5 speed Gearbox oil change

superchargedpolo

superchargedpolo

Senior Member
T6 Pro
I’m planning to change the gearbox oil on my 2017 5 speed T6.
I spoke to TPS and they couldn’t confirm the quantity of oil required as “it’s sealed for life sir”. I believe it’s 2L for the 5 speed. Can anyone confirm?

Also TPS want circa £40 a litre for said oil. Does anyone know the exact spec of the oil for this gearbox so that I can cross reference a couple of other quality oil brands. I don’t mind paying for the VW stuff but TPS really do take the p@ss sometimes and I like keeping them on their toes!

Many thanks in advance.
 
Paynewright said:
Remove fill plug first!!

Perhaps Opie can help - we have a discount code for them
Click to expand...
I agree with have a chat with Opie, very knowledgable.
www.opieoils.co.uk

Car Gearbox Oil | Differential Oil | Axle Oil | Opie Oils

The UK's largest independent supplier of automotive oils, fluid and parts. We've products to suit any vehicle, from full blown Race / Track weapons, to Daily Drivers looking to save money. Plus FREE expert advice & recommendations - OPIE KNOW OILS
www.opieoils.co.uk
I’ve tried for a Forum discount, doesn’t seem to be valid but they have good prices and as with ECP and others there’s always a ‘discount’ to be applied to the Cart.
My first port of call.
 
Just to wrap this thread up. I have purchased the above oil from Liqui Moly. It is identical to the VW specification but half the price of TPS and that’s with my trade discount! Circa £45 for 2L.
If M539 restorations on YouTube use Liqui Moly lubricants in his cars then it’s more than acceptable for my van.
 
How did you get on with the new oil then. I have a 5 speed manual gearbox aswell and want to change it. So places say 75w 80 and others say 75w.
 
Having changed the GB oil on daughters Up! VW are very cagey on advertising oil specification and correct oil from them is v expensive!
 
Paynewright said:
Having changed the GB oil on daughters Up! VW are very cagey on advertising oil specification and correct oil from them is v expensive!
Click to expand...
I thought the same. Even when I rang tps. It's like a secert club and you have to spend all the money to find out a part lmao
 
For the Up! I went with a Febi Bilstein equivalent.

The manufacturers imply they are filled for life. My opinion is that regular oil changes, be that engine, gearbox or diff are good for longevity. Engine annually / 10k, gearbox & diff, 50k.

Oils are cheap - rebuilds are expensive
 
smitty vw said:
How did you get on with the new oil then. I have a 5 speed manual gearbox aswell and want to change it. So places say 75w 80 and others say 75w.
Click to expand...
I am not a mechanic, so please don't take this as an advice.
But common sense says that environmental conditions (hot - cold) and ageing would change the characteristics of your oil much more than 75W vs 80W. Think of noth Italy in winter (Alps) and South Italy in summer (Sardinia). You get easily a 50C excursion, in exteme cases more. Or look at all the gunk and the metal particles you get when you drain oil.
For a manual gearbox, when you drain it properly and fill with the prescribed quantity of a top'brand gearbox oil, what could go wrong?
Seals and bearings damage? I really can't believe that a top manufacturer that sells ageneral purpose oil (i.e. Castrol Axle 80W) doesn't account for that. I have used one single gearbox oil for all my manual cars and motorcycles gearboxes in the last 30 years and never had a problem. Maybe 2 gradations lke 68 and 80/90. All GL4. Probably beliving "it's for the life" is much more dangerous.
I reckon that automatic/robotized/DSG gerboxes are different animals, because the brains and the muscles of the automation are far less tolerant (or smart) than the average primate at the wheel. Of course A.I. will fux that soon. Meanwhile...
 
In most cases the fill is indeed for life. Its rare these days that a borked manual transmission is what writes a vehicle off. That being the case there is no commercial imperative for manufacturers to ream the public for gearbox oil changes, particularly Joe piblic is already suspicious about dealer doing unnecessary work.

However, in our case vans used for leisure purposes have a longer lifespan than the norm and at worst it does no harm to drop the lube, at best it may even be helpful, so there's an argument for doing it. Nevertheless, were a very tiny sub-class of the commercial vehicle sector so, again, there is no business casemfor bending over backwards to suit a small audience. Can't really knock the water or manufacturer for that.
 
Sasquatch said:
In most cases the fill is indeed for life. Its rare these days that a borked manual transmission is what writes a vehicle off. That being the case there is no commercial imperative for manufacturers to ream the public for gearbox oil changes, particularly Joe piblic is already suspicious about dealer doing unnecessary work.
Click to expand...
Sorry, I am new to the VW planet, (except for a brief exursion decades ago).
It is a strange place, especially in the workshops.
Mercedes definitely has designed manual gearbox oil changes. On the 2.2 l diesel man 6 gear (i.e. Vito) i had it at some 80K Km or 3 years.
Also they are less integralist about long life oil. VW gave me a used van that was 1.5 years old and 31K km without changing the motor oil. I discovered after a couple of thousands , level at minimum and I was shocked of the gunk that was inside . The poor one had ben parked in the lot for more than 6 monyhs. So I had to pay for an unscheduled oil change (some 700 EU) on top of a 40K EU used vehicle. I should have waited another 8K Km or so according to them. Or maybe for a krankshaft failure i would say.
This would never happen at the other German Shop, for my direct experience. Van in for yearly maintenance, oil out no matter.
Just saying.
 
Quicker to just do it than discuss it, less than an hours work. If the vehicle lasts the warranty period and the vehicle sales meet targets the accountants job is done.
 
FWhite said:
Sorry, I am new to the VW planet, (except for a brief exursion decades ago).
It is a strange place, especially in the workshops.
Mercedes definitely has designed manual gearbox oil changes. On the 2.2 l diesel man 6 gear (i.e. Vito) i had it at some 80K Km or 3 years.
Click to expand...
Mercedes are an extreme outlier in that regard.

To my knowledge (and some judicious Googling over the last 10 minutes) no other car or light van manufacturer has a manual gearbox oil change programmed into the service schedule at any interval.
 
Perhaps they decided that as the DMF fails so often that the oil would be replaced as part of the DMF / clutch replacement?
 
Having had the misfortune to own two Vitos I would suggest gearbox oil is the least of Mercedes problems.
 
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