

| Subject: | Gear Oil: Opinion/subjective experience |
| From: | Don Hanson |
| Date: | Fri, 3 Dec 2010 11:00:30 -0800 |
Manual transmission, 5sp hooked up to a 2.0liter ABA Jetta motor putting out (guessing) maybe 140hp. In a low top van with a partial Westie interior and 14" wheels. I recently reworked the driveline of this van, building a more powerful motor with a custom exhaust, replacing the clutch, doing the CV joints, trans mount, etc. When I re-installed the tranny the second time around (don't ask)...I went with Redline MT 40. I have used this before, but I had been running Swepco 201 right up to the engine swap. I put about 1000 miles on the van(and the MT-90) so far, and after my exhaust system was finished and the mountings finalized to make everything real nice and smooth, I could really notice the difference in the gear noise. Using the Redline, the shifting was a little less smooth, but the lever moves easier. The Redline feels like what it is....much thinner than the Swepco, not so "slick" feeling. So I drained it again (into a nice clean pan, then put it back in the bottles for later use somewhere) the Redline MT-90 and re-filled with Swepco 201. What with my quieter exhaust system (significantly quieter and smoother than the one I had before the new motor) I can certainly feel and hear the difference...It just feels 'happier' back there, less 'stressed'...less "busy". And while it has only been down to about 20f so far, I have not felt the expected 'stiff-stick' with a cold gearbox. I also don't feel the slight hesitation that I did as the syncros worked, like was the case with that MT-90 . I will be interested to see how my gas mileage is affected, there should be some difference...I have been getting 23.5 with the MT-90 and the new 2.0/1.8l hybrid motor. I expect more from the Swepco, especially on sustained high speed driving. It seems much 'slicker'... We'll probably have some comments from the Peanut Gallery now, saying...."Oh, you can't use Swepco..it will ______________ your gearbox"...but I ran it all last year and the inside of the gearbox looked immaculate when I had it apart recently...with no deterioration on the bronze or any ill effects. Just saying, as my subjective opinion....All those Porsche guys are onto sumpthin, running that high dollar dino oil in the gearbox.. Don Hanson
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