• Hi Guest!
    If you appreciate British Car Forum and our 25 years of supporting British car enthusiasts with technical and anicdotal information, collected from our thousands of great members, please support us with a low-cost subscription. You can become a supporting member for less than the dues of most car clubs.
    There are some perks with a member upgrade!
    **Upgrade Now**
    (PS: Subscribers don't see this gawd-aweful banner
Tips
Tips

oil in gearbox

Share this page

nicko

nicko

Freshman Member
Country flag
Offline
Hi guys,
just a quick question,
My gearbox started to make a low whining sound which stopped when I put my hand on top of the gear stick.
I believe from reading the forum that it's common in first gear but it is also in the other three gears.
The first thing I did was to check the oil in the gearbox which is a bit low so I've decided to change the oil.
The question is what type of oil do you recommend and how much oil do you put in?
I've read somewhere that not all the oil drains out so you can't put it all in. In the manual it says 7.5 U.S. pints /3.6 litres.
This is with an overdrive fitted , is this correct ?
Thanks for all the help from last time with the manifold problem. I got that one sorted.
Cheers,
Nico.
 
If your xmsn *just* started making this noise, you'd be well advised to investigate what is causing it.

If it's been running low on oil, the damage might be worse than you think. The laygear/layshaft and accompanying bearings are not known for longevity, and if left to deteriorate further, will cause collateral damage.

On the otherhand, a quick teardown, with the intention of replacing the layshaft/bearings and the three (3) synchro rings will not cost that much in parts (and really isn't that difficult to do).

Gearbox problems don't get better on their own, and I'd be surprised is there's any lubricant on the market that will do more than mask the problem. But by all means, get a second opinion :wink:
 
Hello nicko,

If your whining sound disappears when you put your hand on top of the lever then maybe it's something to do with the lever. It would be the easiest to investigate and fix.

As far as how much to put in after draining it there is a dip stick for you to see how much you have put in when re-filling it.

You may not have the same oil available to you over there that we have over here so people will be reluctant to tell you what brand. A 30wt engine oil is a good start.

If your transmission leaks oil then you may not want to put a synthetic oil in because of the cost ending up on the ground.

Do you have a workshop manual?. It will help you with most things except personal experiences and new ideas.

Best regards,

bundyrum.
 
Nicko.

Before you go mad and strip things down.

How long have you had the car and since the car has been yours, did the gear box always make a noise or has it just started.

How low was the oil level in the gear box, when measured on the dip stick - there is a range, if you were off the stick then you may have problems begining to appear - could be bearings - could be due to gears meshing.

Top up oil - The good book illustrates a 20/50 engine oil or a 30. Basically what you put in the engine also will do for the gear box within reason.

Bob
 
Thanks for all the advice.
I have drained off the oil in the gearbox today and there is a good two litres in it, so it wasn't too low.
I have had the cars two years now and have topped the gearbox oil up but not changed it . There's always been a slight noise in first gear and the whirring noise isn't too loud as when the engine's running you can hardly hear it.
I am going to try putting some new oil in and if that doesn't do it I'll check the gear lever before taking further action.
Thanks Bob for the advice on oil, I will look for that now.
Cheers,
Nico
 
Nico

I have had my car for 8 years and there has always been a noise in first, I tried putting some fancy additive into the oil that was supposed to hold the oil together, then realized that the overdrive may be affected by it. At the end of the day there was no difference to the noise or the gear box or gear changing and no harm to the O/D. Since then I have taken the gear box out to fit a rear oil seal to the crank and change the clutch, forgot what I was doing and up ended the gear box and assumed that I had disturbed the sludge in it, ended up washing it out several times with diesel ( gas oil?) got a load of very fine iron filings out of it, cleaned out the magnetic rings behind the big brass nut at the bottom, washed it out again, put it back into the car refilled the oil and it is still going strong, still got the noise in first and a hum in the other gears but what the heck.

The thing is, if you are not racing or rallying, the gear box is a strong unit and will go on forever - ish, if you re-build the engine then it may put pressure on the gear box if driven hard. Save your dollars and when you are in a comfortable position, time and money wise, and if you are still disturbed by the noise- spend your bucks.

Bob
 
I think you are right Bob.
I think I'll just refill it with oil and see how it goes. The noise doesn't bother me it's just how do you know when the gearbox is about to fall apart ?! I'm pretty technically minded and have worked on the car to an extent but I think stripping down the gearbox is out of my league.
AH spares have a MAGNETIC WASHER-drain plug , what do you think of putting one of these on the overdrive, that might catch any loose filings ?
While I'm under the car do you think it's a good idea to change the oil in the rear axle or should I leave well alone?
If so I have some 80w/90 hypoid oil. Is that the right stuff?
Thanks for all the advice ,much appreciated.
Cheers,
Nico.
 
AFAIK, all the O/D drain plugs had at least one of the magnetic washers--are you saying yours doesn't? Can't hurt to put one or two in, as long as they don't interfere with the screen.

Differential/axle oil will last a long time--50K miles or more--but, if you don't know what's in there or how long it's been in there I'd change it. What you'll take out will probably be dark, but shouldn't have much if anything solid in it. 80W/90 hypoid gear oil will work fine.

BTW, my BJ8's transmission makes a whirring noise in all gears (especially first). I like the sound.
 
Hypoid oil is really not advisable for the OD but if you insist you must make sure that it is GL-4 and not GL-5. GL-5 hypoid oil is not compatible with brass. SAE 30W Non-Detergent oil is best for the transmission with OD. Others on the forum will recommend synthetic oils. Your call… Using hypoid oil will result in very high oil pressure produced by the OD pump. The OD pump and relief valve is not designed for hypoid oils. I guess if you have an OD with excessive part wear maybe the hypoid oil would make the OD work. I don’t believe in putting a “band aid” on the problem however.

Also I don’t like the smell of hypoid oils either…
 
big6 said:
Hypoid oil is really not advisable for the OD but if you insist you must make sure that it is GL-4 and not GL-5. GL-5 hypoid oil is not compatible with brass. SAE 30W Non-Detergent oil is best for the transmission with OD. Others on the forum will recommend synthetic oils. Your call… Using hypoid oil will result in very high oil pressure produced by the OD pump. The OD pump and relief valve is not designed for hypoid oils. I guess if you have an OD with excessive part wear maybe the hypoid oil would make the OD work. I don’t believe in putting a “band aid” on the problem however.

Also I don’t like the smell of hypoid oils either…
Click to expand...


I believe nicko was asking about using hypoid oil in the axle, not the O/D. At least that's how I read it.
 
Cheers Bob,
I think I will change the oil in the axle while I'm under there.
You're right I was talking about the oil for the axle not the overdrive.
And you're right about the magnets they are already in there but no nylon washer, I will have to see if I can get one of those now.
Thanks again,
Nico.
 
Back
Top