Tranny and Rear end lubes

Maintenance advice to keep your Spider in shape.
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MSMatt

Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by MSMatt »

After reading all the different posts regarding tranny and rear end lubes I am scratching my head and leaking blood out of my ears. I have a 1979 Spider. What is the best available lube for the tranny and rear end? I don't want to go Europe to pick it up, I just want something that will work. :)

Matt
pope

Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by pope »

LOL, I dont know why your having a hard time, the answers are all over this forum.

Transmission- GL-1 90W non EP gear lube.

Differential- SAE 90W EP gear lube.

Good luck.
MSMatt

Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by MSMatt »

Thanks
These do seem to be the most popular choices but in almost every forum someone offers an alternative with some explanation as to why it is better.
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Tappy
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Your car is a: 124 spider 2000 1979
Location: Belgium ; Centre Of Europe

Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by Tappy »

while talking about it , i'm about ordering zddp plus , can i add that to my tranny oil also , would it make a difference ?
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pope

Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by pope »

Tappy....as long as there are no ingredients in there to make the oil slicker. I dont know if I would add it. I used a 50w motorcycle oil that was GL-1 certified that had a lot of ZDDP in there.

What does the Plus stand for on the bottle.

MSMatt... thats an advanced course that you were reading. I'm giving you the tried and true ingredients.
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Tappy
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Your car is a: 124 spider 2000 1979
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Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by Tappy »

pope wrote:Tappy....as long as there are no ingredients in there to make the oil slicker. I dont know if I would add it. I used a 50w motorcycle oil that was GL-1 certified that had a lot of ZDDP in there.

What does the Plus stand for on the bottle.

MSMatt... thats an advanced course that you were reading. I'm giving you the tried and true ingredients.
well its hard to find oils here in Belgium that contain zddp , the + stands for additive i guess (it adds zddp to your oil)
i've read your post somewhere on the gearboxoil you use thats wy i wondered if i could add it to a good GL1 gear oil i can find

here's the link to zddp+ : http://www.zddplus.com/
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kilrwail
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Your car is a: 1978 Fiat 124 Sport Spider
Location: Perth, Ontario

Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by kilrwail »

Here are three oils with more than 1200 ppm Zinc, which should be available to you.

Brand Weight P ppm Zn ppm API

Castrol GTX 20w50 1157 1422 SM

Rotella 15w40 1278 1555 CI-4

Valvoline Premium Blue 15w40 1314 1838 CI-4

Better to use one of these than an additive.
_____________________________________________________________
Peter Brownhill

1978 Fiat 124 Sport Spider - original owner
1977 Porsche 911S - track car
2022 Ram 4 x 4 - hauler
PCA National Instructor and Motorsport Safety Foundation Level 2 Instructor
pope

Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by pope »

Pete, were talking about tranny oil. The two 15W40s are a little thin for that. I think you are listing these as engine oils.
Last edited by pope on Sun Apr 19, 2009 2:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Tappy
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Your car is a: 124 spider 2000 1979
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Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by Tappy »

kilrwail wrote:Here are three oils with more than 1200 ppm Zinc, which should be available to you.

Brand Weight P ppm Zn ppm API

Castrol GTX 20w50 1157 1422 SM

Rotella 15w40 1278 1555 CI-4

Valvoline Premium Blue 15w40 1314 1838 CI-4

Better to use one of these than an additive.
thx for the efford , castrol only available in 200l barrels , rotella not imported bye shell Belgium valvoline i need to check , mobile delco 1400 is available but cost 6€ l (+-28$ /gallon)

but like pope says i was asking about tranny oil with zddp in it or , if i couldn't find it that i can use zddp plus addidtive in another GL1 graded oil
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manoa matt
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Your car is a: 1978 Fiat 124 Spider 1800
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Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by manoa matt »

Matt,

For the rear differential: Any auto parts store will have the 90W EP gear oil. Even if you can't find straight 90weight 85-90w will do. If you have leaks at the diff cover now would be a good time to take it off and replace the gasket. You can buy a 12" x12" sheet of gasket material at the parts store and trace the cover onto the sheet then cut it out. A light coating of RTV liquid gasket on each side of the gasket will ensure that it does not leak. Just make sure all surfaces are very clean before application. Brake parts cleaner works good, but don't spray it on the diff gears.

For the Tansmission: The specification is 90weight GL-1 NON EP gear oil. This is due to some brass parts in the trans. Modern EP gear oils would eat up the brass. The GL-1 oil is basically mineral oil. Its not so easy to come by, hence the big discussion when it comes to trans oil. There are several places to get it. Vick autosport has it in the Quart bottle, you will need two. IAP also has it, but at twice the price. You can find it locally at NAPA or at a tractor supply store, but it will only come in a 5 gallon bucket. and either you or your car will die before you use it all.

Filling the transmission is another story altogether.
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kilrwail
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Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by kilrwail »

pope wrote:Pete, were talking about tranny oil. The two 40W are a little thin for that. I think you are listing these as engine oils.
You're absolutely right. My bad. I think I saw a similar comment in another thread about motor oils, but I was probably just imagining it. Sorry for the confusion.
_____________________________________________________________
Peter Brownhill

1978 Fiat 124 Sport Spider - original owner
1977 Porsche 911S - track car
2022 Ram 4 x 4 - hauler
PCA National Instructor and Motorsport Safety Foundation Level 2 Instructor
tgulden

Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by tgulden »

manoa matt wrote:Filling the transmission is another story altogether.
Yeah, what is the story on that? I am pondering a tranny oil change on my 81 Spider 2000 and I can't quite figure how it is that I am going to get oil into the thing -- particularly working in a driveway with a couple of jack stands. Is there a favored method?

Tim
narfire
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Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by narfire »

Hi there. Saw a thread here some time ago where you have a funnel in the engine compartment and run a line from it down the firewall to the tranny. Have a coffee can nearby as the fluid from the line has to go somewhere when the tranny is full. Sounded like a 2 person job, unless a valve of sort is on the end of the line.(I have one when racking wine)
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kilrwail
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Your car is a: 1978 Fiat 124 Sport Spider
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Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by kilrwail »

I just used a $15 push-pull plunger pump with the car on jack stands. The pump has two clear lines, with ball bearing check valves. Takes about 5-6 strokes for a litre of fluid. I made a wire clip for the end of the output line to prevent it from slipping out of the transmission. You could use a similar clip if you're going to try the gravity feed method. I also made a wooden stand with a 3.5" diameter hole in the top to prevent the one litre bottle of oil from falling over when it approaches being empty. This stuff works on all the cars, with no helper required.
_____________________________________________________________
Peter Brownhill

1978 Fiat 124 Sport Spider - original owner
1977 Porsche 911S - track car
2022 Ram 4 x 4 - hauler
PCA National Instructor and Motorsport Safety Foundation Level 2 Instructor
htchevyii
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Re: Tranny and Rear end lubes

Post by htchevyii »

Napa has or can get gl1 in gallons, I ordered one and had it the next day it was 10-11.00.
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