C59 Manual Vibes. What grade of Gear Oil do you use?
Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2016 6:34 pm
So just before the winter, last November to be exact, I decided to drain my gearbox fluid on my '10 Vibe 1.8l and refill with fresh fluid since the OEM fluid has been there since new. In the Owners manual it says to use the following...
GM Goodwrench® Synthetic Manual Transmission Fluid (GM Part No. U.S. 12346190, in Canada 10953477 — 1 quart) or SAE 75W-90 GL-5 gear oil.
So I went with CAD part #10953477 (At an outrageous $35/quart) which is a 75W-85 GL-4 spec fluid. At first, I didn't notice much difference but a few days later as it started to get colder the shifting was more stiff and difficult than before with the factory fluid. I could feel the synchro's grabbing in 1-2 and 2-3 shifts, it was butter smooth before and was never felt before. Through the winter on really cold mornings (-15c to -25c) the gear shift would barely move and a longer warmup was required before I could take off, and even then you could feel the notchy gear changes. It gets better as the car warms up after a 15 minute highway drive, still not as smooth as the factory fluid which was butter.
So I just checked a Corolla/Matrix owners manual. Sure enough a straight SAE 75W LV (Low Viscosity) GL-4 (not GL-5 as the GM manual suggests) is recommended. So I went to a Toyota dealer here in Montreal, they do not sell it, they get it in a 'drum' just for the service dept. They can't even guarantee the viscosity, as they tell me it just says MTF on it.
A quick google search gives part numbers 08885-81007 and 08885-81001. Only alternatives I could find was FUCHS 75W FE SintoFluid, Castrol FE 75W and Ravenol 75W. None are sold here
So if anyone wondered what happened to your butter smooth shifts after a fluid change, now you know. Anyone else experience this? What spec fluid is everyone running in your manual gearbox?
GM Goodwrench® Synthetic Manual Transmission Fluid (GM Part No. U.S. 12346190, in Canada 10953477 — 1 quart) or SAE 75W-90 GL-5 gear oil.
So I went with CAD part #10953477 (At an outrageous $35/quart) which is a 75W-85 GL-4 spec fluid. At first, I didn't notice much difference but a few days later as it started to get colder the shifting was more stiff and difficult than before with the factory fluid. I could feel the synchro's grabbing in 1-2 and 2-3 shifts, it was butter smooth before and was never felt before. Through the winter on really cold mornings (-15c to -25c) the gear shift would barely move and a longer warmup was required before I could take off, and even then you could feel the notchy gear changes. It gets better as the car warms up after a 15 minute highway drive, still not as smooth as the factory fluid which was butter.
So I just checked a Corolla/Matrix owners manual. Sure enough a straight SAE 75W LV (Low Viscosity) GL-4 (not GL-5 as the GM manual suggests) is recommended. So I went to a Toyota dealer here in Montreal, they do not sell it, they get it in a 'drum' just for the service dept. They can't even guarantee the viscosity, as they tell me it just says MTF on it.
A quick google search gives part numbers 08885-81007 and 08885-81001. Only alternatives I could find was FUCHS 75W FE SintoFluid, Castrol FE 75W and Ravenol 75W. None are sold here So if anyone wondered what happened to your butter smooth shifts after a fluid change, now you know. Anyone else experience this? What spec fluid is everyone running in your manual gearbox?