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[Viral_Jim]

I know the forum loves a good white goods/winter tyres thread, but all my appliances are working and its currently sunny outside, so....

Auto gearbox fluid 

The gearchange on SWMBO's 9 speed Evoque is getting noticeably less smooth and at nearly 80,000 miles a fluid change is more than due so I thought I'd have at it -  how hard can it be?

Apparently very when it comes to selecting what oil to use. Most people online take the 'only ZF branded oil will do' line. But having dug a little bit, the ZF stuff seems to be re-branded Shell Spirax S5 X and most of the big brands (Comma, Morris Mannol etc) have an equivalent spec. The price difference between these can be pretty stark (£35/l for ZF, vs £55/5l for Comma for example). When it comes to engine oil, I have tended to buy anything that's the correct spec and made by a reputable manufacturer, and never gone wrong so far. Does this approach hold when it comes to ATF, or are transmissions more sensitive to fluid brand? Its hard to strip out what's internet hyperbole these days.

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

I know the forum loves a good white goods/winter tyres thread, but all my appliances are working and its currently sunny outside, so....

Auto gearbox fluid 

The gearchange on SWMBO's 9 speed Evoque is getting noticeably less smooth and at nearly 80,000 miles a fluid change is more than due so I thought I'd have at it - how hard can it be?

Apparently very when it comes to selecting what oil to use. Most people online take the 'only ZF branded oil will do' line. But having dug a little bit, the ZF stuff seems to be re-branded Shell Spirax S5 X and most of the big brands (Comma, Morris Mannol etc) have an equivalent spec. The price difference between these can be pretty stark (£35/l for ZF, vs £55/5l for Comma for example). When it comes to engine oil, I have tended to buy anything that's the correct spec and made by a reputable manufacturer, and never gone wrong so far. Does this approach hold when it comes to ATF, or are transmissions more sensitive to fluid brand? Its hard to strip out what's internet hyperbole these days.

 

[TheBoy]

I need to do mine soon.  It's done 150k.  But it's sealed for life, so.... 

I was just going to pick up a £100 ZF branded service kit for mine, but mine probably takes cheaper, older fluid.

[Marks DTM Calib]

Westway lubricants do a decent equivalent

[Viral_Jim]

Westway lubricants do a decent equivalent

Thanks Mr DTM, I'd never heard of these lot. Being from Shropshire Morris are my usual go-to but these guys are more or less on my way home from work - I'll stop in and see what they've got. 

[JasonH]

If you have ZF gearboxes then ZF is very, very specific about only using the correct ZF Lifeguard oil. Lifeguard6 for 6 speed boxes, Lifeguard8 for the 8 speed boxes, etc.

A transmission specialist I've spoken to only uses genuine oil.

With the cost of these gearboxes being in the thousands, even a rebuild £3k, I've always used the correct genuine oil. It does visually look and smell different to alternatives.

Having said that with an older high mile car, surely fresh Comma or Mannol oil that claims to be the right spec is better than the old dirty and worn out oil.

Note that whilst some manufacturers claim "sealed for life" ZF themselves state you should change the oil every 50k to 70k miles dependent on use.

[Marks DTM Calib]

Westway lubricants do a decent equivalent

Thanks Mr DTM, I'd never heard of these lot. Being from Shropshire Morris are my usual go-to but these guys are more or less on my way home from work - I'll stop in and see what they've got. 

We have now started to avoid Morris on the preserved stuff, they were good but have clearly changed things, and the oil sample test results have been far from positive even showing the grade to be poorly controlled

[Viral_Jim]

We have now started to avoid Morris on the preserved stuff, they were good but have clearly changed things, and the oil sample test results have been far from positive even showing the grade to be poorly controlled

That's disappointing, all that cash they're giving Guy Martin must have come out of the QA budget 

[Viral_Jim]

Just to wrap this up.

The service from Westway was exceptional. Ordered ATF at 1445, it was at my door 0930 the next morning. The product also seems to be very good after an initial use and some test drives. It looked identical to what came out of the car (newer obviously) and smelled very similar.

Clearly I can't speak for it's longevity as yet, but at the moment the difference in the car is night and day. After changing the fluid and resetting the adaptions, the hesitation and harsh changes are gone.

Thanks again to Mr DTM for the recommendation, I will certainly be using Westway for any and all oil requirements from now on.