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So, I got an advice from a mechanic to try gear oil in transmission to reduce the leakage. The idea is that the thicker oil will leak less.
I am thinking about trying it and wanted to know if anyone else runs or have tried gear oil in their transmission.
I usually use Redline MT-90 but I am thinking of trying one of the Redline ShockProof gear oil. I am not sure which version of ShockProof to try.
Any advice?
Chi,
I don’t know that this is such a good idea for a couple of reasons. 1) I don’t think it will solve the leak issue and 2) it may not be the right product for your application unless you can verify that the product that you use is GL-4/GL-5 oil. Most diff oils are GL-5 which mean they have a high dose of EP (extreme pressure) additives to handle the extremely high shear loads of hypoid gears. We don’t need very high levels of EP in our synchromesh trannys and in fact the EP additives are hard on the synchros. I looked at Redline’s Website and it says the Shockproof Gear Oil says it good for diff and transmissions for racing applications. It does not say that it is good for a street car transmission that may be used for racing applications. I think you should call Redline and ask their tech department before you buy anything.
Here is an example of a synthetic gear lube that is GL-4 compatible -
and another that is non-sysnthetic that has a great track record in Porsche Transaxles.
http://www.swepcousa.com/lubesite/gear.htm (available through Pelican Parts)
This last product is less likely to leak (it is thick and non synthetic) and it is THE product to have for a Porsche 915 (72-86 911)transaxle. I have used it in 911 and 944 boxes but never in a BMW Getrag box.
My point is, if you do decide to change, call a couple of the tech desks and get their opinions of your application and problem before you buy. I can get you a nice deal on the Amsoil product if you decide that you want to try it.
Don
I run a ‘thick’ gear oil in mine for similar reasons. I just made sure the GL rating matches the specs in the manual. It does not much like very cold gear changes, but once it’s warm I’ve had no problems at all. I decided I would rather risk some long term damage with ‘gear oil’ vs losing all my tranny fluid. 
Swepco 201 really stinks. That is, it really smells bad. 
But it’s great oil. Used it in tranny & diff since Jan 2007. Seems to work fine (except for the little blue droplets all over my garage floor).
I changed out the transmission and differential to Swepco 201 before the VIR.
In running VIR 3 days (until one of my rocker arm broke), transmission did not leak at all which is remarkable since with Redline, the transmission would leak like a sieve until the fluid level fell below a certain point.
I did notice that the cold shifting is slightly stiffer than Redline.
I will keep posting on the long term usage.
McHenry318 wrote:
[quote]In Getrag 260 cars I use:
1 quart Dexron/ATF
1 pint STP oil treatment[/quote]
Why?
donstevens wrote:
[quote]McHenry318 wrote:
[quote]In Getrag 260 cars I use:
1 quart Dexron/ATF
1 pint STP oil treatment[/quote]
Why?[/quote]
a) he really likes Richard Petty and is old like us.
b) he always wanted to be a chemist.
donstevens wrote:
[quote]McHenry318 wrote:
[quote]In Getrag 260 cars I use:
1 quart Dexron/ATF
1 pint STP oil treatment[/quote]
Why?[/quote]
Recommended to me by my father and other old school guys. When I bought my 318is, the transmission was sketchy. This mixture worked great from then on, and literally transformed the feel of the tranny. It’s done wonders in a friends 325i with a tranny that was on the rocks. I’ve used it ever since; works great. :woohoo:
McHenry318 wrote:
[quote]donstevens wrote:
[quote]McHenry318 wrote:
[quote]In Getrag 260 cars I use:
1 quart Dexron/ATF
1 pint STP oil treatment[/quote]
Why?[/quote]
Recommended to me by my father and other old school guys. When I bought my 318is, the transmission was sketchy. This mixture worked great from then on, and literally transformed the feel of the tranny. It’s done wonders in a friends 325i with a tranny that was on the rocks. I’ve used it ever since; works great. :woohoo:[/quote]
Is your Dad Pete McHenry from NC?
