Gen 2 Transmission oil

[projectrracing]

I'm current investigating gearbox oils also. Mine is a Mazda box with a clutch plate LSD fitted. I see nothing from Castrol to say that VMX80 is for LSDs. But Sin75 does.

VMX80 is GL4, so all good for Mazda synchos, but Sin75 is GL5, so no good for Mazda synchos.

[NQMPS]

Yesterday I changed my G/box oil from the OEM Mazda oil to VMX80..... WOW What a difference!
So nice and light & smooth and i can now do speed gear changes with no hesitation at all, Feels like my Wifes GETRAG gearbox.

[IceValk85]

MPS6 with Redline MT90 gearbox oil now.

significant smoothness and functionality increase in gearbox over Pentrite SYN.

no more crunching 2nd gear, and better cold start shifting.

good stuff

Ice

[3MPSPWR]

I just bought a whole bottle of VMX 80 ready to change up in a few weeks time when i get a chance. I know Cton said that gen 1 and gen 2 uses different transmission oil however, when i was buying the VMX 80 i looked in the castrol book and for 3 MPS BK is still VMX 80 recommended? So yea, dunno? Unless i bought the wrong ones?? lol it is a white bottle right?

[NQMPS]

They do use different gearbox oil from the Gen 1 to gen 2 mps3 acording to the Castrol web site.

GEN 1:

MANUAL TRANSMISSION

CASTROL VMX-M 75W-85

or CASTROL SYNTRANS 75W-85

Service Refill Capacity: 2.5 Litres.

GEN 2:

MANUAL TRANSMISSION

CASTROL VMX 80

Mild extreme pressure gear oil with special viscosity stabilisers to overcome shift problems. Recommended for use in transaxles of most front wheel drive vehicles with a transverse engine and manual transmissions experiencing low temperature shift problems. SAE 75W/80, API GL4.

Service Refill Capacity: 2.5 Litres.

[3MPSPWR]

Yea, thats really strange though. Cause on the book they had there was no Gen 2 which tells me it was probably an old book and under Gen 1 it said VMX 80? Anyways, at least i bought the right one for the car.

They do use different gearbox oil from the Gen 1 to gen 2 mps3 acording to the Castrol web site.

GEN 1:

MANUAL TRANSMISSION

CASTROL VMX-M 75W-85

or CASTROL SYNTRANS 75W-85

Service Refill Capacity: 2.5 Litres.

GEN 2:

MANUAL TRANSMISSION

CASTROL VMX 80

Mild extreme pressure gear oil with special viscosity stabilisers to overcome shift problems. Recommended for use in transaxles of most front wheel drive vehicles with a transverse engine and manual transmissions experiencing low temperature shift problems. SAE 75W/80, API GL4.

Service Refill Capacity: 2.5 Litres.

[GoonBong]

I've tried several oils for the gearbox in my Gen 2. The Castrol SynTrans 75W-85 GL4 is the best so far and makes my shifts german smooth.

Castrol SynTrans > Penrite SYN > Castrol VMX 80 > Factory oil.

[SP23HO]

I've tried several oils for the gearbox in my Gen 2. The Castrol SynTrans 75W-85 GL4 is the best so far and makes my shifts german smooth.

Castrol SynTrans > Penrite SYN > Castrol VMX 80 > Factory oil.

Experience any 'Wong' noise from the diff?

I've tried all 3 but the syntrans. Seems its GL4 so i assume it poses no harm to the synchro's. Currently running on the VMX 80. Would like to know more about the Syntrans and how it fares after a few more K's.

[GoonBong]

Experience any 'Wong' noise from the diff?

I've tried all 3 but the syntrans. Seems its GL4 so i assume it poses no harm to the synchro's. Currently running on the VMX 80. Would like to know more about the Syntrans and how it fares after a few more K's.

No wong noise at all. Mileage may vary though, after looking through this thread it seems results differ between cars. But definitely the best oil I have thrown in it and not inclined to try any more brands.

I'll post back in this thread once I've clocked some km's on this oil.

