Swepco vs. Redline gear fluid
04-22-2004, 06:08 AM
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Swepco vs. Redline gear fluid
Well, now and then on these boards I've seen some debates over whether Swepco or Redline or Mobil is the best gear fluid for the transaxle cars, so I'd just like to add another data point:
Just last weekend I replaced the Swepco (blue) fluid in my transmission (1986 951, no LSD) with Redline MT-90. I am very happy with the change so far.
With the Swepco, I had some difficulty changing gears, mostly the 1-2 shift and also the shift into reverse felt somewhat hard and notchy when it was a bit colder outside. And when I say cold, I mean NorCal cold, i.e. 60 degrees.
With the Redline, this is much improved. Shifting is smoother. There is less resistance when going 1-2 or into reverse. The downside of this, though, is that there is now a bit of gear chatter now and then, which definitely was not present with the Swepco. I guess this is pretty much what is to be expected; the Swepco is thicker and prevents chatter, but apparently doesn't lube the syncros as nicely as the Redline oil.
Again, this is just my personal experience; as always, YMMV!
Gary.
Just last weekend I replaced the Swepco (blue) fluid in my transmission (1986 951, no LSD) with Redline MT-90. I am very happy with the change so far.
With the Swepco, I had some difficulty changing gears, mostly the 1-2 shift and also the shift into reverse felt somewhat hard and notchy when it was a bit colder outside. And when I say cold, I mean NorCal cold, i.e. 60 degrees.
With the Redline, this is much improved. Shifting is smoother. There is less resistance when going 1-2 or into reverse. The downside of this, though, is that there is now a bit of gear chatter now and then, which definitely was not present with the Swepco. I guess this is pretty much what is to be expected; the Swepco is thicker and prevents chatter, but apparently doesn't lube the syncros as nicely as the Redline oil.
Again, this is just my personal experience; as always, YMMV!
Gary.
04-22-2004, 04:58 PM
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I've got a Quaife'd 89' tranny at home that I'll install when I get home in a few weeks, I'll be running Redline's Shockproof in that like all my trannies.
I did e-mail Quaife asking their recommendation, and they indicated to use the same fluid specified for the tranny, meaning the tranny gear's fluid specs are much more crucial than their diff's fluid specs. That'd be something like MT90 in most cases.
Sam
I did e-mail Quaife asking their recommendation, and they indicated to use the same fluid specified for the tranny, meaning the tranny gear's fluid specs are much more crucial than their diff's fluid specs. That'd be something like MT90 in most cases.
Sam
04-22-2004, 08:09 PM
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The previous owner had put Redline in. I got the chatter noise. It was most noticable when driving at very slow speeds in first gear but happened in all gears. It would stop when I pushed the clutch in. It did not happen until the car warmed up and I assume that the oil got thinner. I did the opposite. I swapped it for Swepco. I don't notice the chatter much, if at all, now. I'll drive the car tomorrow to work and pay closer attention. I'm not sure what type of Redline was in there. I have not had any shifting problems with the Swepco. When do you hear the chatter?
Mark
Mark
