Convince me not to use cheap conventional gear oil

I used all Valvoline conventional

$26 75W-90 Synthetic Gear Lube - 1 Quart (Pack of 2)

75W-90 ($6.99/qt) on my T4R (A4 4wd) last year, nothing imploded and no kittens were punted. I'm about to change all the fluids on my new-to-me Taco (5spd 4wd). That's 7.7 quarts of gear oil. At $16.50/qt for Redline, that'd be $132...that's too much for me...$56 is enough!

I've searched around and see that Redline is the magical elixir followed closely by whichever synthetic everyone else likes (Amsoil, Mobile1, etc). Has anyone actually had any ill effects from using the cheap stuff?

Just to add some flames to this, the manual specifically says GL-4 or GL-5 for T-case and tranny and GL-5 for the diffs. I know all about the alleged horrors of GL-5 on brass parts. Has anyone actually had any problems whatsoever using a GL-5 in the tranny per the engineers at Toyota who wrote the manual?

Sorry for

 

Red line is a marketing gimmick. You are better off with mobil 1, 75-90 (85-140 with gears / lockers).

 

Ive used generic parts store brand gl-5 75w90 for $12 a gal on all my vehicles, from a VR6 jetta to my 89 taco and my 05 2.7L. As long as you change it every30K (i like to go 15K on tranny and rear dif.) oil is oil and thats all that matters.

 

If you do burnouts, drifting, or any other situation with a lot of wheelspin, 75W140 can withstand the higher differential temperatures without deteriorating as badly.


Redline MT-90 is said to give improved shift feel when used in the transmission. However, if Valvoline conventional oil feels fine, then stick with it.

Negative. Redline makes better oil than Mobil, but our trucks don't stress the oil enough for the difference to show.

 

I have Kendal in my rear diff. My buddy had a 1st gen and when he went to go buy gear oil from the stealership thats what they gave him. He ended up selling his so he gave me all his gear oil. My front is Mobil 1 though and my tcase will be also.

 

I use synthetics because everything I put it in runs quieter and operates more smoothly and synthetic oils last twice as long as conventional oil before needing to be changed so the price difference is only a few cents since you have to double the cost of your conventional oil to do a fair comparison on what you pay for it.

that said, I cant say you will be able to actually measure a difference in wear patterns over the life of whatever it is you are putting it in or be able to prove it adds life to these parts but the anecdotal evidence of how things work better after its used, strongly suggests that synthetics should greatly extend the life of these parts.

in the end I see little to no cost benefit in using conventional oils so why not use new tech synthetic oils? it doesn't make sense not to.

and if you ever wanted a reason which is the most cost effective and better protection option, just look at new cars, they all have everything synthetic in them and you know damn well they want to use the cheapest crap they can to save money so they wouldn't be using synthetics in all new cars unless there was documented reasons why its better

 

Interesting thoughts from everybody. I've heard several anecdotes of Redline improving shift smoothness, which is the only reason I'd consider it. That being said, I don't think my shifting feels particularly bad for a 235,000 mile transmission that has an unknown mileage on the current fluid.

 

well try a change to synthetic and see the difference in how it shifts and feels, you will not be "blown away" but you will notice it feels much better.

if you don't like it go back to dino oils, a tiny bit of leftover oil type getting mixed in doesn't hurt anything if that's is a concern

 

It's possible, although it's possible the old oil was bad.

I think the only difference you'd notice is if you put a different weight oil into the transmission. In my younger days I put an 80w oil into my Audi transmission when Audi specified 75w. I did it because I couldn't find any 75w gear oil at the time. (pre internet!) I couldn't shift into second gear! Going back to 75w (after finally finding some) fixed the shifting issue.

 

Stick with a

$26 75w-90 Synthetic Gear Lube - 1 Quart (Pack of 2)

75w-90 for the trans. They don't like straight 90w so much. Makes them hard to shift.

 

I would pay the difference in order to use Redline over dino just for the difference in smell. I hate that nasty sulfur smell of conventional gear oil. It's impossible not to get it all over you when changing out the fluids, and it's impossible to get the smell off once the stuff gets on you.

Redline has none of that. All other performance benefits aside, it's worth it to me to buy the good stuff just because it's nicer to work with.

 

Valvoline is good, trustworthy stuff so I wouldn't worry about it. But the Redline will improve the shifting experience in your manual transmission so that may be worth the extra few bucks to do.