[Redskin]

I just bought a "Penrite manual gear 75" oil. The specs are 75w80 GL4 but semi synthetic. According to the guy at repco and Penrite's oil reference catalogue, this oil is the specific one for the BL MPS, so I've purchased it. However, after searching the forum for info on how to change the oil, I came across this thread which suggests VMX-80 or Penrite Syn which are both fully synthetic. Did I get the wrong oil? If it is the right oil, I am willing to try it and report back with some feedback.

Thanks in advance.

[mymps11]

The vmx-80 is gettimg good reviews here, just for your information however, it is a mineral based oil as far as im aware! The penritr should be fine aslong as the specs are equivilent to what mazda recommends in the owners manual. Dont ask at your local dealer, they have no idea. I was going to try the vmx 80 but im thinking with the mps having an lsd diff that it would need an lsd specific oil. Does anyone with the know want to elaborate on what type of lsd the gen 2 runs? Is it a true mechanical lsd? Or a viscous

[Cton]

^Viscous. and the VMX meets the spec better than the Penrite. For the gen 2.

[Spudspec]

I recently did the gear oil in my ^, the dealer got it all wrong at first and put in a 75W90. made it hard to change and whined worse than a perverbial Pom on a hot day.
Took it back, they changed it, I took samples of the original oil as well as the stuff they used(which was wrong) and found there to be a Massave difference in Viscosity. in the end they replaced it with the VMX80 which has been the new factory oil spec given.
Still has a minor whine although gear changes are smoothers and good when cold. the factory fill though was much better. did 100,000ks on factory oil and if anyone is interested in the wear annalysis on the oil and a comparison between the stuff they put in, please PM me.

[LOOPYMPS]

I recently did the gear oil in my ^, the dealer got it all wrong at first and put in a 75W90. made it hard to change and whined worse than a perverbial Pom on a hot day.
Took it back, they changed it, I took samples of the original oil as well as the stuff they used(which was wrong) and found there to be a Massave difference in Viscosity. in the end they replaced it with the VMX80 which has been the new factory oil spec given.
Still has a minor whine although gear changes are smoothers and good when cold. the factory fill though was much better. did 100,000ks on factory oil and if anyone is interested in the wear annalysis on the oil and a comparison between the stuff they put in, please PM me.

I agree with the above. I have kept the original oil just in case I am not happy with the VMX80. Little noisier then stock 4 sure.

[LOOPYMPS]

I agree with the above. I have kept the original oil just in case I am not happy with the VMX80. Little noisier then stock 4 sure.

Just an update here. Checked gearbox nut and it needed a few more turns so I decided to fill it up a little more with the VMX80. This time I waited until the oil started dripping out and then put the filler bolt back in. Have been driving for a few days and the gearbox changes are much better and closer to what I was expecting with the VMX80. Make sure you fill it to the brim.

[Redskin]

I just bought a "Penrite manual gear 75" oil. The specs are 75w80 GL4 but semi synthetic. According to the guy at repco and Penrite's oil reference catalogue, this oil is the specific one for the BL MPS, so I've purchased it. However, after searching the forum for info on how to change the oil, I came across this thread which suggests VMX-80 or Penrite Syn which are both fully synthetic. Did I get the wrong oil? If it is the right oil, I am willing to try it and report back with some feedback.

Thanks in advance.

I've filled it up with the penrite manual gear 75 and been running it for 3 weeks now. The first week the gear change at cold start wasn't that impressive but now it feels good. Gear changes are a lot silkier and the wong wong noise seems to be the same as the stock oil. Again, for the first week or so, the wong wong noise was louder than stock them it settled right down. This is not to say I will not be trying the VMX-80 next time though :-)

[juld0zer]

I replaced the factory oil yesterday with VMX 80 and shifts feel quite a bit better now
quite a good result from $44 and about an hour's work (mostly due to laziness in jacking the car all the way up and Mazda's silly choice of those push-pin clips on the belly shield)
i may have slightly overfilled it because my driveway isnt perfectly level

1st to 2nd still has a slight crunch as it goes in.
and as some folks posted above, it feels lighter and easier/quicker to shift now.

If anyone wants my leftover oil, i've got about 1L in the bottle (used some to flush the factory oil out when draining) let me know.