Which gear oil for TKO?

[750hp]

It appears the most popular gear oil for a Tremec trans is GM Synchromesh or the aftermarket equivalent made by Pennzoil.

As I seemingly can't buy either of those in Brisbane, what are you using for your Tremec?

Repco and Supercheap are almost identical in that they have the base Castrol and Caltex gear oil and some home brand variant and that's it.

Mine is a TKO600 if it makes a difference.

Thanks!

Craig

[Wazza]

Mrs Flatchat ( Chris Hatfield) should jump in here....he now works at Mal Wood's shop, and they're the only agent for Tremec.
( I've got a TKO in the Red Cobra...but Mal fitted it, and I can't remember what he used.

Cheers,
Warren

[byroncobra]

For my new Tremec T56 Mal Wood recommended Castrol Tranzmax Z (Fully Synthetic)

[Mrs flatchat]

Thanks Wazz , "Mal fitted your gear box" -- that was years ago ? --time for an oil change then, and be sure to use Castrol transmax Z

Most modern gearboxes use the synthetic as the synchros are designed for it

[750hp]

Thanks everyone for your input (here and offline).

Cheers

Craig

[Rog246]

All the boys on the Ford forums reckon that Mainlube is the go. From what I've read on there I will use it too. Apparently its particularly good with quick changes and it stops the Tremec's noise when idling on neutral-which is an issue apparently. It occurs in both Fords & Holdens

[bobcowan]

Royal Purple makes a good replacement fluid. IMO, it's on par with the GM stuff, and better than Penzoil.

[Towmaster]

Craig speak to Pete & Wayne at breaky...

[lippy]

If you can't get GM synchromesh fluid where you are, you could go to the GM website and find the part number/GM "standard" and find a fluid from another manufacturer that meets that exact standard. Otherwise, Jegs and Summit sells the GM fluid so you can get it if they are willing to ship overseas.

[byroncobra]

Apparently its particularly good with quick changes and it stops the Tremec's noise when idling on neutral-which is an issue apparently. It occurs in both Fords & Holdens

Transmax doesn't that's for sure.........

[PLDRIVE]

Redline MTL works great.

[Blownbadness]

The very best oil, best value for money too, in my opinion is the Penrite Pro gear 70.
Its the one oil I have found that works the best in Tremec 6 speeds.
I consistently get awesome feedback from customers when I upgrade their oil from the crappy Dex III to the full synthetic Penrite.
It fixes the cold baulking issue, it eliminates rattle when hot, provides super smooth shift feel and after tear down and inspection it has proved how superior it is in protecting the synchromesh cones and gear contact and bearing thrust areas in the race car. So much so that we have zero failures due to excessive heat created by standard oils breaking down under arduous conditions allowing metal to metal contact to occur thus creating even more heat and eventually leading to failure.
It provides all the benefits of running a heavier weight oil without all the problems associated with running thicker oil, like cold shift baulk, hard engagement of gears when cold and poor oil flow cold.
Its a full synthetic esther based oil with excellent additive pack to combat corrosion and wear and best of all is SHEER FREE. which means it will not break down, even under the most extreame conditions of circuit racing and has extremely high pressure additives to prevent metal to metal contact of components under extreme conditions. Sheer free also means that you put it in as a 70w-75 weight oil and it'll drain out as a 70w-75 oil even after a full season of racing!! Others will go in as a 70w-75 and may come out as low as 0w-20 after the gearbox has SHEARED the carbon molecules of the oil and separated their carbon chain or molecular composition and broken down the oils ability to maintain viscosity and ability to protect the gearbox adequately.

Penrites Pro gear 70 is VERY well priced and very affordable and exceeds any other moderately priced oil in its ability to perform.
Don't get me wrong their is better oils on the market but the price of these oils is somewhat prohibitive and their availability can be difficult at times.
Oils from Royal Purple and Redline are on the same playing field as the Penrite (after analysing independent testing done on these oils) yet they can be from 2 to 4 times more expensive per litre.
A chemist I use to test my oils even remarked at the numbers the Penrite oil achieved in his testing. He was sold instantly on the brilliance of Penrites gear oils to perform and said that he had only seen two other exotic oil blends in his time that had compared or exceeded the Penrite oil. That was enough scientific evidence for me.
Real life evidence is witnessed when draing the standard Dex III take a look at the magnet on the drain plug... you will be sure to see plenty of evidence of wear in the fact that heaps of tiny metal filings (and sometimes bigger pieces of gears or bearings) will be stuck to he magnet. Run the Penrite in there for the same time and youll see the same magnet will have NO metal attached to it at all.... That's proof enough I think.





Now don't think that I work for Penrite, I DON'T... But I am huge supporter and ambassador of their products and I stand by them in everything I own and its the only oil I use in my customers cars. I know the guys at Penrite and have built a fantastic working relationship with them over he years and became their premier workshop after dealing with them, repairing their own vehicles and promoting their product without any prompting. They even made me come to one of their sales meetings and talk to their national and international sales team about my passion for their oil and the reasons why I use them. So like I said there may be some oils on the market that perform a little tiny bit better but for their cost prohibits their day to day use. Value for money, bang for ya buck the Penrite Pro gear 70 is my choice for the TKO 6 speed gearbox everytime.
Try it for yourself and you will see..

Here is a product spec page: Penrite Oil - A Better Class Of Oil

[750hp]

Mate that's a HUGE amount of info thanks very much! I heard some really good feedback today that was similar to your thoughts, even up to the Pro Gear 75/90 for fast street and circuit use. Thanks again.

I see you are working at GV. Welcome to the site. It might be worth starting a new thread to introduce yourself. I bet you'll be playing with some interesting toys at work!

Cheers

[STEVE-O]

Yuou could also use this:

Cobra Valley's Chemicals - Ultra-Shift Transmission Lubricant

[byroncobra]

WOW what a wrap for Penrite......very convincing, thanks for your input

[Blownbadness]

Thanks guys.
Just new at GV, but I'm in heaven. Some tough as machines I get to play with...
I have been working on Cobra replicas for customers for many years now and countless Cobra Mustangs.
The best experience of my career was in Feb of this year driving a Superformance Cobra replica with a 402 Roush in it down Beach Rd in the middle of summer, strapped in tight, sunnies on, side pipes playing that wonderfull big block music I love, just cruising enjoying the rays..........Till I made the mistake of giving it the beans in 3rd!! OMFG!!!! What the hell you guys??? How the hell do you guys hang on to these things?? To say it shocked me was an understatement...When the cam comes on song (don't ask me what RPM I was too busy trying to stay alive!!) the whole world appeared to tip up sideways and throw me around like some cruel joke!!

Im probably exaggerating a bit but wow...I have personally fitted big pumps to LS4's and 7's, achieved 436 Rwkw and still didn't get the surprise I did in that thing...
Awesome just simply awesome.....
As if I didn't love Shelby's enough that drive cemented me as a Cobra replica FREAK...

Now to be working where I am with people who have a reputation like George has is a dream come true...
Thank you for the warm welcome... dunno about starting a thread....I'm not that interesting.....But I do have excellent technical knowledge and love sharing it around and helping out with reliable, mostly unbiased, information that gets put to good use...It is like my therapy!!!

[Clois Harlan]

I have a new TR 6060 6 speed for a 2013 Shelby GT 500 and the label on the transmission clearly states to us only Dexron III automatic transmission fluid.

In my TKO 600 I used GM Syncromesh.


Clois