Quote:
Originally Posted by jlc45
The level for the oil/fluid in a manual trans is not that critical so long as it's close. This is filed under "hard to believe" but i'll recount the story anyway;
when I was working as a transmission mechanic in a former life (in the 80's) we had a Toyota come in making noise from the trans. We took it out and checked it. It was bone dry and had some metal residue in it but everything looked physically OK. We rinsed it out, filled it with fresh oil and reinstalled it. It was fine. Nothing wrong with it! Amazing. But I also owned a Mazda pickup and it went through two sets of bearings in 300,000 km. I am skeptical about the use of ATF in a standard trans. I think motorcycle motor oil might make more sense, since in a MC the same oil lubes the engine and the trans and usually the clutch as well. Comments? I am still deciding what to use in my 135i. The oil in it now is no good in cold temperatures.
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I wasn't saying to use any ATF oil in your manual transmission... but to use Redline Oil's ATF-D4 as they have been recommending this fluid for BMW manual transmissions for years and years(like way back from my e36 days).
I just doubled checked Redline's website and they are still recommending:
for a
N54, 135i they recommend:
ATF-D4 fluid for the 6 speed manual transmission and
75W85 GL-5 Gear Oil, for the differential.
for a
N55 135i or iS or a
1M(since they have the SAME manual trans) they recommend:
ATF D6 fluid for the 6 speed manual transmission and
75W140 GL-5 Gear Oil for the differential.
www.redlineoil.com/application.aspx
Some BMW members will use Redline's
MTL 75W80 GL-4 Gear Oil, in the manual transmission. I'm currently running MTL is both my 135i and my e39 540i. It works fine, but when its cold outside(bellow freezing) the trans does take a few miles before it shifts nicely. I think for the next winter I will be switching back to ATF D4.
https://www.redlineoil.com/product.aspx?pid=45&pcid=7
Quote:
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The level for the oil/fluid in a manual trans is not that critical so long as it's close.
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Yep, agreed.
While it's not super critical to have the car level - when refilling the trans and diff fluids... I would certainly encourage a DIY to get the car fairly level. I used a water-level placed on an open door sill to check the angle of the car - up on jackstands.
When a transmission has the wrong amount of fluid in it... when its too low("under filled")... generally the the trans will start to over heat the higher gears. Normally this is 5th/6th gears bc they sit highest up inside the trans case.
When a transmission is over filled... the oil can froth up and puke out of the topside air breather on the trans. Not only does this cause a real mess... but you run the risk of blowing a trans case seal or output shaft seal.
Just get the car up in the air and level as you can... they when re-filling the trans or diff... keep pouring oil into the trans/diff until oil start spilling out. This is why its always better to have MORE fluid than not enough. Plus you have some fluid left over for your next trans/diff service.
Dackel