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Oggie Green Cloverleaf
Joined: 06 Mar 2008 Posts: 811 Location: Whitehill
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Posted: Wed Dec 18, 2013 8:33 pm Post subject: Gearbox oil. |
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Hi , can anyone recommend a decent gearbox oil and let me know why you like it, changing mine at the mo and although the old oil was of a decent colour it smelt like an open jar of pickled onions! _________________ PHAT 33 |
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Brit01 Gold Cloverleaf
Joined: 24 May 2010 Posts: 665
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Posted: Sat Jan 18, 2014 4:42 am Post subject: |
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I have the same question.
Had motul hp moly 80w90 in and after two years it feels terrible.
Seen some motul 75w90 synthetic locally.
Worth trying? _________________ S2 33 1988 1.7 QV
Dellorto DRLA40 (32mm venturi) |
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ZeNiTh-PbArM Alfa 33
Joined: 14 Mar 2003 Posts: 388 Location: Paris, France
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Posted: Tue Jan 28, 2014 12:26 pm Post subject: |
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Hi,
I did use Castrol 75W90 for a time.
Now I put Total 80W90 and the gear lever is smoother to operate in cold condition (however strange this may seem!). Hot behavior is the same.
I flush every 40 000 kms.
Don't worry about the smell - it's common to all gearbox oils!
Hope you have access from underneath the car as it is kind of difficult from the above (I ended up hooking an extension hose to the filler plug to avoid operating the syringe from under and getting soaked in oil in the process)
regards,
zp |
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JeremyC Gold Cloverleaf
Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 583 Location: Petersfield, Hampshire
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Posted: Wed Jan 29, 2014 11:32 am Post subject: |
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Redline MT90 without a doubt.
Previously used in other cars to great effect and I changed the 33 to it about a year ago and noticed a significant improvement in change quality particularly when cold.
It's not cheap though, it will cost you about £50 to do the Alfa and I'm not aware of any stockists locally so it will have to be ordered, there are usually ebay sellers with decent pricing. _________________ '93 Black 33 1.7 16v |
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Oggie Green Cloverleaf
Joined: 06 Mar 2008 Posts: 811 Location: Whitehill
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Posted: Wed Jan 29, 2014 9:47 pm Post subject: |
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I Used Valvoline Durablend as recommended by AHM, I forgot to mention that I have a Quaife Lsd diff so really wanted to uses an oil that may compromise its performance.
The smell of the old oil was really pugnant, I have changed gearbox oil at least 20 times on various cars but hadn't smelled anything that strong. It was a really acidic smell (like too much vinegar on your chips). _________________ PHAT 33 |
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JeremyC Gold Cloverleaf
Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 583 Location: Petersfield, Hampshire
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Posted: Wed Jan 29, 2014 10:36 pm Post subject: |
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In light of the diff I'd be picking up the phone and talking to Quaife about i)what oil they recommend ii)what that smell might be. _________________ '93 Black 33 1.7 16v |
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eagle3 Alfa 33
Joined: 11 Nov 2007 Posts: 402 Location: France
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Posted: Thu Jan 30, 2014 8:47 am Post subject: |
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You need a specific grade for an lsd. It's not 80/90 I don't think. _________________ Alfa33 QO 1984
Alfa33 1.3i.e. 1994 |
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ZeNiTh-PbArM Alfa 33
Joined: 14 Mar 2003 Posts: 388 Location: Paris, France
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Posted: Thu Jan 30, 2014 1:51 pm Post subject: |
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Hi,
If the smell was way more acrid than usual and you have a LSD the root cause is probably the friction plates of the LSD have burnt and debris have contaminated the oil.
Same thing happens in automatic gearboxes when the friction plates begin to slip and burn. The smell is foul and usually referred to as almond / grilled almond / bitter almond smell.
You might want to check the wear on the plates and try to have the gearbox oil run cooler. The easiest thing to do is to have a temperature sensor installed on the gearbox and you might get surprised at the values you read.
Regards,
zp |
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Oggie Green Cloverleaf
Joined: 06 Mar 2008 Posts: 811 Location: Whitehill
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Posted: Thu Jan 30, 2014 9:02 pm Post subject: |
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Interesting point Zenith, where would be the best place to tap into the gearbox casing?. _________________ PHAT 33 |
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ZeNiTh-PbArM Alfa 33
Joined: 14 Mar 2003 Posts: 388 Location: Paris, France
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Posted: Fri Jan 31, 2014 12:54 pm Post subject: |
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Hi,
The easiest is to tap through the fill plug - you don't want machining chips to get inside the gearbox. The oil level being lower than the plug, there is an offset between the measurement and the actual temperature.
I've been tempted to use the drain plug instead but that would leave the sensor exposed to road bumps.
I ended up removing the rear gearbox casing (can be done with the gearbox in the car, although it is quite tedious) and tapping through the casing below the oil level.
