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Cool thanks! Ordered and will put it in on Saturday. Really looking forward to seeing if its effective as people say.
How to Change Manual Transmission Fluid
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Just to update. Did the change this morning. Was very easy, the only issue was the EU models seem to have more plastic attached to the crossbeam that needed to come off. Wasnt a major problem.
Managed to get my torque wrench and 24mm socket on the fill cap so easy to get that off.
I really do wish I could get the pump shown in this thread. Using a syringe was painful!
However now its done it feels amazing! So slick and satisfying to use. As others have said the noise from the box is gone altogether.
All round very happy I did this
Managed to get my torque wrench and 24mm socket on the fill cap so easy to get that off.
I really do wish I could get the pump shown in this thread. Using a syringe was painful!
However now its done it feels amazing! So slick and satisfying to use. As others have said the noise from the box is gone altogether.
All round very happy I did this
Trans, Diff oil and LSD additive ordered!
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28 Posts
Thanks muchly for the guide, just done the wifes at 5000 new fangled kilometres.
A FYI, not sure if it is an abarth thing or a Australian thing but I had two extra plastic skid plates attached to the central brace marked in red on the attachment... 7x10mm bolts (circle green) and a stupid plastic trim fastener(pink)
Still only took a couple of hours and that was mostly having a cup of tea while the oil drained out.
Will say that even up on stands there is less space under these to work than say in them to drive as my elbow can attest to!
The car drives much nicer now although it does seem to be showing a higher fuel use... Well I had to test all the gears once it was warmed up didn't I
A FYI, not sure if it is an abarth thing or a Australian thing but I had two extra plastic skid plates attached to the central brace marked in red on the attachment... 7x10mm bolts (circle green) and a stupid plastic trim fastener(pink)
Still only took a couple of hours and that was mostly having a cup of tea while the oil drained out.
Will say that even up on stands there is less space under these to work than say in them to drive as my elbow can attest to!
The car drives much nicer now although it does seem to be showing a higher fuel use... Well I had to test all the gears once it was warmed up didn't I
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A quick note regarding fluid options that I updated in the initial post. I've learned more regarding Synchromesh fluids (I listed AMSOIL Synchromesh as an option) and discovered the EP additive concentration might be lower than 75W-90 GL-4 transmission fluids. I had been told before that they were both roughly GL-4 rated but I've been getting some conflicting information lately (even read white papers that stated as such). As a result, I've updated the post to reflect that until I get more clarification.
Since AMSOIL doesn't make any official recommendations for this specific car (although they recommend the 75W-90 GL-4 MTF in the NC Miata transmission, which is the same), I'm leaving it up to you guys to decide which would be best for your cars. I can only make official recomemndations where AMSOIL also recommends that fluid or share the experiences others had with their cars. So far, those who are using Synchromesh fluids in this transmission have been very happy with the results.
I used AMSOIL Synchromesh even when tuned and driving my car quite hard in the Cruze, which is a significantly heavier vehicle, and all of the oil analysis reports came back great, but I wasn't dropping the clutch at 5K RPM and racing that car either. My personal opinion is that Synchromesh would be fine for normal use but any frequent racing should probably use the 75W-90 GL-4. If you bought Synchromesh and were unaware of this or would prefer to use the 75W-90 GL-4 instead, shoot me a PM and I can work something out with you for a fluid replacement. Keep in mind, Synchromesh does still have anti-wear additives and to date, I haven't heard of a single manual transmission failure with any synchromesh fluid.
https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1231182&page=1
Since AMSOIL doesn't make any official recommendations for this specific car (although they recommend the 75W-90 GL-4 MTF in the NC Miata transmission, which is the same), I'm leaving it up to you guys to decide which would be best for your cars. I can only make official recomemndations where AMSOIL also recommends that fluid or share the experiences others had with their cars. So far, those who are using Synchromesh fluids in this transmission have been very happy with the results.
I used AMSOIL Synchromesh even when tuned and driving my car quite hard in the Cruze, which is a significantly heavier vehicle, and all of the oil analysis reports came back great, but I wasn't dropping the clutch at 5K RPM and racing that car either. My personal opinion is that Synchromesh would be fine for normal use but any frequent racing should probably use the 75W-90 GL-4. If you bought Synchromesh and were unaware of this or would prefer to use the 75W-90 GL-4 instead, shoot me a PM and I can work something out with you for a fluid replacement. Keep in mind, Synchromesh does still have anti-wear additives and to date, I haven't heard of a single manual transmission failure with any synchromesh fluid.
