75-90w gear oil in my trans and diff. cost like 10 a quart at advance auto.

[Ligouri Rd]

A buddy of mine recommended Pennsoil sychromesh, after switching from Redline. I have been using it for the past three years and it works great. It cleared up a high rpm grinding issue during the 4-5 shift. It is GL-4 equivalent and only $5/bottle at vatozone...but most stores stock only 2 bottles so ya end up going to another store for the third. My $.02

[teddy]

A buddy of mine recommended Pennsoil sychromesh, after switching from Redline. I have been using it for the past three years and it works great. It cleared up a high rpm grinding issue during the 4-5 shift. It is GL-4 equivalent and only $5/bottle at vatozone...but most stores stock only 2 bottles so ya end up going to another store for the third. My $.02

Synchromesh ftw! It's exactly the same thing as the GM Synchromesh that GM dealers sell for $15/quart. I don't consider it better than redline, but better than most of the other products. Plus, for 5$/quart at your local autozone, you can't beat it.

[ricebike]

What's something I can get at, say, advance auto parts that will work in my s13 transmission? I hear talk of redline mt-90, but it seems like there must be something that they sell INSTEAD of redline...

=)

You can get them to "special order it from their 'warehouse' "without incurring any shipping fees... that's what i did when I strolled in; the manager got wise since this was a heavily requested item 9in my area) that he keeps them in stock in the backroom...

[Yorb]

thanks guys this is a very helpful discussion.

when i went to advance the other day, all the gear oils they had were GL-5 compliant. i thought that was bad? for the transmission anyway. oh well, maybe i'll just order the redline and be done with it. its not that expensive.

oh and am i gonna need more than my 2 jackstands for this? my car isn't lowered, but some settling has occured over the years. =) i can still change the oil, but only because i have long arms and only if i crank the wheel all the way over.

[ricebike]

thanks guys this is a very helpful discussion.

when i went to advance the other day, all the gear oils they had were GL-5 compliant. i thought that was bad? for the transmission anyway. oh well, maybe i'll just order the redline and be done with it. its not that expensive.

yep, GL-5 will eat the yellow metals of the transmission! don't B cheap on this & get the proper lube in that thing!

PS: S13ean, drain that stuff off the trans & put in proper lube ASAP!

Quote »...oh and am i gonna need more than my 2 jackstands for this? my car isn't lowered, but some settling has occured over the years. =) i can still change the oil, but only because i have long arms and only if i crank the wheel all the way over.[/quote]if you want the correct level in the trans, yep... or just do what others did & fill the pre-measured amount of fluid thru shifter hole...then you don't have to bother about that fill hole.

[S13ean]

i was just looking at the FSM and it called for GL-5 for the diff.....??

[Yorb]

diff ≠ trans!

EDIT: by the way, i have a definite leak somewhere under my car, but due to an oil-plug-losing situation i had a few months ago, the whole underside has a nice coat of oil, so i cant really pinpoint the leak(s). i KNOW i have an oil leak, because i lose about 4 quarts every 3months (makes changing the oil a lot faster when there's none to drain!) but im afraid of the cost of getting it fixed and dont know how to tackle it myself. however, it just occured to me that maybe i have a transmission leak too, which would explain why the oil drips off the transmission, and also why i can practically feel every notch in every gear when i shift nowadays.

so my question is: i already have some redline ordered, but should i go buy some cheap stuff (what?) to put in until i can pay another $500 to get my transmission serviced again?

and also how bad is it to drive when it shifts rough like this?

sorry for the extra questions, i was just thinking this stuff as a drove home from work today.
Modified by Yorb at 7:43 PM 6/7/2006

[Neil]

you sure it isnt burning oil?

my KA went through a quart+ a week and I hardly ever noticed it smoking.

It's very doubtful you have a transmission leak... it would not suprise me if the DPO (dreaded previous owner) considered the 240 a cheap disposable compact and treated it as such with very little or improper maintenance. I see the DPO syndrome 99% of the time with S13's.

Redline most likely won't 'fix' the chip as you switch gears... It'll lube the forks and the rods they ride on and eventually make it feel more smooth, but if the synchros are worn it'll still take as long to get each gear up to speed before they mesh. Get better at rev-matching. Try nudging into gear a little slower than usual. any time it doesn't 'chip' into gear is much less stress on the teeth.

and redline isnt made of gold. put it in now, and if you do decide you want your transmission rebuilt later on, just put more in afterward. BTW, what "service" did they provide for $500 if afterward it still wants to grind every gear?

Modified by Neil at 3:32 AM 6/8/2006
Modified by Neil at 3:34 AM 6/8/2006

[Yorb]

i'm not sure that it isn't burning oil, but i know it leaves oil spots wherever i park it.

it wouldn't be $500, but its probably $200 just to get the trans out. last time i had the whole clutch replaced, due to me blowing it in one shot :< redlining and misshifted.

anyway, the roughness is getting worse. i don't think it's my driving, it even protests a little bit when i double clutch. could be wrong though. i'll pay more attention.

thanks though, i think i will go ahead and put the redline in, as soon as it gets here and i can find a flat place to park. =)

[ricebike]

kewl beans, just don't forget the obvious check for a possible leaky slave cylinder as well...

PS: i spotted sanioll's article on doing this, but mods... where r da pics?

where r da pics in this thread?

[artemoushue]

Redline makes 2 different gl-4 compatable gear fluids. What's the difference? dunno. Royal purple makes GL-4 also and you can get that at NAPA. Their everywhere. Staylube has a GL-4 and your transmission will last 100 miles after that swap. Staylube is absolute JUNK!!!!

Do not use GL-5. Sure it will work for a while but the GL-5 EP addative will eat yellow metal. (brass, copper, anything thats been pee'd on) well ok, mayby not the last thing. Motul also make GL-4 (very expensive) I belive penzoil makes a GL-4 also. I only run synthetic in EVERY THING. right down to the brake fluid. By synthetic I mean TRUE synthetic if possible, not a highly refined Group IIIa dino oil like castrol started.

[180fan]

Yawn, why is this thread still going? It's been discussed many times already in many other threads and people are now beginning to pop in the same info as others have already stated.

Find GL-4 gear oil. Not GL-5 unless you like paying big money for transmission rebuilds.

[otterman]

The only GL-4 in any place around here is 80w-90. Would that be that big of a deal? I read on here you're supposed to run 75w-90 on a SR.

[180fan]

75w-90, 80w-90 is fine. I've tried straight up 90w gear oil without problems either, but I didn't run it for long. As long as you're ball park, it should be fine.

[otterman]

I went ahead and ordered some Redline MT-90 today.

Also, I talked to this place about GL-4 and they gave me the "GL-5 replaced GL-4" speech every other place gave me, so I told them about the brass and they called Mobile1 and I talked to one of their oil engineers and he said that the additives do damage brass but we should be ok as long as no water gets mixed in. He said water is what sets it off on its killing spree (not exactly those words). Either way, Im not taking chances but has anyone else heard this?

[gogg]

penzoil syncromesh is what i run.....i would run redline too though...