S3 engine oil, transmission oil, haldex oil, rear dif oil and front dif oil?

[colicabcadam]

hi guys, i've had a look across the internet but there seems to many different opinions and statements that i do not trust

i'm about to do a full service on my s3, so can you please advise on the following oils?

engine oil - Castrol Edge Fully Synthetic 5W30 Engine Oil? is this ok?

transmission oil - i'm a little confused here, i understand it's 75w90 but some people are saying not to use g5 and to use g4, what do you use, any good brands??

haldex oil - easy, buy direct from audi

rear diff - same as transmission oil?

front dif (if there is one?) - same as transmission oil?

many thanks

[colicabcadam]

based on the lack of responses, no ones ever had their oils changed on their s3?

[MrCSW]

I use:
Q8 5/40 synthetic 909.1 for the engine.
Transmission oil/ rear diff 75/90 synthetic gl5 (from audi)
Haldex oil + Filter from GSF (slightly cheaper than audi)
Front diff is part of the gearbox, transfer box is also filled from the gearbox.
Coolant - G12 (anything which complies to g12 spec)
Brake fluid - Motul Rbf 600

[colicabcadam]

I use:
Q8 5/40 synthetic 909.1 for the engine.
Transmission oil/ rear diff 75/90 synthetic gl5 (from audi)
Haldex oil + Filter from GSF (slightly cheaper than audi)
Front diff is part of the gearbox, transfer box is also filled from the gearbox.
Coolant - G12 (anything which complies to g12 spec)
Brake fluid - Motul Rbf 600

many thanks for the speedy reply, all makes sense.

do you know what the capacity of each part is from empty? I don't want to waste money on fluids i wont use..... i cant find any informartion on the transmission and rear diff capacity, engine oil is around 5 litres? coolant around 5 litres? brake fluid around 1.5 litres? and the haldex oil comes in a container that will fil lit from empty?

thanks in advance

many thanks

[1animal1]

is there much point in changing the rear diff fluids chaps? its the only part i havent changed as thought it was lifetime sealed?

[S3Steve]

I use Castrol Edge 5W30 engine oil. Motul Gear 300 75w90 for the transmission, which i found was a good improvement and has stopped the common issue of crunching gears when changing between 2nd and 3rd. As said above the transfer box is filled from the gearbox. Havent changed the rear diff oil so cant comment on that although i thought it was 75w85 not 75w90 like the gearbox. Might be worth having a look on opie oils website mate as they always have good info and offer good prices especially with the forum members discount we get.

[S3Steve]

is there much point in changing the rear diff fluids chaps? its the only part i havent changed as thought it was lifetime sealed?

If you listen to audi the transmission oil is sealed for life too but it made quite a difference when i changed mine, so im thinking it might be worth changing the rear diff oil too.

[MrCSW]

All my sources tell me the rear diff is the same oil as the g/box (audi/tps/gsf/caldo oils)
Rear diff takes just over 1ltr, and when i drained mine it was as black as the ace of spades... certainly wont hurt to change it (only take 5 minutes too)

[colicabcadam]

thanks guys, no matter what audi or any other manufacturer says, no oil is life long, all oils degrade over time, just some faster than others.

any news on the transmission oil capacity?

[MrCSW]

sorry, i thought i put it in the above post. oops.
Gearbox is just over 3 ltr, Rear diff is just over 1ltr ( I did mine last week so its still fresh in my mind)
Gearbox you'll need to fill once, then run it up to circulate into the tranny box then top it up again (first fill took 2.5ish, second too just over 1/2 ltr)

[colicabcadam]

sorry, i thought i put it in the above post. oops.
Gearbox is just over 3 ltr, Rear diff is just over 1ltr ( I did mine last week so its still fresh in my mind)
Gearbox you'll need to fill once, then run it up to circulate into the tranny box then top it up again (first fill took 2.5ish, second too just over 1/2 ltr)

nice one, thanks, i'm sure others will use this thread, good input!

[Andy´]

nice one, thanks, i'm sure others will use this thread, good input!

Yepp right on time. Was about to do all the oils too. Thanks guys for the info.

[The Doctor]

Rear diff takes just over 1ltr, and when i drained mine it was as black as the ace of spades... certainly wont hurt to change it (only take 5 minutes too)

I've done the Haldex oil & filter, but I keep meaning to do the rear diff on mine. Where's the drain screw and how do you re-fill it?

[S3 Nattie]

sorry, i thought i put it in the above post. oops.
Gearbox is just over 3 ltr, Rear diff is just over 1ltr ( I did mine last week so its still fresh in my mind)
Gearbox you'll need to fill once, then run it up to circulate into the tranny box then top it up again (first fill took 2.5ish, second too just over 1/2 ltr)

Very good info. I was going to do my gearbox fluid soon and though it took 2.6 ltrs from full to empty, didnt know the tranny box uses the same fluid.

When you say run it up to circulate the fluid into the tranny, what should you do exactly. Drive the car up the road or start the engine and go through the box a couple of times.

