# Cured trans grind and significantly improved 4th gear vibration...for $11



## titan2782 (Nov 4, 2011)

> goes into the next gear like your pinky finger would go into Jenna Jameson.


f-ing hilarious! Also, quite gross 

Probably going to be what I do next to the car. Thanks for this. I was unable to find the Amsoil syncromesh both locally and online.


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## bryanakron40 (Nov 8, 2012)

I agree with avoiding GL-5 fluid. It will eat the yellow metal, commonly known as brass in these transmissions and you will be getting a rebuild quite soon. Is the Castrol more like a 5W-30 oil rather than a gear oil? Or is it even thinner? I have used Redline MTL in other transmissions with good results, but nothing this new.


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

I had a similar experience when I upgraded to amsoil synchromesh. Big difference, only I did it early so I never saw how bad it could get.

How much fluid did you drain out?

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## Hoon (Mar 18, 2012)

titan2782 said:


> f-ing hilarious! Also, quite gross
> 
> Probably going to be what I do next to the car. Thanks for this. I was unable to find the Amsoil syncromesh both locally and online.


I certainly don't regret it! If you can find a good GL-4 synthetic that is thicker than stock it might be even better. 



bryanakron40 said:


> I agree with avoiding GL-5 fluid. It will eat the yellow metal, commonly known as brass in these transmissions and you will be getting a rebuild quite soon. Is the Castrol more like a 5W-30 oil rather than a gear oil? Or is it even thinner? I have used Redline MTL in other transmissions with good results, but nothing this new.


It seemed to be about as thin, possibly a bit thinner than 5W30. It was warm coming out but not hot, and appeared very thin. 

I used to use MTL and had decent results with it (not in a cruze), but not nearly as drastic an improvement. I think this car needs thicker fluid, it really seems to cut down on the 4th gear chatter and the shifting is so much smoother.


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## Hoon (Mar 18, 2012)

XtremeRevolution said:


> I had a similar experience when I upgraded to amsoil synchromesh. Big difference, only I did it early so I never saw how bad it could get.
> 
> How much fluid did you drain out?
> 
> Sent from my SGH-T999 using AutoGuide App


No clue it's still in the pan. 

I've swapped factory fill for MTL in the past (on other cars) and seen slight improvement, but nothing this drastic.


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## bryanakron40 (Nov 8, 2012)

Thanks for the info Hoon. I like the MTL because of the colder temps here. I haven't used the 80W gear oil, so it might be just as good. I know that gear oil in a few other cars always caused cold shifting issues for me and a few friends around here. Are you in a colder climate or more in the south or west coast?


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## Hoon (Mar 18, 2012)

Getting 2 feet of snow tomorrow. I'm in RI.

28 Degrees today and no cold shifting issues yet. The better test will be when it gets much colder, but being much smoother than stock at 28* i expect it to do just fine at 10* or so.


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

Administrator said:


> http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_tr...nkw=chevrolet+cruze&_sacat=See-All-Categories


Do check. I was only able to drain 1.5 quarts when I changed my fluid.

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## H3LLON3ARTH (Dec 16, 2011)

oh how i love how you change the fluid in our trannies. i cant believe there isn't a dip stick you have to measure what you take out then put that amount of new fluid back in, so time consuming for a mechanic.


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## Silver Streak (Jan 5, 2013)

Interesting to hear about your success in using gear oil. Now a question to the forum. Why is it that we do not hear from other Cruze owners around the world about manual transmission shift issues? How can this only be a US and Canadian issue if the trans is built in Europe and shipped here? Could other regions be using the same trans. but they are filled from the trans. factory with different fluid? Maybe in our (US) quest for the ultimate fuel economy, we have outfoxed ourselves. Great fuel economy but manual transmission shifting issues. My personal goal when the outside temps warms up a bit is to try to locate some synthetic trans fluid or synthetic GL-4 proper weight gear oil.

I would like to hear from Cruze owners with manual transmissions that are not in North America regarding their shifting experiences.