87isMan wrote:
[quote]87isMan wrote:
anyone?[/quote]
Reviews from road racers of varying makes/models sound pretty good, probably worth a try.
@ nasaregistrar, yes Pete is my dad. I’m the youngest son.
McHenry318 wrote:
[quote]87isMan wrote:
[quote]87isMan wrote:
anyone?[/quote]
Reviews from road racers of varying makes/models sound pretty good, probably worth a try.
@ nasaregistrar, yes Pete is my dad. I’m the youngest son.[/quote]Well Your Dad is a nice guy. Many years ago I called him for advice a few times on my first E30 (like 1994 ish)He was generally accepted as ‘the man’ on E30 motors, etc. back when the web was new and email digests were the way of the internet. I subscribed to Richard Welty’s BMW Digest back then…you can still find the archives and funny enough, I found one of my own posts about changing Cyl. head bolts.
nasaregistrar wrote:
[quote]McHenry318 wrote:
[quote]87isMan wrote:
[quote]87isMan wrote:
anyone?[/quote]
Reviews from road racers of varying makes/models sound pretty good, probably worth a try.
@ nasaregistrar, yes Pete is my dad. I’m the youngest son.[/quote]Well Your Dad is a nice guy. Many years ago I called him for advice a few times on my first E30 (like 1994 ish)He was generally accepted as ‘the man’ on E30 motors, etc. back when the web was new and email digests were the way of the internet. I subscribed to Richard Welty’s BMW Digest back then…you can still find the archives and funny enough, I found one of my own posts about changing Cyl. head bolts.[/quote]
Thanks for the reply. Nice to know that I’m not the only one that thinks of him as 'the man. : )
I appreciate the heads up on the BMW digest, I found a lot of good info along with my dads old 2602 article.
Cheers,
Stu
PS–sorry for the off topic
McHenry318 wrote:
[quote]donstevens wrote:
[quote]McHenry318 wrote:
[quote]In Getrag 260 cars I use:
1 quart Dexron/ATF
1 pint STP oil treatment[/quote]
Why?[/quote]
Recommended to me by my father and other old school guys. When I bought my 318is, the transmission was sketchy. This mixture worked great from then on, and literally transformed the feel of the tranny. It’s done wonders in a friends 325i with a tranny that was on the rocks. I’ve used it ever since; works great. :woohoo:[/quote]
That is what I figured but I had to ask. I know the reputation you dad has and figured that if he recommended it that it must work. I was also kind of wondering if you/he had any scientific explanation as to why that combo works.
There were some BMW tranny’s where ATF was recommended (I forget what the clue was) and some that required gear lube. My point is, there may be other tranny’s that don’t like your elixr. That is why I suggest gear lubes like Amsoil/Redline/Swepco that are designed for synchromesh gear boxes.
Don
Well, Swepco 201 did fine until the weather turned cold.
I guess the seals are shrinking up. There is now some leakage although it’s not as bad as before.
Chi, are you sure the gear oil is to blame?
I mean, you’ve put how many hours of track time in the past two years, plus driving to and from, on a 1987 Getrag transmission that has how many thousands of miles on it? You’ve put more track miles on that car than I put on all vehicles I own put together (race car, dd, truck)…
TheRedBaron wrote:
[quote]Chi, are you sure the gear oil is to blame?
I mean, you’ve put how many hours of track time in the past two years, plus driving to and from, on a 1987 Getrag transmission that has how many thousands of miles on it? You’ve put more track miles on that car than I put on all vehicles I own put together (race car, dd, truck)…[/quote]
Oh, I’m not blaming the Swepco oil at all. In fact it worked great in stopping the leak. It’s just that the cold weather has made the transmission leak again.
Mr. Junky had 207K when I bought the car exactly two years ago. When the speedo died about 2-3 months ago, odometer stopped at 246K. So about 43K miles in two years. Out of that about 9K track miles (about 70 track days). The rest is DD and driving to and from tracks.
P.S. - By the way, I replaced the speedo today with a unit that I got from nasaregistrar (Sean) and now I have a working speedo. However, I am back down to 213K miles 