Hi All, Getting a few jobs done on my car next Friday at a local VW specialist, I was thinking of getting the gearbox oil changed while he's at it. It's a '91 16v with 124k miles one it and it has a crunchy change when cold, not the best when warm either. I also have the ball for the bottom of the gearstick which needs fitting to hopefully cheer up the sloppy change. Is it worth getting the bush set for the selector rods as well? I'm off to Euro & GSF tonight - which oil do I need for the gearbox and what quantity of it? I've heard good & bad stories about Redline MTL, plus don't know if GSF/Euro stock it? Any ideas?!? Cheers Stu PS. I know about the missinglinkz kit but not got time to order it!
Halfords (yes halfords!!) semi synthetic is good. Also VW synthetic is good. You need just under 2 litres.
Yes it is worth getting the bush kit and its easier to fit than the ball, tightened my change up a lot. I just stuck standard EP80 in, worked ok for the first 140,000 mls so why try something else, only 6 for 2 litres as well. Haynes reckons 2 litres to fill so thats what i put in, do you know any different Harry ?
Ok - cheers for the info. 2 litres is is then! I thought you just filled it until it came back out of the filler hole thingy, so no more would fit in? Could be wrong though?!?
Yes thats correct, you remove the plug on the side of the fifth gear housing(looks the same as the drain plug on the bottom of the diff) and fill until it just starts to come out.
According to Haynes (so could be wrong, hoping Harry may have a comment) it takes 2 litres. The later 16v's post 87 you can fill up through the filler until it flows out. The earlier ones need filling up through the speedo cable because the box is at a slight angle (it was originally designed for another application). On later boxes they raised the filler hole by 7mm so you didnt have to do this anymore. If you have the early box you need to add 0.5 litre once its full through the fill hole. I just put 2 L through the speedo cable hole because im not sure which box ive got ! Hope this helps
Hmmm, I've got an early box and a late one in the garage. Both the filler holes seem to be in the same place. I fill mine via the speedo cable as well. The filler hole is harder to get to. BTW, a whole 2l of oil is too much. You may find that oil leaks out of the input shaft seal if you fill it too much (especially on the earlier types without the breather on top). Id like to know more about different filler hole heights as I only know what I've seen.
I will dig the haynes out and quote it, like i say i am only going on what it says and its been wrong before ! How much oil do you reckon then and where did you get that figure from ? Or is that when it starts to pour out the filler ?
"This gearbox was originally designed for an engine/gearbox unit without any inclination. When fitted to these models a 2 degree inclination to the left exists, therefore an accurate check cannot be made with the vehicle on level ground. When checking the oil with the vehicle on level ground unscrew the level plug and if there is a thick flow of oil immediately refit the plug. If there is no flow, first top up to the bottom of the hole then refit the plug. Now add a further 0.5 L of oil through the speedo driveshaft hole. From October 1987 the oil level plug has been raised 7mm higher than the one on earlier models. Consequently all filling and topping up can be carried out through the oil level hole. Removal of the speedo drive cable is no longer necessary." It also quotes 2L of SAE80 for the 020 5 speed Or 1.5L for the 020 4 speed I dont know how true this is but its still in the later revised version of the manual ! And yes it is easier to fill through the speedo drive.
Sounds true enough to me. I guess I never notice the 7mm difference before as its quite small. I'll have another look at me gearboxes when I get time. So basically, fill it as adviced above, depending on your year of manucature
How long do you reckon it'll take a VW specialist to fit the gearshift linkage bushes and ball on the bottom of the gearstick? Just wondering 'cos I know when I tried to fit the ball it looked like the exhaust would have to be removed so I didn't bother. How do you know where all the bushes go? I got a little box 'o bits from GSF and there are alsorts of bits in there. I've got the diagram from Haynes which expains some stuff - anyone got any better pics?
Took about 2-3 hrs to change the bushes and the ball under the gearlever, would be quicker if i was to do it again. The exhaust doesnt have to come off, just drop it down off its rubbers undo the heat shield and rotate it to remove, a bit fiddly but easier than removing the exhaust ! Once you start working your way through the linkage its obvious where they go and they are all quite easy to do. The ball is the most awkward
Ok - thanks for the info and the link. I will point out to the bloke that the exhaust doesn't need to come off then. I would be doing it myself if it was better weather and I had more space but I thought I'd treat the car to a garage job for a change!