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

Silver Streak said:


> Interesting to hear about your success in using gear oil. Now a question to the forum. Why is it that we do not hear from other Cruze owners around the world about manual transmission shift issues? How can this only be a US and Canadian issue if the trans is built in Europe and shipped here? Could other regions be using the same trans. but they are filled from the trans. factory with different fluid? Maybe in our (US) quest for the ultimate fuel economy, we have outfoxed ourselves. Great fuel economy but manual transmission shifting issues. My personal goal when the outside temps warms up a bit is to try to locate some synthetic trans fluid or synthetic GL-4 proper weight gear oil.
> 
> I would like to hear from Cruze owners with manual transmissions that are not in North America regarding their shifting experiences.


There have been complaints on other forums based in those regions. I specifically remember reading them right after getting my Cruze.

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## zymzyck (Jul 1, 2012)

Wow! I thought i had just become an old geezer that couldn't operate a manual properly anymore!


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## Greasemonkey2012 (Jul 8, 2012)

Yaa wana get the amsoil 75w90 Trans oil their a dealer locally but my place 


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## Hoon (Mar 18, 2012)

XtremeRevolution said:


> Do check. I was only able to drain 1.5 quarts when I changed my fluid.
> 
> Sent from my SGH-T999 using AutoGuide App


I'll take a look soon. 



H3LLON3ARTH said:


> oh how i love how you change the fluid in our trannies. i cant believe there isn't a dip stick you have to measure what you take out then put that amount of new fluid back in, so time consuming for a mechanic.


I've never seen a manual with a dipstick. Our design is actually very good with a drain, fill level, and top mounted hole for filling. 



Silver Streak said:


> Interesting to hear about your success in using gear oil. Now a question to the forum. Why is it that we do not hear from other Cruze owners around the world about manual transmission shift issues? How can this only be a US and Canadian issue if the trans is built in Europe and shipped here? Could other regions be using the same trans. but they are filled from the trans. factory with different fluid? Maybe in our (US) quest for the ultimate fuel economy, we have outfoxed ourselves. Great fuel economy but manual transmission shifting issues. My personal goal when the outside temps warms up a bit is to try to locate some synthetic trans fluid or synthetic GL-4 proper weight gear oil.
> 
> I would like to hear from Cruze owners with manual transmissions that are not in North America regarding their shifting experiences.


I read somewhere that 75W-90 is standard in europe, but havent looked into the claim. 



zymzyck said:


> Wow! I thought i had just become an old geezer that couldn't operate a manual properly anymore!


Lol, not likely.


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## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

LOL, I believe I said the same thing about 9 months ago when I switched to Amsoil Synchromesh at 18k miles. I had the same grind into 2nd with hard shifting and the same 4th gear rattle. It got a lot of doubters at the time since IIRC I was among the first to publicly swap out fluid and post what seemed to be miraculous results of very reduced 2nd gear grind and 4th gear rattle. Now with more experience and more verification, we know to expect those results when switching away from the OEM swill they call transmission fluid. 

For those of you who want pictures, here's a how-to I whipped up in May 2012: http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/57-how-library/6627-how-change-manual-transmission-fluid.html


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## Hoon (Mar 18, 2012)

^ It just blows my mind that crappy conventional fluid is SO much better than stock. 

Silly GM.


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## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

Hoon said:


> ^ It just blows my mind that crappy conventional fluid is SO much better than stock.
> 
> Silly GM.


Probably they got a great deal from BP/Castrol. Besides, it's "lifetime" fluid! Meaning that it gets the transmission fleet through the 5 year/100k mile warranty with only a few lubrication-related failures. 

I'm half-joking when saying that Cruze manual transmission owners should change the OEM fluid out at 10-15k miles with a GL-4 70w-80 or 75w-90 fluid then leave it be for 50k miles. Even 2 quarts of Amsoil GL-4 75w-90 or Synchromesh is $25 shipped. 

