good idea or bad? i wanna give it a good flush before i put good oil in there.
i rebuilt my tranny yesterday, all new bearings and seals, its not in the car yet, i still gotta put the back case on. i just filled it with redline mt-90 when i done the sr swap and never even drove the car n had to drain it, i had it running in the garage tho.
when i put the tranny back in the car i want to flush it out in case there is any metal shavings or any debree in there from the rebuild. problem is i cant get gl-4 oil ANYWHERE in my area, by the time i order and get it shipped its over $60 a pop.
id hate to spend that on oil and just drain it out.
quaker state synchromesh? I used it when I couldn’t get mt-90 easily, and seemed to work just great.
and fyi, goodluck finding a definitive answer if you’re wondering if synchromesh is gl-4 or gl-5, I searched for awhile and couldn’t find a definitive answer, but saw enough positive reviews of synchromesh in sr/ka trannys
I remember reading a few threads about the best engine and transmission oil for flat tappet cams and a similar issue is that newer oils have removed certain chemicals (i think zinc and lead) in a bid to make them more environmentally friendly but has effected mechanical protection. I do not recommend using GL-5 oil as a substitute to API GL-4, Even though the producers claim on the bottle it can be used for both, it shouldn’t be as its technically designed for non synchromesh transmissions and even though it may have buffered sulphur, it can still damage them. This isn’t applicable to all cars with synchros, just ones with yellow metal (zinc, copper / brass).
i will defiantly be using gl-4 for the final oil change. i was going to switch to amsoils gl-4, i use there motor oil in all my cars and bikes, but i cant get that locally either
my friend that was helping me with the tranny mentioned doing a quick flush with a light engine oil like 10w30, i don’t know if that would hurt it, shouldn’t. i’d prob just go through the gears a few times on jack stands and hope the magnetic drain plug would catch anything.
when i googled this, most of the results were ppl using transmission fluid to do an engine flush, so maybe the heavier oil is better for a flush, i dunno.
i also came across a jeep forum, the jeep used gl-4 oil (i think) and when he took it to the dealer they told him to drain that oil and use 10w30 in the tranny from now on.
i went to my local nissan dealer to look for gl-4, and they told me to use gl-5, how its a better new improved oil and it would be better for my trans etc etc, he asked the head mechanic about the synchros, apparently he was there for 35 years and if anyone knew the right answer it was him lol he “Guaranteed” me this gl-5 wouldnt damage my tranny. he had to be full of shit. i told em i’d pass n order the gl-4 to be safe
yeah I know GL-5 make-up will eat our synchros but when I looked on the bottle, it doesn’t specify gl-4 or gl-5 .
When I swapped my tranny in my old s14 (ka), the shop who did it didn’t have any gl-4 so they put in gl-5 and I flushed it and swapped for synchromesh and there was a noticeable difference for me. Synchromesh made my tranny like butter.
I wouldn’t recommend flushing with engine oil. Chances are if it was rebuilt there won’t be any metal shavings or debris to flush out. Also if you’re looking for synthetic GL4 you can buy it at Pennzoil. Thats where I buy mine, about $20/L iirc.
Amsoil 75w90 gl4 just check their website for a local dealer. There are a few in my city so hopefully there’s one close to you. And if it was a quality rebuild, it should have been assembled in a cleanly manner so there shouldn’t be an issue of any debris.
thanks, i checked a few months ago and there was nothing, now someones name comes up, i’ll give him a call tomorrow. do you use amsoil in your tranny?
depends on your definition of a quality rebuild i guess, i did it in my garage, which its defiantly not as clean as a transmission shop, im a welder too so there is grinding dust and metal shavings all over the place, but i cleaned up the best i could before i started.
it was assembled as clean as it possibly could be, not like i just slapped it together. i was actually kind of anal about cleaning. i cleaned everything with brake cleaner and air tons of times during assembly.
a quick fluid change is mostly for piece of mind, this was my first transmission rebuild, i’d to see how it looks and make sure there no round metal balls rolling around in there. i really don’t want to pay $140 for an oil change, plus the oil change i just wasted, so $200 for an oil change makes me wanna throw up.
if i can get that amsoil tomorrow i’ll use that and go from there.