How To Change Tranny Oil And What To Use?

[gudz519]

hey everyone i have a 98 i recently did a motor swap and had to take out the axles i want to drain the rest of the gear oil and replace does anyone have a decent "how to" to do this and what to use my local mitsubishi does not have my tranny oil any help will be good thanks.

 

[LiquidX]

Well to drain it, it's just like any other transmission. Open the drain plug on the bottom side to start draining it and locate the fill plug on the side of the tranny. When it is all empty start filling the tranny with the appropriate gear oil which you can find at an auto store.

It'll take some time to fill as you'll most likely need a funnel and long hose. Gear oil is like molassas and will flow better if warmed up (theoretically). On the 4g63 anyway, you fill the tranny until the gear oil starts flowing out of the fill plug and starts to slow down.

 

[gudz519]

ok thanks should the car be jacked up or level?

 

[LiquidX]

As level as possible.

 

[avengerdude27]

i use amsoil syncromesh in mine

 

[gudz519]

yeah the problem is i can not find anything anywhere i went to autozone and they didnt even have anything

 

[VelocitàPaola]

I deleted some posts because there was some serious misinformation in them. Please remember rule #3 before posting: "Don't try to help if you don't know the answer - bad advice is often worse than no advice."

The 4G63 is not the same as the 420A and regular gear oil will not work in the NV-T350 manual transmission. Pennzoil Synchromesh works (I have it in my tranny), but New Venture Gear, the manufacturers of the NV-T350 only recommend either the Mopar NV-T350 specific fluid or Chrysler ATF+4. If you use anything else, the results aren't guaranteed to be good.

 

[gudz519]

I deleted some posts because there was some serious misinformation in them. Please remember rule #3 before posting: "Don't try to help if you don't know the answer - bad advice is often worse than no advice."

The 4G63 is not the same as the 420A and regular gear oil will not work in the NV-T350 manual transmission. Pennzoil Synchromesh works (I have it in my tranny), but New Venture Gear, the manufacturers of the NV-T350 only recommend either the Mopar NV-T350 specific fluid or Chrysler ATF+4. If you use anything else, the results aren't guaranteed to be good.

thanks alot do you have any clue were i can buy that is it just penzoil synchromesh or is there a certain grade such as 5w-30

 

[VelocitàPaola]

I really don't recommend Synchromesh. You should be able to find ATF+4 in most auto parts stores.

 

[BLINKY619]

the 4g63 is not the same as the 420a and regular gear oil will not work in the nv-t350 manual transmission. .

not trying to say i know more but ive used gear oil in my 96n/t for 6 years and it never gave me any problems... It shifted like butter and was quieter than anything...!!!! No saying the op should try it just making sure people dont underestimate

 

[96_killer]

Ya! i used gear oil in my tranny be for i knew what to used and it shifted like shit! just saying some people get lucky and some don't! so i went to ATF+4 shifted great and now i use P.Synchromesh not much of a deference to me, a bit smoother engagement and better Rev shifting(no clutch)

 

[LiquidX]

Paul, I just dug this up elsewhere on the internet. Is this true to your knowledge?

"I think you're shit out of luck. If you have a 420A motor in your Avenger (BIG DOHC letters on the valve cover) then you have the NV-T350 transmission on it. The NV-T350 uses special paper based synchronizers on 3rd, 4th and 5th gears. Using any other transmission fluid, other than the Mopar NV-T350 fluid, will destroy those synchronizers. Just a word of warning. "

 

[Locke]

Not directed at me, but I'll answer anyways.

It is true, Scott. The paper backed synchronizers are the reason for the special gear lube, to ensure longevity. ATF+4 officially supersedes the special Mopar fluid since they stopped making it, and is officially the only recommended fluid. Other fluids may or may not work, but we tend to err on the side of safety when recommending fluids to people.

I am currently using cheap-o $2.50/qt. store brand ATF+4 in my NV-T350 without issue.

 

[LiquidX]

Thanks for the reply. The other thing they said on that site was if you can't get the Mopar fluid then ATF would work; the fluid in the tranny just needs to be very thin.

So ATF/hydraulic oil is safe for gear based transmissions? I personally would think that it wouldn't give the proper lubrication and gear protection that heavy weight oil would provide.

 

[Locke]

Many manufacturers recommend and use ATF as factory fill in their MTX boxes, BMW and Mazda are good examples that come to mind quick. Gear oils for MTX's aren't particularly special except that they use EP additives. There doesn't seem to be anything preventing ATF fluids from using EP over (or with?) AW additives. EP fluids can be very thin, considering that most cutting fluids are heavy in EP, and these fluids are very watery in comparison to a 80w gear oil, or even to ATF.

I will speculate that modern ATF fluids (since the 80's, when Chrysler started using it in some manuals) meet the EP needs of a manual gearbox.

 

[LiquidX]

Well how about dem apples

Thanks for the information Locke, cleared a lot of stuff up on that.

 

[gudz519]

so basically i can use any brand ATF-4 And should be fine as long as its that how many quarts should i use?

 

[BLINKY619]

Well how about dem apples

.

haha me like....

 

[Locke]

so basically i can use any brand ATF-4 And should be fine as long as its that how many quarts should i use?

Technically, anything that calls itself ATF+4 should meet or exceed Chrysler's specs for ATF+4. There is an official list somewhere on the Internet of brands that are in concert with Chrysler, and will meet Chrysler's specs. Lemme find it.

edit: That was quick. Here is it. http://www.centerforqa.com/licensedatf4brands.html
edit2: Here's some interesting (to me?) ATF+4 information (doesn't specifically go into MTX use) http://www.allpar.com/mopar/transmissions/fluids.html

 

[MunkyX69]

I bought the castroll full synthetic ATF+4 at advanced, and my trany never shifted better. I got like 4 quarts, but used most of it to run through the trany to get the old junk out. If you go to any auto parts store they can look how much you'll need to fill it. I think it's around 2qts +/- .5 quart.

 

[Locke]

2.1 quarts for NV-T350.

I pull the reverse switch and fill plug, and pour into the reverse switch hole (since it's on top and easier to fill from, IMO) until it comes out the fill plug.


Useless story:
Last time I filled it was after I had the case out and split. After getting the tranny in and hooked up, I began filling it and quickly heard the sound of fluid pouring onto the ground. In my haste, I had forgotten to reinstall the axles Thankfully I'm a cheap bastard, so aside from the mess it didn't bother me. I installed the axles and went to the parts store to buy some more generic fluid. Wasted probably a quart or so.

 

[gudz519]

thanks a lot locke so basically i can use Pennzoil,Valvoline,etc from any auto parts store if it is atf and the best way is to try to pour it in the neutral safety switch hole until it comes out of the fill plug on the drivers side correct?

 

[NeMiZiS]

I got my Mopar specific fluid at the dealership.

 

[gudz519]

yeah my local dealer didnt have it so im going to try the local auto parts store atf4 fluid from what i hear it should be compatible

 

[Silver99OZ]

I got mine from the local Dodge dealer. NV-T350 manual transaxle lubricant part # 04874465. Even if they don't have it in stock at your dealership they should be able to have some shipped over from other dealers in the area. They only had two in stock when I went to get mine, so they overnighted the third from another dealer.