Hoon, thanks for posting that even a cheap GL-4/GL-5 75w-90 gear oil will work in our transmissions!


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Hmmmmm...I'll be at my parents this weekend with a driveway to work in. I think I'll give this a shot. I ground 2nd right after starting the engine at 2500 RPM tonight. So annoying and clunky in the cold.


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## Hoon (Mar 18, 2012)

UPDATE: If you live in a cold climate, use something with a thinner cold viscosity. 

The fluid was pretty cold (maybe 35-40*) when it went in yesterday and the trans felt great, but after sitting outside over night and fully cooling it's clunky on cold start. 

Something like a 75w-90 would probably work better.


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## Greasemonkey2012 (Jul 8, 2012)

Hoon said:


> UPDATE: If you live in a cold climate, use something with a thinner cold viscosity.
> 
> The fluid was pretty cold (maybe 35-40*) when it went in yesterday and the trans felt great, but after sitting outside over night and fully cooling it's clunky on cold start.
> 
> Something like a 75w-90 would probably work better.


U didn't put 75w 90 in it 


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## Hoon (Mar 18, 2012)

I have 80W-90 in it. It's too thick when very cold, but perfect when hot...so a 75W-90 would probably work better.


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## Greasemonkey2012 (Jul 8, 2012)

Hoon said:


> I have 80W-90 in it. It's too thick when very cold, but perfect when hot...so a 75W-90 would probably work better.


Oh the pic u posted looked like 75w90 Ahaha yaa 80w 90 is thick for sure I'm Gona pick up some 75w90 amsoil Trans oil tonight and see what it does hopefully its better then factories filled  


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## giantsnation (Oct 11, 2012)

Good posting Hoon! I'm almost at 5K miles but I think I might make the switch to AMSOIL Manual Transmission & Transaxle Gear Lube 75W-90.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

giantsnation said:


> Good posting Hoon! I'm almost at 5K miles but I think I might make the switch to AMSOIL Manual Transmission & Transaxle Gear Lube 75W-90.


That's what I'm doing. Going to pick some up on my way home tonight. I'll hopefully get a chance to change it this weekend and let you know what I think.


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## H3LLON3ARTH (Dec 16, 2011)

jblackburn said:


> That's what I'm doing. Going to pick some up on my way home tonight. I'll hopefully get a chance to change it this weekend and let you know what I think.


Measure what you drain out and post the results please.

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## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

Greasemonkey2012 said:


> Oh the pic u posted looked like 75w90 Ahaha yaa 80w 90 is thick for sure I'm Gona pick up some 75w90 amsoil Trans oil tonight and see what it does hopefully its better then factories filled
> 
> 
> Sent from AutoGuide.com App


Cold shifting is why I went with the roughly 70w-80 Amsoil Synchromesh. I got a PM from another user a while back reporting great results with Amsoil's GL-4 75w-90. Either would be a great choice.


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## giantsnation (Oct 11, 2012)

jblackburn said:


> That's what I'm doing. Going to pick some up on my way home tonight. I'll hopefully get a chance to change it this weekend and let you know what I think.


What auto stores carry Amsoil? If I found this locally at a parts store, I'll just get it today or tomorrow morning.


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## Greasemonkey2012 (Jul 8, 2012)

sciphi said:


> Cold shifting is why I went with the roughly 70w-80 Amsoil Synchromesh. I got a PM from another user a while back reporting great results with Amsoil's GL-4 75w-90. Either would be a great choice.


Yaaa I'm Gona try that the factories stuff is garbage it's shift better when it's cold then it's warm idk why that would be tho 


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## giantsnation (Oct 11, 2012)

Found it - AMSOIL Dealer and Installer Locator


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## Hoon (Mar 18, 2012)

Greasemonkey2012 said:


> Yaaa I'm Gona try that the factories stuff is garbage it's shift better when it's cold then it's warm idk why that would be tho
> 
> 
> Sent from AutoGuide.com App


Probably because it's thinker when cold.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Darnit. I thought I could get my hands on some tonight, but the Amsoil dealer near me called back and said he only had 1 qt and would have to order it. 

