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Drivetrain Oil?

DrkZide

DrkZide

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I tried searching through the forum and I couldn't really find anything concrete and it was a lot of individual searching for different items. I figured I would ask about all of them in one thread and possibly get it stickied if there was enough good information on the subject.

I'm about to change the oil on the front/rear diffs, transmission (SM465) and Transfercase. I'm not sure which TCase I have but I "THINK" it's the NP205.

Now on my racecar I normally use Redline products (Redline MTL - Tranny, Redline ShockProof - TCase/Diffs), but seeing how my truck is a completely different animal, I wanted to see what you guys recommended?

For the engine on my car I use Mobil1 FullSyn but on the truck I use Shell RotellaT since it's just as good but a bit cheaper.
 
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I just went with lucas in both diffs, and synthetic rottella for engine. I guess we'll see how they do?? I'm just doing non synthetic valvoline dex/merc for my 700r4/np208
 
Just standard issue gear oil will be fine. Are you going to be driving in standing water regularly?

Martin
 
Well, you have to figure out which t-case you have. If it's the 86 K10 in your sig it should have an NP208 aluminum case t-case. Unless an NP205 was swapped in which should have an iron case, I believe?

NP208 is a chain driven unit and takes ATF as a lube.

NP205 is a gear driven unit and uses gear lube, 75/90 or 80/90.
 
You are correct. He probably has an NP208 (would have been factory) which is an aluminum case. If some one has swapped in an NP205, it would be a cast iron case. Some NP205's used ATF as well though. There should be a round red tag on the back of the transfer case that tells you the number. NP208C would be my guess.

Martin
 
I will be driving through standing water a bit (as my sig shows even the parking lot has standing water lol). I'll check the TCase when I get home but I do know that I can NOT shift into 4Hi on the fly which I thought is an ability that the NP208 has, which makes me think it was the NP205. The vehicle was originally a 4x4 V6 that the P-PO swapped in a 350, so who knows what else was swapped in, but he did a horrible job on the supporting mods for the swap (left the V6 exhaust and stock shocks that are now blown and let the 4WD hubs die so I had to replace those).
 
Grab a magnet. If it sticks to the case, its probably a 205.
 
Might want to change your title to DRIVETRAIN OIL. When I first seen your title I was like WTF, someone thinks the driveline is supposed to have oil in it. :haha:
 
4X4HIGH said:
Might want to change your title to DRIVETRAIN OIL. When I first seen your title I was like WTF, someone thinks the driveline is supposed to have oil in it. :haha:
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Didn't bother me too much. Even as long as I have been on here, you folks still manage to come up with something I haven't seen.

I know a lot of folks use the balancing beads in their larger tires to keep them rolling smooth and balanced, so I just figured someone was putting oil in the drive-shaft to dampen vibrations from a mismatched angle setup....................................
 
DrkZide said:
I will be driving through standing water a bit (as my sig shows even the parking lot has standing water lol). I'll check the TCase when I get home but I do know that I can NOT shift into 4Hi on the fly which I thought is an ability that the NP208 has, which makes me think it was the NP205. The vehicle was originally a 4x4 V6 that the P-PO swapped in a 350, so who knows what else was swapped in, but he did a horrible job on the supporting mods for the swap (left the V6 exhaust and stock shocks that are now blown and let the 4WD hubs die so I had to replace those).
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There is no reason a 205 cannot be shifted to high on the fly, I do it all the time during the winter months here. I normally lock my hubs in around November and can just reach over and pull it into 4high when the road conditions warrant it. The only sure way to tell which case you have is get under there and see which case is installed. At this point it could be any one of a number of different cases.
 
So the little red tag says 208C3, which is weird because every time I try to shift into 4Hi while I'm still moving, it starts making a grinding noise (same noise you get when trying to shift into Granny gear). So that would be some sort of ATF? DexIII maybe?

EDIT: Yes I meant to type Drivetrain and noticed I typed Driveline after I posted LOL
 
Auto or manual hubs? Are the hubs in when you try 4 on the run?
 
:dunno:So what weight synthetic should I run in my 10 bolt diffs? Will Mobil1 75w90 work good? I'll be towing my camper with it. Also I have an NP241 transfer case what do you recommend for that? Sorry about the lame questions, its a new to me rig and I don't have the owners manual. And sorry about the semi thread hijacking.
 
MNorby said:
Auto or manual hubs? Are the hubs in when you try 4 on the run?
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Manual hubs and they're locked. I can stop and put it in 4Hi without exiting the vehicle but not while it's moving. I'm assuming that's what they mean by on the fly (still moving).
 
Only up to a certain mph, I think its like 35 or 50 or somthing. The 75w-90 is fine for that truck. If your towing alot in arizona or somewhere real hot all the time you can use the 85w-140.
 
Here is the thing. Some T-cases have synchronizers that will spin up the front drive-shaft when you go to shift on the fly.
Some, like most of the 205s don't.
I say most, because they made a synchronized 205 also. I have never personally seen one, but they are not all that rare.

However, if the front and rear shafts are turning at the same are almost same speed, then you can shift just fine.
Its only when there is a big speed difference that you get the gears grinding.
Like when one gear is stopped and the other is spinning.

On my truck with a 205, if I turn the front hubs, then I can shift on the fly at just about any speed I want, as long as the front and rear wheels are running the same speed.
If the rear wheels are spinning in mud, I back off the gas for a second to let them slow down to the same speed as the fronts are rolling, shift, and then get back on the gas.

If you turn your hubs, and the gears grind when you try to shift into 4hi while driving straight with no wheel spin, then you really need to find out why.
For some reason the front and rear shafts are not turning at the same speed.
It might be a problem, or it might not.
Causes are things like:
Different size tires front and rear.
Hubs not locking in.
Trouble in the front diff.
Different gear ratio front and rear.
Damage in the T-case.

If it shifts and runs OK from a stop, then hopefully its not the T-case.
But you really need to address the rest before doing any hard core wheeling.

If your front and rear have covers, then its simple to count the teeth when you change the oil and make sure they both have the same number.
 
regular ATF in the 208/241 t-cases, and you SHOULD be able to shift while moving, up around the 45mph mark.

If you have never had anything done with the diffs, or don't know much about them, I would be checking the gears to make sure they are the same front/rear.

I know when I shift on the fly with mine, it will give a little clunk or two until it fully engauges, usually pretty quick, but nothing horrible.
 
Fordum said:
For some reason the front and rear shafts are not turning at the same speed.
It might be a problem, or it might not.
Causes are things like:
Different size tires front and rear.
Hubs not locking in.
Trouble in the front diff.
Different gear ratio front and rear.
Damage in the T-case.

If it shifts and runs OK from a stop, then hopefully its not the T-case.
But you really need to address the rest before doing any hard core wheeling.
Click to expand...

I do know my hubs are bad, when I had the truck in the air and tested the 4WD the front tires did not turn, the driveshaft did but not the tires. I just got a set of premium Warns in today so I'll pick up some snap ring pliers tomorrow and change them out.
 
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