I went to local parts store and got Valvoline synthetic fluid for my car....

Bryan

 

 

I had the same issue, I now run Royal Purple Syncromax, available at PepBoys. It works just fine, slick shifts, quiet operation. (2005 R50, Gertrag 5 speed)

I made the mistake of getting into replacing my half shafts without having planned for adding some fluid and bought some regular full synthetic 75-90 gear oil (that appeared to be the viscosity rating for the OEM BMW "lifetime" fluid) just to get me running in the short term, but it was MUCH thicker than the OEM fluid and resulted in notably harder shifting and more noise, so that lasted a week before research and convenience brought me to the royal purple solution. Plus I got a great deal on it too.

 

Yep.....you can get it in two days if you order it off of Amazon.

 

 

 

What is it that the MTL offers that Synchromax doesnt? I cant think of anything that I want my gearbox to do that is isnt already doing...

Just curious why it has a near religious following around here.

 

 

Virtually anything is cheaper than the OEM fluid MTL was 30% more expensive than RP Synchro when I was shopping around...

When I was lookinginto this a few months ago I saw a lot of people recommending it on the internet, but nothing in the way of hard facts.

Race teams often use what they are paid or sponsored to use, so thats not necessarily a convincing argument, but if it can be shown that the transmission is more efficient with a particular fluid that would make sense.

Having put a regular 75-90 synthetic fluid in and experienced the harder shifting (1-2, 2-3 in particular) and extra noise cruising at highway speeds I can appreciate that there are definitely differences in performance, but having switched to the RP (it was cheaper and more conveniently available than redline) I have a hard time imagining how the shifts would be any smoother than they are at present. Maybe next time (if there is a next time) Ill try the Redline and see if Its any different.

Im not saying MTL is a bad choice here, I just have my doubts that its all that different to the OEM or RP fluids when it comes to analysing its physical properties or performance characteristics.

 

I think the MTL is used a lot because it's been proven....it just works. When it comes to a few extra dollars for fluid, or rolling the dice on a different type of fluid and possibly damaging the transmission, I'd say most people will just pay the extra few dollars and buy the MTL.

Although....after I drained my oem fluid and filled it up with the MTL, I didn't notice it shifting any better.......but it didn't shift any worse either.