Redline is also out by this weekend. 

Next weekend is out because...well...it's Valentines and I can't spend time working on my car. 

Does NAPA sell a 75-90 and would it be ok to use without warranty troubles if my transmission is still grinding?


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## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

Changing the manual transmission fluid/oil is enough of a pain (at least IMO) where I'd want to do it once every so often and do it right. Order the good stuff, and get it shipped in waiting for a free weekend. It's not like the transmission will grenade overnight if it goes another week or two.


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## Greasemonkey2012 (Jul 8, 2012)

Got Some Gona try it soon ill let u guy know how she shift after  


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

That's about what I figured. I'm just impatient. Thanks. 


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## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

jblackburn said:


> That's about what I figured. I'm just impatient. Thanks.
> 
> 
> Sent from AutoGuide.com App


No problem! That's what we're here for!


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

Glad to see more people are doing this. I did it early on my car (5k or so miles) so I never let it get really bad. Sounds like its something everyone should do. It's disappointing to hear that GM used such crappy fluid from the factory. I might have to pass this information along to GM.


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## Greasemonkey2012 (Jul 8, 2012)

Update: well I changed my fluid its much better , Its gona take a few days to work it self in but it's way better then factories filled for sure and toke me only 10 min to change it was very easy. I will post in a few days how's its does in the overnight cold and see how the shifting is . 


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## Hoon (Mar 18, 2012)

XtremeRevolution said:


> Sounds like its something everyone should do.
> 
> It's disappointing to hear that GM used such crappy fluid from the factory. I might have to pass this information along to GM.


Yes, and yes.


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## cronyjabrony (Aug 10, 2012)

Why isn't this a known issue to GM? When I mentioned this issue to my service manager he said they haven't had any bulletins on it and if I change the fluid to something else and the trans grenades then I just voided the warranty. So I haven't gotten the 4th gear shudder but definitely grinds in second.


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

cronyjabrony said:


> Why isn't this a known issue to GM? When I mentioned this issue to my service manager he said they haven't had any bulletins on it and if I change the fluid to something else and the trans grenades then I just voided the warranty. So I haven't gotten the 4th gear shudder but definitely grinds in second.


So change it. The current stuff is just going to cause more long-term issues.

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## Greasemonkey2012 (Jul 8, 2012)

cronyjabrony said:


> Why isn't this a known issue to GM? When I mentioned this issue to my service manager he said they haven't had any bulletins on it and if I change the fluid to something else and the trans grenades then I just voided the warranty. So I haven't gotten the 4th gear shudder but definitely grinds in second.[/QU
> 
> how would they know if u change it just make sure the oil not red or diff colour then factory they will never know its oil man and make sure u put something very good in it and u wont have any problem with with it


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## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

cronyjabrony said:


> Why isn't this a known issue to GM? When I mentioned this issue to my service manager he said they haven't had any bulletins on it and if I change the fluid to something else and the trans grenades then I just voided the warranty. So I haven't gotten the 4th gear shudder but definitely grinds in second.


Think of it as needing to use the warranty if you leave the current slop in there and pulverize 2nd, or never needing the warranty when a better fluid stops the grinding. A warranty is nice in theory, until it gets denied for "owner abuse". Then you're stuck with a grenaded transmission and a giant repair bill. A $30 fluid change every so often would have prevented the whole episode. 

After all, the best warranty is the one that's never needed.


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## BJ Cruze2012 (Nov 10, 2011)

Has any body gotten a good read on the amount in the tranny?


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## Hoon (Mar 18, 2012)

There's a fill level hole, easiest way to be sure its right.


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## Greasemonkey2012 (Jul 8, 2012)

Well mine Dosent have a level plug gota go by spec 


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## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

BJ Cruze2012 said:


> Has any body gotten a good read on the amount in the tranny?


Measure what drained out, and see if it's the recommended 2 liters or not.


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