This is what my old transfer case fluid looked like. Thoughts?

[dkvasnicka]

Did the TC drain & refill today. This is what came out

You can probably guess what my question will be: how come it's not blue?! In other words, does the Auto Trak II spec mandate that the fluid has to be blue? I refilled it with the official ACDelco ATII (gosh the blue is beautiful when the sun shines through it... I almost wanted to drink it ) but there are other ATII fluids being sold here in Europe (e.g. http://www.oleje-pema.cz/bg-792-syncro-shift-ii_127434.html) and I have no idea what colour they are.

I bouht the truck recently and I'm doing all the fluids regardless of mileage, for the peace of mind. No idea who did the TC last time and where.

That being said I have not experienced any AWD problems (it works) or weird sounds from the xfer case. Also there are remnants of gasket sealant on the seams of the case. Probably remanufactured or repaired.

 

[Mounce]

Not sure what color it turns as it wears..

How long have you had the vehicle? Mileage? Maybe the previous owner goofed and put atf in it without the knowledge of its preference of smurf blood.

 

[AtlWrk]

Does it smell like transmission fluid? because it sure looks like regular trans fluid

FWIW my TC seam has sealant squeeze out all around too.

Personally, I would put in two quarts of the AutoTrak II, drive it around for a few days, drain/refill with new fluid and cross my fingers.

Edit: After ~65k miles my fluid came out just about as blue and clear as the new stuff going in.

 

[dkvasnicka]

How long have you had the vehicle? Mileage? Maybe the previous owner goofed and put atf in it without the knowledge of its preference of smurf blood.

About 2 months. It has almost 90k miles on it, or at least that's what the odo says (the truck looks like it too).

Does it smell like transmission fluid? because it sure looks like regular trans fluid

Yeah, that's exactly what I was thinking - that it looks like worn out Dex III or some shit like that It definitely smells differently than ATII - that smells like cheap instant capuccino
I guess the previous owner was a "leave it in the shop and let them do what they think is best" type of owner

It is one of the few 9-7Xs sold in Europe (Italy). But as I said - even here in Czech republic you can get a bottle of ACDelco ATII, so there's no excuse.

Edit: After ~65k miles my fluid came out just about as blue and clear as the new stuff going in.

I didn't want to hear that

 

[Sparky]

My TC fluid was in there for over 100k miles (previous owner never changed it) and it came out more black than blue. Fresh stuff went in, never had an issue with the case, and now it has 212k miles on it.

 

[dkvasnicka]

Well, there is still the possibility of ATII-compatible fluids having different colour... I don't think oil specs prescribe colour But that's just a guess.

I may even buy the BG Syncro Shift II stuff out of curiosity to see the colour.

 

[Mooseman]

In this thread at BITOG, found this link to Red Line Oil with a supposed alternative:

MTL 75W80 GL-4 Gear Oil

• Popular for BMW, Honda and Acura, Ford Focus, late-model Mini Cooper, Land Rover/Range Rover LT77S, Dodge & Jeep NV1500, NV3500 , NV3550 and NV5600 truck transmissions
• Popular replacement for and improvement over GM Synchromesh® (#12345349) and Auto-Trak II® (#12378508) and Chrysler spec MS-9224
• Safe for brass synchros, as it lacks the reactive sulfurs found in most GL-5 oils that cause damage
• Offers quicker shifts, perfect synchronizer coefficient of friction
• Eliminates notchy shifting, even when cold
• High performance gear protection and longer synchro life
• Satisfies the gear oil viscosity requirements of 75W, 80W, and motor oil viscosities of SAE 30, 10W30, and 5W30
• Recommended for GL-1, GL-3, and GL-4 applications as well as where most special synchromesh fluids are specified

I'm gonna have to take a sniff of it next time to see if it smells like gear oil because this says it's compatible. No matter, a good synthetic gear oil is just as expensive as the Auto-Trak II.

 

[dkvasnicka]

I'm gonna have to take a sniff of it next time to see if it smells like gear oil

Well, the stuff I got out of the TC smelled nothing like gear oil. And neither does Auto Trak II. If by gear oil you mean the horribly stinkin' stuff we put into our diffs. Did the front diff yesterday, going to do the rear one tomorrow... not looking forward to that sulphury junk at all

 

[dkvasnicka]

Just for fun. This is my rear diff cover - before/after

I'm almost inclined to think that nobody has ever opened it before The stuff that came out was dark like black gold...

Also, the manual says 118ml of LS additive but the ACDelco bottle only has 114ml (I used the one being sold in Canada)... I don't think those 4ml would make much of a difference would they? I put in 1.7L of premium Shell fully synthetic gear fluid (as specified here on the forum) + the additive.

 

[Mooseman]

It should be fine. I used Valvoline that had the LS additive already in the oil but I didn't have enough. Used some plain 75w90 synthetic gear lube to top it off and it's been fine. I doubt those 4ml will make a difference.

Better late than never!

 

[rcam81]

I had my t case serviced at 51K. The dealer put the BG fluid in it. At 85K the t case started making all kinds of noises. Had to have the t case replaced. I made sure that AT 2 fluid was put in the new case.

 

[Mooseman]

If the AT 2 fluid was only available at the dealer at $30/bottle, yeah I'd be looking for alternatives but why risk it?

 

[dkvasnicka]

Wow, $30/bottle is outrageous... provided we're talking the 1L bottle. I bought it here for $15 and that must logically include shipping to EU.

It should be fine. I used Valvoline that had the LS additive already in the oil but I didn't have enough. Used some plain 75w90 synthetic gear lube to top it off and it's been fine. I doubt those 4ml will make a difference.

Better late than never!

Does the Valvoline LS work well? I've read on "the other site" that someone used it and their rear diff didn't work properly (ugly sounds). I also bought a bottle of LS fluid but then I've read their experiences and I decided to buy regular 75W-90 + the additive (costs little less than $13 here, first I thought I'd have to have it shipped through eBay) and I used the LS fluid for my front diff (from what I've read, LS fluids in regular diffs don't do any harm - I certainly didn't experience anything bad).

 

[Mooseman]

No issues here with the Valvoline. He must have had issues before the change and I wouldn't trust that other site too much . And no problem using the LS in the front diff.

I was being sarcastic when I said $30/bottle but I wouldn't be surprised if it actually was their price.

 

[gmcman]

220K miles, 13 years, on GM blue fluid, 4 changes and no issues or leaks. Cheap and works.

Would the tail shaft seal on the trans cause this dark fluid if it may be leaking. Could it even enter the TC?

 

[Mooseman]

It could but because of the existing blue stuff already in the TC, it wouldn't have looked like pure tranny fluid. Too light if you ask me in this case but it is possible but I'm not sure if there is another seal in the TC so the tranny fluid might have to go through two seals into the TC.