matt-greenwell@UTC.EDU writes:

<<  2. grindy tranny (moving from 1st to second). worse when
cold. decided  to drain the gearbox, and fill with synthetic gear
oil. i've been  following recent threads about oil weights, brands,
etc. my options for  synthetic seem a bit limited. i have (but
haven't used yet) mobil 1  synthetic gear oil 75w90. i know
bently calls for 80w90, and i haven't  heard anything regarding
the pros and cons of mobil 1. (there is no  local supplier of r
ed-line). and thoughts on this?   >>

OK- my 2/100ths.....

Sounds typical for excessive wear on the syncros due to running
the GL5 based petroleum gear oil.  Not your fault-thats what VW
stuck in there to begin with.  So whats done is done.  Try the
Mobil 1 or Castrol Syntec or Amsoil or whatever you've got.  You
won't do any more damage or cause anymore wear than whats
already done.  See what happens-the sticky syncro may free up
enough to allow smoother shifting into 2nd when cold.  Then again,
it may not.   If it works then great!  A cheap fix!  If it doesn't then
you can either ignore it until it no longer goes into gear and then
you get a rebuilt trans or drop it right then and get a rebuilt.

-Todd Hill
 VolksWerks Transaxles
 Olympia, WA
 360-412-0948