Gearbox oil: Have I done the right thing?

[glenrobbo]

Today I syphoned what I could from my S1 gearbox and I was a little bit surprised to find it was a rather thin red oil, presumably ATF?

I had bought some semi-synthetic 75w90 gearbox oil to refill with, but fearing this would be incompatible with the residual red oil in the gearbox, I filled up with some ATF-Q ( Dexron II type ) fluid.

I'm looking for confirmation that this will be ok, because the search brings up conflicting opinions.

It's a pity Ford never fitted the Type 9 ( N type ) box with a drain plug.

Also my Haynes Granada manual lists the gearbox capacity at 1.9 litres, but I only managed to get a litre in before it started overflowing.

[Alan461]

How much Dextron 2 did you buy?
If you have enough I'd syphon again and refil with more of the same

[glenrobbo]

Hi Alan,
I had about 2 litres left over from changing the fluid in the old Mondeo Auto box, so about a litre left in the container now.

Why do you recommend repeating my actions of today?
To be honest, the old stuff looked pretty bright & clear. I just wondered if it was a special Ford fluid"

Do you use ATF in your S?

[Alan461]

No, it's just if you had 5l it woud reduce contamination of new stuff with old if you hadn't managed to fully evacuate old.
I'd run it a bit and see if you can fit any more in, might have been locked up.
Did you get 2l out in the first place?

[TheAllSeeingPie]

It's called a double flush. Basically what you put in today diluted down what was left and the next fill will have barely any remnants in it.

[v8s4me]

ATF was not suited to my gearbox. OK it's a completely different manufacturer but IMHO manual gear boxes need a specific gearbox oil, not ATF. That said, if it was performing OK with ATF don't fix what aint broke.

[phillpot]

The ATF or 75w/90 "discussion can we found across numerous TVR, Ford, kit car forums. A quick "straw poll" would suggest a fairly even split.

One reason given is that Ford (back in the every sales rep had a Sierra era) were getting a lot of warranty complaints of a "baulky" gearchange, remedy was a change from gear oil to ATF.

I'd suggest sticking with whatever you have had in there for the last few years unless you specifically have an issue with sluggish gear change, crunching etc.

[glenrobbo]

Thanks for your input everyone.

The gearbox has always been good with a nice slick gearchange ( except when I fluff it on the odd occasion! ).
So ATF it is then.

I just wondered if there was a special Ford gear oil that was coloured red.

[BillC99]

I worked for Castrol in the late 80s and there was a common misconception that ATF was used in the gearbox.
Is was in fact a semi synthetic transmission oil called SMX that was red in colour. I seem to remember if you put ATF in the gearbox would become noisy when it got hot.

[v8s4me]

BillC99 said:

... I seem to remember if you put ATF in the gearbox would become noisy when it got hot.

That's what happened on mine & the synchros hated it. Nice and slick from cold but as soon as the 'box got warm it was a real problem.

[XK140]

Mine is a bit obstructive from cold so I assume it's gear oil in it.
I could add molyslip,but IIRC someone said this is not really advisable?
Really?

[shoab]

Syncro hubs/baulk rings use friction to slow down and 'syncronise' gears so that they change smoothly, in effect they use a cone shape to engage before the gear selects. Using friction modifiers like Molyslip affects how they work by reducing the friction and give the effect of worn syncro rings, I wouldn't recommend using them. Far better to use the recommended oil for the application.

Hope this helps...

Graham

[greymrj]

This is from the current Burtonpower website:

Ford Type 9 Gearbox Guide

Ford Type 9 Gearbox

Ford’s first RWD 5 speed box, based on the Type E. Cast iron maincase with alloy tail housing. This gearbox is commonly used for 5 speed conversions on older vehicles. Some later versions were available with integral bellhousings, although they are more commonly found with removable bellhousings. A 4wd version of this box was also available for the early XR4x4 models. 1" x 23 spline input shaft. Fitted in:

Ford Capri 1.6 / 2.0 Feb 1983 on
Ford Capri 2.8 Nov 1982 on
Ford Sierra 1.6 / 1.8 / 2.0 to Dec 1988
Ford Sierra XR4i
Ford Sierra XR4x4 2.8


Oil capacity: 2wd 1.9 litres, 4wd 1.25 litres (plus 0.5 litres in transfer box).
Standard oil grade 75W90 semi-synthetic.

They have a reputation for knowing their stuff!

I will be sticking with Standard oil grade 75W90 semi-synthetic.

Edited by greymrj on Monday 18th May 12:13

[v8s4me]

greymrj said:

.......Oil capacity: 2wd 1.9 litres, 4wd 1.25 litres (plus 0.5 litres in transfer box).
Standard oil grade 75W90 semi-synthetic......

Glen: I have 3 litres of this stuff sitting in the garage taking up space. You're welcome to it if you want it. This made a huge improvement to my 'box and next time round I'm going to try Difflock which the Land Rover boys say is the best oil for the LT77 'box I have in mine.