CHANGING MANUAL TRANSMISSION OIL

DEFINITELY. A simple procedure.

WHAT WILL I NEED?

1/2" drive ratchet
Open end wrenches
Oil Drain Pan

A funnel with long tube (recommended, not required)

4.5 liters of M/T Gear Oil: API GL-4 rated

SAE Viscosity Number	Outside Temperature Range (deg F)
75W	+50 to below -20
80W	+86 to below -20
75W90 and 80W90	+104 to below -20
85W	+86 to +14
75W	+50 to below -20

As highlighted above, the Nissan service manual normally recommends 80W90 for ambient air temperatures below 104 deg F.

I use Redline MT90 Synthetic Manual Transmission Oil. It's rated for API GL-4 and has a viscosity of 75W90. I use synthetic to help shift better and as added protection. Since I go to the track once in a blue moon, synthetic gave me a little more peace of mind. However, I do notice a barely perceptible leak from the tranny because of the use of synthetic. The oil is veeeery slooowly getting through the seals. Never enough to form a drop on the floor though. After 20K+ miles, I checked and my tranny oil was still full. Still, kinda disconcerting, huh? Plus, synthetic is expensive ($8-$10 a quart). So it's your call....

PROCEDURE

1. Lift up the front of the car and put it on jacks. It's best to do this maintenance with the car level, so either also lift up the rear or lift the front just enough so you can work under there.

2. With the 1/2" ratchet in hand, locate the fill plug and remove it.
Yes, you don't actually use a socket, but the square face of the ratchet.

3. Get your oil pan ready under the plug.

4. Unscrew the drain plug and let the oil drain. There's a metal bracket that gets in the way, so I had to use an open ended wrench rather than a socket.

5. Put the drain plug back in and tighten it to about 14 ft-lbs.

6. Fill the tranny with oil. It's a little tight around the fill plug. It's certainly possible to pour the oil in directly, but it's a hassle. For less than $10, get a funnel with a long tube so that you can fill oil from above rather than under the engine bay. There's even a valve on this one that lets me control the oil flow. It made the refill a peice of cake. You know the tranny is full when the oil starts overfilling and starts dripping out the fill plug hole.

7. Once it's full, put the fill plug back and torque it to 18-25 ft-lbs.

8. That's it!

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