Cold Weather Gear Changes

[oilman]

Hi all,

Around this time of year we get quite a few questions about experiencing difficult gearshifts in cold weather, so we thought you might find this useful.
Using the incorrect viscosity gear oil in your car can make gear changes very difficult when the gearbox, and oil are cold. This is why we often don't recommend using thicker gear oils than the manufacturer specifies. It is easy to think that increasing the viscosity from a 75w-80 to 75w-90 or 75w-90 to 75w-140 isn't going to affect the cold properties of the oil, but it does.
Below are some figures showing the viscosity of a selection of oils at 40C measured in mm²/s ( 1 millimeter²/second = 1 centistoke, A centistoke is a decimal fraction of the CGS unit of kinematic viscosity stokes, which is equal to centimeter per second (cm²/s). 1 stokes is a kinematic viscosity of a fluid with a density of 1 g/cm³ and a dynamic viscosity of 1 poise… In short the thickness of oil!). 40degc may not seem cold but this is the temperature at which the viscosity is measured and is the information you will find on the oil technical data sheets.
I have listed specific brands and products to make it easier to see the differences in viscosity.
Fuchs Sintofluid FE 75w = 40.8 @ 40°c
Fuchs Sintofluid 75w-80 = 49.8 @ 40°c
Fuchs Sintopoid 75w-90 = 90.5 @ 40°c
Fuchs Sintopoid LS 75w140 = 170 @ 40°c

As you can see from that, they are all 75w oils, but there is a large difference in the viscosity at lower temps; the Sintopoid 75w-90 is over twice as thick as the Sintofluid FE 75w when cold and the 75w-140 is almost twice as thick as the 75w-90. 

So, if you've got a car that needs one grade of oil as standard, but you've modified it and decide to try a thicker oil, or someone puts the wrong oil in, it might really affect the cold gear shifts. Usually, increasing the quality is a better option than increasing the viscosity when thinking about upgrading from standard fluid.

Also, viscosity ratings are not exact points, but are a band that the viscosity should fall in. The Motul Gear 300 75w-90 has a viscosity of 76.2mm²/s at 40°c and the Castrol Universal 75w-90 is 84.8mm²/s, so you can see there is some variation in oils that appear to be the same viscosity.

A lot of gearboxes specify an 80w-90 rather than a 75w-90, but I would always tend to go for a 75w-90 instead as there can be a large difference is the viscosity when cold. The Motul Gearbox 80w-90 is 164mm²/s, so over twice as thick as their Gear 300 when cold. If you're using an 80w-90 and are having stiff cold gear changes, changing to a 75w-90 is likely to improve things.

If you have any questions or need further advice please post here or email us at sales@opieoils.co.uk

Cheers
Tim.

[AlexB]

I agree.

I tried 125@40C in 1.9dci120 model - it became very stiff in winter. The other one was about 73 and had a very high VI=222 - it is about right.

The listed oils have not a very high VI, so the best for us would be Fuchs Sintofluid 75w-80, I guess (not for any kind of performance or towing).

The only problem is that the listed oils are GL5 only. Synchronizers call for GL4 while the diff needs GL5... So, I am using Motul Gear 300 75W-90 ester GL4+GL5, which is just perfect. Price-wise these oils are all almost the same on the scale of things... The one which I dismissed was Fuchs Titan Race SYN 5 75W-90 - too thick when cold.

[oilman]

Hi

GL5 is not unsuitable for your car, far from it. Back in the 70s, the GL5 additive package did contain things that were harmful to sychros, but that was no good for anyone. Because of that, the additive package for GL5 was changed to be the same as a GL4, but in higher concentrations, so will not cause any problems. All modern GL5 oils from reputable companies will not harm a GL4 gearbox.

Cheers

Tim

[AlexB]

Thanks, useful info.