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The owner's manual shows 75W-85 GL-5 in rear differential so figured Redline should do. Front says it uses 90W GL-5. Not sure if front is an open differential or not so unclear if friction modifiers are required for front diff? Any ideas what kind (brand/weight) of oil to put up front on AWD? I'm not finding straight-weight synthetic lube. Car has 49K and Lexus Dealer says differentials never needs changing. I want to drain and refill both unless it is not recommended here.
If you look in the owners manual it will give you what viscosity/weight of oil to use for your climate. I had a hard time locating any GL5 "75w85", so I went with Mobil 1 Synthetic GL5 75w90 in my vehicle. The additive pack in Mobil one says its backwards compatible for both open and LSD differentials.
Smart move on changing them. My rear differential fluid was very dirty and the magnetic drain plug had lots of metal shavings from the differential breaking themselves in. The front differential wasn't nearly as bad though. I'm a big believer that oil is the life blood of these components and keeping them clean will enhance longevity. Good luck!
75W-85 is not too common but Redline does have it and it's approved for the rear differential, they say. The straight weight in the front differential seems odd. Maybe some 80w-90 or 75W-90 synthetic in the front would suffice. Still too bad the automatic transmission oil cannot be changed.
The automatic transmission fluid can be changed in these cars but it's not an easy endeavor. I plan on changing my automatic transmission fluid when the car reaches 60k miles. I will probably do a DIY video for this too if I have time.
That would be totally awesome for a DIY on changing the ATF. I asked the Dealer about it yesterday and they claim the suck the fluid out using the cooler lines. I've not been under my car yet but am curious if there is a removable oil pan, drain plug, fill plug, etc. I understand there is no fill tube. Seems like if the oil can be removed, then measured on how much came out, one could put that same amount back in and be good-to-go. :-)
Yes, there is a removable transmission oil pan and I would highly recommend you remove it if you're going through all the trouble to change the fluid. There are magnets in the bottom of the oil pan that collect any metal shavings and these must be cleaned. I'm surprised the dealer is willing to change the transmission oil for you, there are some on this board who have asked and they have declined. How much did they quote you out of curiosity?
That would be totally awesome for a DIY on changing the ATF. I asked the Dealer about it yesterday and they claim the suck the fluid out using the cooler lines. I've not been under my car yet but am curious if there is a removable oil pan, drain plug, fill plug, etc. I understand there is no fill tube. Seems like if the oil can be removed, then measured on how much came out, one could put that same amount back in and be good-to-go. :-)
Draining is easy as there is a drain plug on the ATF pan right in the middle of the car. Filling back up is a bit of a pain as you need a pump. On the driver's side of the transmission, there is a bolt that serves as a fill plug. Like you said, you basically can just drain some and put back in what drained out. Pic is from a 3rd gen GS but it's not much different then out 4th gen GS.
Draining is easy as there is a drain plug on the ATF pan right in the middle of the car. Filling back up is a bit of a pain as you need a pump. On the driver's side of the transmission, there is a bolt that serves as a fill plug. Like you said, you basically can just drain some and put back in what drained out. Pic is from a 3rd gen GS but it's not much different then out 4th gen GS.
These newer Toyota and Lexus sealed transmissions are said to be very picky on the fluid levels, and because the fluid expands with heat, the levels must be taken at set temperature ranges. It's not like diff fluid, where you just fill until it overflows from the fill hole.
You can try to measure the amount of fluid that comes out and put back the exact amount, but 90% of the time you are bound to spill some, and those quart bottle fill pumps aren't very precise either since some fluid i bound to get stuck in the tubing.
Yes, there is a removable transmission oil pan and I would highly recommend you remove it if you're going through all the trouble to change the fluid. There are magnets in the bottom of the oil pan that collect any metal shavings and these must be cleaned. I'm surprised the dealer is willing to change the transmission oil for you, there are some on this board who have asked and they have declined. How much did they quote you out of curiosity?
I spoke with my mechanic at Toyota that has been doing work for me for at least 10 years, no problem hooking up to the WS machine and replace all 12-14 quarts. I want to replace at 60k which is another 4k for me. Doing rear Diff oil at the same time or will do at home, same for the front diff. $189.00 for the trans service. He discussed the proper procedure for checking the trans fluid level.
I spoke with my mechanic at Toyota that has been doing work for me for at least 10 years, no problem hooking up to the WS machine and replace all 12-14 quarts. I want to replace at 60k which is another 4k for me. Doing rear Diff oil at the same time or will do at home, same for the front diff. $189.00 for the trans service. He discussed the proper procedure for checking the trans fluid level.
I haven't looked into the correct way to check the fluid level in our transmissions but I'm sure its like every other sealed for life transmissions where you wait for the transmission to get to a certain operating temperature in order to determine if its full or not. The only thing that scares me about the using a machine is cross contamination of fluid with the car before. Plus, in my opinion, its a must that the pan be dropped, cleaned, and the filter changed. Would you change the oil in your car without changing the filter?
$189 seems unbelievably cheap especially for Lexus/Toyota branded fluid. He must really like you!
I have studied the procedure and your are correct, certain temp at a certain level, I also believe a jumper is installed at one of the wire junctions that puts the computer into a certain mode to monitor the trans temp as it warms up and when it correct, a light flashes on the dash and do your check at that point, something along those lines. He said he would make sure the machine is clean and purged prior to connecting, again over 10 years with him and have trust.
I had a discussion with him on dropping the pan and such, however, my research finds that on our cars, its a strainer type, so it could be taken out and cleaned or just replace. I believe the part is about $60.00
I need to get a quote on pan drop. $189.00 covered only the service and included 12 or 14 quarts of Toyota WS fluid.
I don't like these sealed units at all, I am not taking any fluid 100,000 miles :nono :
Yea, i'm not a fan of these sealed units either. I think its just another way to cut costs because now they don't need to buy a dip stick tube, dip stick, and even a drain bolt. It may sound cheap to add these items and it is but when you times it by the number of vehicles, it works out to be millions of dollars. You're a smart man to change it early! I don't even follow the 10k oil change intervals. Too many other brands having issues with these long drain intervals so we change our oil much sooner.
I'm sorry that I did not ask the Lexus dealer what the transmission fluid replacement costs. They only told me if they do it at all, they do at at 120K miles. They say some Client's want it done and others don't care. I guess with an extended Lexus warranty, I suppose the fluid could go bad, transmission crap out, and they'd maybe install a new transmission with any luck.
I need to crawl under this car and look around. Getting curious.
Thank you for contacting Red Line Oil. Manufacturers are reducing the viscosity of the lubricants used across their range for the improvement in the CAFE numbers provided. In your vehicle(s) where a 75W85 GL-5 is specified in the differentials, that would be our recommendation and I wouldn’t expect a sacrifice in protection from its use. The 75W90 would also be an option, for some additional potential protection. Regards, Dave G.
The question I asked Redline was "should I use the 75W-85 in the rear differential or can I use one step heavier?"
09-17-16, 07:34 PM
Gear oil for front diff on Gs 350 F-Sport?
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