Nathan

[MrCSW]

Nattie - I ran mine up the road and back... Not sure if cycling through the gears stationary would work the same as effectively nothing is spinning. (unless you have the wheels off the floor (wheelfree ramp etc))

Doctor - The drains a 17mm allen plug on the bottom of the diff casing, The fill/ level hole is also a 17mm allen plug but on the front of the casing (approx halfway up)
The easiest way to get to the fill plug is with a plug tool like: http://www.toolbuddy.co.uk/ekmps/sho...ford-815-p.jpg
and a spanner as space is pretty restricted.

For anyone intrested the gearbox drain is a 14mm allen, as is the level/fill plug. The tranny box drain is a 12mm allen.

[S3 Nattie]

Thanks for the info. So just unplug the transfer box drain plug and gearbox drain plug then refit and refill through the gearbox filler plug till the fluid comes out of the filler. Go for a drive then refill again till fluid comes out of the filler plug, I should be able to do that if thats the right procedure lol.

Does anyone know where is the cheapest place to get Motul Gear 300 75w90 from, not the net though. Will need 4 litres for transfer and gearbox ye, 3 litres wouldnt be enough.

Nathan

[barters3]

Thanks for the info. So just unplug the transfer box drain plug and gearbox drain plug then refit and refill through the gearbox filler plug till the fluid comes out of the filler. Go for a drive then refill again till fluid comes out of the filler plug, I should be able to do that if thats the right procedure lol.

Does anyone know where is the cheapest place to get Motul Gear 300 75w90 from, not the net though. Will need 4 litres for transfer and gearbox ye, 3 litres wouldnt be enough.

Nathan

When i ordered my gear 300, camskill was the cheapest. I think opie oils have got a sale on motul oils at the moment.

[1animal1]

Spoke to my Audi tech today who says theres no diff on the back, just the haldex...... im sure you guys havent dreamt it :/

[barters3]

Spoke to my Audi tech today who says theres no diff on the back, just the haldex...... im sure you guys havent dreamt it :/

There's defiantly a diff...... its the first thing people warn about when changing the haldex oil. ie, not to remove the drain plug on the rear diff instead of the haldex drain plug.

[1animal1]

in that case i shall challenge him

[S3 TAM]

Sorry to repeat but just need to make sure I understand it before doing this.

Right so i need to undo the gearbox and tranny plug's "do i need to warm the oil up a tad before doing this?" drain oil out then fill up with oil till it comes out the filler, then drive it round the block. then refill till it comes out the filler again job done.

Can i use the same gearbox oil for the rear diff?

Cheers

[Welly]

in that case i shall challenge him

What was the outcome Tim?

[rossbrownlee]

Right so i need to undo the gearbox and tranny plug's "do i need to warm the oil up a tad before doing this?" drain oil out then fill up with oil till it comes out the filler

Alright mate, don;t want to teach a granny to suck eggs but...

Would advise you to take out the filler plug first BEFORE taking out the drain plug. would be terribly embarrassing to drain the oil and not be able to top it up again...

[Westy]

What was the outcome Tim?

There is definitely a rear diff. I had my oil replaced and watched my Audi specialist do it.

Tims Audi mech must be pants

[S3 TAM]

I had a chat with my Audi Tech yesterday he said you need to put "final drive oil" in the rear diff not gearbox oil.
Am I right in saying Final Drive oil is thicker than gearbox oil?
What spec is final drive oil. 75W90 or 75W85?

[S3 TAM]

Will this stuff do both gearbox and rear diff??????????????????????????????????

Motul MOTYLGEAR 75W-90 Gearbox and differential lubricant Technosynthese

Motylgear 75W-90

[S3 TAM]

Sorry to revive a thread but, I've just finished changing my rear diff oil and i noticed the bottom plug had bits of metal on it is this normal?

Edit: mine only took about 800ml of oil aswell.



here is a pic of the oil BLACK.

[Mr.G]

Recently had a full overhaul on transmission with Awesome GTI. Diff oil, Service and haldex replacement unit along with haldex oil/filter. Engine service carried out too. Big difference if the oils are changed in the diff.

G

[Dazboss]

I need this job doing very soon, along with gearbox (h)oil.

[S3 TAM]

Next on the list is gearbox oil, then all the fluids will be fresh.

[b1gdave83]

Rear diff oil defiantly different from the gearbox, it's thicker. I just went to TPS for correct oil's.

Rear diff - 1 litre
I was told gearbox was 2.1litres (6 speed quattro) (I measured what came out 2.1 litres)

3 litres!! Now I'm confused

[b1gdave83]

I found this

VWVortex.com - DIY: Transmission Fluid Change for 6 Speed O2M

Hope it helps

Looks like qty is any were between 2-3 litres.

[b1gdave83]

Sorry to revive a thread but, I've just finished changing my rear diff oil and i noticed the bottom plug had bits of metal on it is this normal?

Edit: mine only took about 800ml of oil aswell.



here is a pic of the oil BLACK.

I'd say yes that's wear, I didn't have as much as you but mine had 65K when I changed it. I presume you have higher mileage.

Thats the reason why I don't think it is sealed for life I don't care what Audi say. It's good that they have made the plug magnetic stops those little metals shavings causing any damage, but still I wouldn't want them in there.

[elvo]

iv recently had my rear diff oil, haldex and gearbox oil done and it made such a big difference. Iv sill to do the engine oil however im still unsure of what oil to use. Would this oil be ok Castrol Edge 5W30?? thanks