 

there will be zero ill effects running Dino over synthetics. Dino oils been used for as long as we've had vehicles and if it was as bad as some on here make it out to be I'd think it woulda disappeared long before now.

 

the same argument can be made for bias ply tires, how many of those do you see being used today?

its not that there is anything at all wrong with dino oils, its just that refined synthetic oils reduce friction and cause less wear on engines and all moving parts so they extend the life or those parts far longer then if they were using dino oil, its really that simple.

there is no right or wrong choice here but synthetics are better for your vehicle because moving parts wear less when using it.

you can even feel the difference in your hand, dip your finger in each and feel how slippery it is, synthetic is much slipperier

 

I don't disagree that synthetic is better. And @verno650, I don't think you're entirely wrong either. I think it's a balance.

Does synthetic provide superior lubricating properties (viscosity ranges/flow rates, longevity, etc)? I sincerely think so, although I've never read scientific articles about it. The pseudo-science seems to back it up.

Does a lot of synthetic's success come from clever marketing and guilting people into not being "bad car owners?" I bet so.

Does synthetic save MPG? All the sorta-evidence I've seen indicates it would...probably not enough for me to justify spending the extra at every oil change.

These are my humble observations, not backed up by science, but not caught up in hype on either side. For the record, when I had an LS2 GTO, it got Mobile1...as indicated on the filler cap. I'm not at all opposed to synthetic, but I'm not all in on throwing money at it for a work/play truck.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lshd7WR-a6I

This gentleman seems to make some logical conclusions.

 

I used the same cheap Valvoline that you used for my front and rear diff as well as the t-case. But I am going to purchase some MT-90 just to see if everyone is full of shit or not when I change the tranny fluid. You'll be fine using the cheapo dino oils in the diffs and t-case (it's what was available when it was manufactured)

 

In the context of gear oils, don't double the interval just because it's synthetic. There are no filters in the diffs, and the additives in the oil still degrade over time. If you want to increase gear oil change interval, you still need to send samples to labs like Blackstone for analysis, as with engine oils.

 

So is this the correct oil for a 5-speed manual on a 2003 2.7L 4x4?
(Red Line (50304) MT-90 75W-90 GL-4 Manual Transmission)

$23 Red Line 50304 MT-90 75W-90 GL-4 Manual Transmission and Transaxle Lubricant (MTL)- 1 Quart

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000CPCBEQ/


Is the transmission a R150F?

 

actually I think he makes a HUGE illogical assumption that since synthetic oil flows better that it will loosen tolerances and make things noisier.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5SngB0mAUQ

synthetic oils properties do make it flow better but they also make it cling to surfaces better and it has been scientifically proven to create more off a buffer layer of oil between bearings and moving parts in your engine. the guy is just clueless in that regard and while the rest is a matter of opinion, I wont comment on his recommendations based on this wrong assumption about what synthetic actually does and how it acts in your engine.

as I said before, at the end of the day there is no wrong answer here, use either oil and you will be fine but this video goes into more detail as to the advantages of synthetic and when it is best to use it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpCpJI9kdlA

for my own preference, if its better to use for hard running engines or when you stress your engine then in my mind I rather have it in there and not need it, then find out I should have it for the conditions I find myself driving in, but its not in there.

added to that the point I made earlier of it lasting twice as long there really isn't much of a difference in the price you are paying for it. weather you spend $30 on a synthetic oil and filter change to go 10k miles or you spend $15 on dino oil and filter change to last 5k miles the price comes out to be the same thing. so if it costs the same why not use the better oil?

and to sum things up nicely here is a good independent test of many brands and types of oil and it found there really isn't much difference in any oil you use as long as you change it in the time it say to change it. http://www.xs11.com/xs11-info/tech-...58-the-surprising-truth-about-motor-oils.html this is good reading if you think your favorite brand is worth paying extra for over the no-name oil.

 

Thoughtful counterpoints, Keaker. I guess what I'm trying to say is, I agree with you in principle, but I will take a different course of execution. I agree that synthetic is superior, but I will continue to change my oil at 7,500 w/ dino per the manual. If it's good enough for factory, it's good enough for me. Your truck will probably thank you for going synthetic. Mine probably won't know what it's missing.

I still think the cost is a real difference. As KenLyns said, I don't assume that you can always double intervals on everything. $56 vs $132 is very significant.