Regards,
zp |
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Bobkelso Alfa Sprint
Joined: 09 Aug 2011 Posts: 190 Location: Milan - Italy
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Posted: Fri Jan 31, 2014 7:43 pm Post subject: |
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Hi, Zenith,
At next maintenance stop I'd like remove the rear gearbox casing
to replace the rubber o-ring/rubber seal around the command axe
(the axe connected to the gear lever) as it is leaking oil a bit.
It is possible remove the rear gearbox casing
without remove the command axe that is passing through him?
I mean, can I remove only the head of the command axe
(where there is the rubber "cotton shape" bush),
leaving the axe in place, and pull out the rear gearbox casing? _________________ Alfa 33 |
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ZeNiTh-PbArM Alfa 33
Joined: 14 Mar 2003 Posts: 388 Location: Paris, France
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Posted: Sat Feb 01, 2014 2:04 pm Post subject: |
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Hi,
Yes you can remove the gearbox rear casing in the car like you describe.
It is even possible to replace the lip seal in place on the car with the use of the following tools, one for extracting the seal an the other for pressing the new one in place with a hammer :
regards,
zp |
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Bobkelso Alfa Sprint
Joined: 09 Aug 2011 Posts: 190 Location: Milan - Italy
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Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2014 1:25 am Post subject: |
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Thanks, clarifying explanation |
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Brit01 Gold Cloverleaf
Joined: 24 May 2010 Posts: 665
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Posted: Fri Feb 07, 2014 11:22 pm Post subject: |
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Found four options
Valvoline synpower 75w90 -$$$$
Motul 300 75w90 - $$$$$
Motul 75w80 semi. Half the price!
Opinions?
Or I may be able to get Mobil 1 75w90 at trade price from a friend here. _________________ S2 33 1988 1.7 QV
Dellorto DRLA40 (32mm venturi) |
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Brit01 Gold Cloverleaf
Joined: 24 May 2010 Posts: 665
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Posted: Tue Feb 11, 2014 5:15 am Post subject: |
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Really stuck for advice here.
How would the thin 75w80 motul semi work in my box? Too thin when hot?
The fully synthetic is darn expensive. About 20 quid a litre! !
Semi half the price _________________ S2 33 1988 1.7 QV
Dellorto DRLA40 (32mm venturi) |
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ZeNiTh-PbArM Alfa 33
Joined: 14 Mar 2003 Posts: 388 Location: Paris, France
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Posted: Tue Feb 11, 2014 11:55 am Post subject: |
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Hi,
Unless I'm mistaken the manufacturer recommended grade is 80W90.
I'm afraid 75W80 might be too thin ; it is quite uncommon for a drive axle with hypoid gear of this generation to accept 75W80 oil.
I would look for 80W90 which can be had on the cheap (total oil can be had here at 8.3€ for 2 ltrs) or 75W90. I have tested a number of different grades and have to admit that the feeling of the gearstick is better with 80W90!
regards,
zp |
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eagle3 Alfa 33
Joined: 11 Nov 2007 Posts: 402 Location: France
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Posted: Tue Feb 11, 2014 1:00 pm Post subject: |
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ZeNiTh-PbArM wrote: |
Hi,
Unless I'm mistaken the manufacturer recommended grade is 80W90.
I'm afraid 75W80 might be too thin ; it is quite uncommon for a drive axle with hypoid gear of this generation to accept 75W80 oil.
I would look for 80W90 which can be had on the cheap (total oil can be had here at 8.3€ for 2 ltrs) or 75W90. I have tested a number of different grades and have to admit that the feeling of the gearstick is better with 80W90!
regards,
zp |
I would agree with that. Once the oil's good and hot. It's a bit sticky on cold mornings. _________________ Alfa33 QO 1984
Alfa33 1.3i.e. 1994 |
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Brit01 Gold Cloverleaf
Joined: 24 May 2010 Posts: 665
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Posted: Tue Feb 11, 2014 1:51 pm Post subject: |
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ZeNiTh-PbArM wrote: |
Hi,
Unless I'm mistaken the manufacturer recommended grade is 80W90.
I'm afraid 75W80 might be too thin ; it is quite uncommon for a drive axle with hypoid gear of this generation to accept 75W80 oil.
I would look for 80W90 which can be had on the cheap (total oil can be had here at 8.3€ for 2 ltrs) or 75W90. I have tested a number of different grades and have to admit that the feeling of the gearstick is better with 80W90!
regards,
zp |
The manual in the oil dealer stated 75w90. Strange.
My gear changes are actually feeling worse when hot! MotulGear 80w90 Mineral with Moly.
Could it be that the oil has sheared? Strange after only 2 years.
Total is sold here I believe. _________________ S2 33 1988 1.7 QV
Dellorto DRLA40 (32mm venturi) |
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