getrag dogleg gearbox - what type of oil

[Wim]

Hello all, I looked up what type of oil must be used in a dogleg gearbox (type number starts with 262). However the answers are not clear to me. Some speak of ATF, others of 75W80 (or 90) (+-same as dif). Can someone specify the correct oil type please? Costly repair if wrong one will be used ;-)
Gratefully
Wim

 

[deQuincey]

Hello all, I looked up what type of oil must be used in a dogleg gearbox (type number starts with 262). However the answers are not clear to me. Some speak of ATF, others of 75W80 (or 90) (+-same as dif). Can someone specify the correct oil type please? Costly repair if wrong one will be used ;-)
Gratefully
Wim

i dont understand what is a dogleg, but for the standard gearbox in the e9, bmw says that you should use oil gearbox 80

regards

 

[Wim]

Hi, It is not the standard gearbox (not 4-speed). This is the 5-speed with 1:1 in 5th. My initial thought was SAE80 (as for most common gearboxes for oldtimers). I tried to do some research on it but haven't found much. Either SAE80 (as you suggest) or ATF.
Appreciated your reply
Wim

 

[MMercury]

Hi, It is not the standard gearbox (not 4-speed). This is the 5-speed with 1:1 in 5th. My initial thought was SAE80 (as for most common gearboxes for oldtimers). I tried to do some research on it but haven't found much. Either SAE80 (as you suggest) or ATF.
Appreciated your reply
Wim

http://www.e9coupe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4518

http://www.e9coupe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5750

Perhaps your most important concern is "GL4." A few manufacturers, e.g. Royal Purple, state that their (Sychromax) gear oil is formulated not to harm "soft metals," so presumably this is usable. " It provides excellent corrosion and oxidation protection without affecting the soft metals commonly found in manual transmission synchronizers." http://www.royalpurple.com/manual-transmission-fluid.html So far as I am aware, ATF does not contain any ingredients that will damage brass/bronze synchronizers and it has been successfully used by manufacturers in some manual transmissions. Whether you should use it in your application could be the subject of endless debate.

:wink:

 

[Wim]

Dear MMercury, Thanks for this excellent post. It provides all the answers to my questions. Indeed my main concern is the corrosive property of GL-5 or higher. Therefore GL-4 will be the choice. One last question and I know it might be farfetched, but does the "thick" SAE80 cause more wear on synchromesh rings (again read it somewhere but I am sceptic about it). Please bear in mind it is for a dogleg tranny. Maybe it was back in the days a bit weekly engineered. Greets Wim

 

[MMercury]

Dear MMercury, Thanks for this excellent post. It provides all the answers to my questions. Indeed my main concern is the corrosive property of GL-5 or higher. Therefore GL-4 will be the choice. One last question and I know it might be farfetched, but does the "thick" SAE80 cause more wear on synchromesh rings (again read it somewhere but I am sceptic about it). Please bear in mind it is for a dogleg tranny. Maybe it was back in the days a bit weekly engineered. Greets Wim

I have had to repair a lot of my own costly mistakes, but I am no expert when it comes to synchro wear or longevity. Common sense dictates that your driving style has as much to do with synchronizer wear as much as maintenance. That being said, I have had a few transmissions that never had any noticeable issues despite years of abuse, while others hinted at problems from the day they left the showroom floor.

Your skepticism may be misapplied though if you are merely concerned with the "weight" or viscosity index of gear oil versus other oils, namely motor oil. "80 Weight" viscosity gear lube is the equivalent of "30 weight" motor oil. This is why BMW's owner's manual even suggests using 30 wt. motor oil as a substitute "in an emergency." Frankly, if you are very concerned, I would go with the best name brand synthetic you can find. Whether that is Amsoil or Redline or countless other brands, depends upon who you ask and how much you are willing to spend. (I tend to use whatever brand name products are available and change fluids a bit more often than recommended. It tends to delay the inevitable) :wink:

Read on:
http://www.bgprod.com/blendr/viscosity.html

http://www.synlube.com/viscosit.htm

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/motor-oil-101/

 

[deQuincey]

Hi, It is not the standard gearbox (not 4-speed). This is the 5-speed with 1:1 in 5th. My initial thought was SAE80 (as for most common gearboxes for oldtimers). I tried to do some research on it but haven't found much. Either SAE80 (as you suggest) or ATF.
Appreciated your reply
Wim

excellent castrol classic productos, SEA80 included, can be find in promapac website
fantastic products and good service !

 

[vraned]

Also check out this thread. http://e9coupe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1422&referrerid=39

 

[decampos]

.... Please bear in mind it is for a dogleg tranny

That sounds like a UK thing to say (are you in the UK?). I've got the same 5 speed tranny as you and I've just changed its oil. If it's any use to you I was recommended Castrol Syntrans Multivehicle 75W-90 API GL-4 (1.6 litres).

 

[Tierfreund]

The 4 speed 262 getrag that is stock in most E9 (apart from the very early ones with the ZF 4 speed), the dogleg 265 and the OD 262/5 265 are all very similar/related. Basically you can run the same oil that was recommended in the manual for the 4speed in the 5 speed
You´ll just need slightly more. The 4speed takes about 1.4 Liters, the 5 speed about 1.8

Wether or not synthetics are a good idea in the M30 engine, the Getrag box or even the diff is a quasi-relgious matter. You´ll get as many opinions as there are owners.

:mrgreen:

 

[Wim]

As expected I am reading the info I was hope to receive. The expert info and user experience is excellent. Great forum! I am now able to replace the oil with good confident that the good and right stuff will be used. Will consider to mix it or not, later on.
Thanks to all for sharing their knowledge.

 

[gkb]

Redline works

I have used Redline MTL (which is 70W80) in all of my BMW transmissions, including my e9 which has the 262 CR 5 sp Getrag dogleg tranny (great transmission). I use Redline 75W90 in the diffs.