Here's a bit of worthwhile reading on manual transmission fluids:
https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1231182&page=1
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Update on my previous post. Synchromesh fluids do have extreme pressure additives. I should have figured, since they're recommended in so many truck NV transmissions where extreme pressure is the norm. They simply don't have high levels of sulfur, which is one of the requirements for GL-4 and GL-5 ratings, and why they don't carry the GL-4 rating on the bottle.
That's not to say they can't handle shock loads, aggressive driving, and extreme temperatures.
It's also worth noting that higher GL ratings are typically added to manual transmission fluids when the OEM fluid is particularly thin. On thicker fluids, the film strength takes the place of some of those EP additives.
IMO you'd be fine with spirited driving and your occasional auto-x event, but if you were road racing frequently or changing tires more often than socks, you should probably look at the 75W-90 GL-4 instead.
That's not to say they can't handle shock loads, aggressive driving, and extreme temperatures.
It's also worth noting that higher GL ratings are typically added to manual transmission fluids when the OEM fluid is particularly thin. On thicker fluids, the film strength takes the place of some of those EP additives.
IMO you'd be fine with spirited driving and your occasional auto-x event, but if you were road racing frequently or changing tires more often than socks, you should probably look at the 75W-90 GL-4 instead.
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915 Posts
Just changed over to Amsoil 75W-90 from Synchromesh. The old Synchromesh fluid has some swirls on top and sparkly deposits at the bottom, and the magnetic drain plug has enough shavings attached to coat just the tip. The biggest piece of metal I found in the fluid is about 0.5 mm. Not sure if this is considered bad, I've done maybe 3 track days with the Synchromesh. It did do a pretty good job keeping shifts smooth throughout the cold winter we had. I don't plan on winter driving my 124 anymore, so will go for something more geared towards high performance use.
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Pretty normal to have some swirls and some metal on the magnet. No big deal as long as you're not finding large chunks. The occasional pieces that you find are usually from grinding gears or something similar. Oils can't prevent hard parts from breaking like that.
If those pieces at the bottom weren't stuck to the magnet, I wouldn't be worried about it. More than likely just some casting material that came off over time. Transmissions continue to "break in" for longer than people realize.
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Just test drove with the Amsoil 75W90. Synchromesh is slightly smoother and slightly less notchy than 75W90, but the difference is hardly noticeable. Both fluids are way smoother than the OEM fluid. All I'm looking for is suitability for track use so I'm happy with 75W90. I'd still recommend Synchromesh for people who prefer comfort, don't push the car to extreme limits, and occasionally encounter low temperatures.
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I think you'll find them to be pretty much identical once the 75W-90 GL-4 warms up with some abuse. I think your recommendations are spot-on.
It's worth noting, the 75W-90 GL-4 Manual Transmission Fluid is now available in AMSOIL's Easy-Pack packaging, which means you won't need a pump to service this transmission. That's an industry first and a significant cost and time savings in servicing the transmission.
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2,424 Posts
I just changed my manual transmission fluid recently and had a heck of a time even with the pump I bought. I don’t think there is space to get in there with the easy pack. My pump was only pumping half the fluid out of the bottle before it would quit.
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Trust me there's space. I did my buddy's BRZ recently. The whole nozzle flexes. You need like 1" of clearance max to get the nozzle in the hole, probably less. You squeeze the bag from the bottom and it just fills it all in.
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Just checked the tutorial pictures again. You can definitely fit the nozzle of the bag up there and into the fill hole. Just hold it in place and squeeze the bag.
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120 Posts
Hi all, just a simple question. If I collect ( of course) the oil coming out from the drain and measure the quantity on a graduated bottle , is it correct to replace the exact amount that came out with fresh oil? That would be more than exact , right ? I ll be using a syringe .
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Not needed. Just refill until it starts coming out of the fill hole. On relatively level ground, the fill hole doubles up as a level port.
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Hello again . Unfortunately I can t find here in Italy at least any Amsoil fluid ; yes, I could buy it from some uk importer but it would be a quite expensive move . I have tried to look at Bardhal , just as an example or Castrol to mention something easily available but although the designation 75w-90 api GL 4 is avalable there are more than a product that could do te job e.g bardhal t&d 75w90 and MTF 75w90. Not being an expert and trying to avoid disaters, is there any raccomandation input I can get in purchasing available brand in europe for my MT and differential ? Fiat 124 lusso , no lsd . Thanx for any suggestion
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See if you can find this fluid in Italy. It’s very big on the Miata forums. I tried it and it’s great stuff.
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