Subaru Extra-S VOA

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Pretty boring stuff. I like the boron! Enjoy!

extraS.jpg
 
13.5 is the lower limit of a 90 weight.
13.84cst is pretty light and probably on purpose for the shift quality in a manual transmission. Bet it shears into a 75w85 very quickly.

Seems to be a little light on Phosphorous for a GL5. In the closet GL4?
 
GL4 lubes tend to shift much better in this tranny.. at the expense of the hypoid gear. I should get a UOA done on this oil after 30k miles to see where it stands in comparison. However, that won't be for almost 2 years.

I suspect what it's missing in phosphorous it makes up with the calcium and boron:

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=729349

It does seem to have a much higher concentration of these additives compared to the UA's.

What I have noticed with this lube is that it's very consistent when it gets hot. Meaning, shift quality and feel stays pretty much the same, unlike other more expensive synthetic lubes I've tried such as Motul Gear 300 and Redline's shockproof. After a highway drive these other lubes would feel much thinner which degraded the shift quality some.
 
This fluid is used in many Sube MT's AND differentials.

The formulation reflects that the FM and AW/EP components, and the viscosity is well suited for manual transmissions requiring a 75W90.

The boron additives have been increased in some gear oil formulations to beef up the AW/EP levels to compensate for the reduced S-P adds.

I suspect the sulfur is in the 3300 ppm level category.

As far as for differentials, much depends on the diffy design and its loading.
 
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Hi Molakule! What's your overall opinion of this lube, or is too early to tell from a $25 VOA?

I think I'm going to stick with Motul Gear 300 in the rear diff at 30k intervals. With a diff that takes only .7 quarts I want something that can take the heat *very* well.
 
And how would MTL-R have looked with a similar VOA?

webfors - I agree with you on Gear 300. The shift quality even seemed to get notchy for me after 12k on the oil. Extra-S, MTL-R, and now Delvac never seemed notchy for me. Smooth like buttah.

You should have asked for donations on this. I donated to a particular popular cocktail VOA.

-Dennis
 
Quote:
I think I'm going to stick with Motul Gear 300 in the rear diff at 30k intervals. With a diff that takes only .7 quarts I want something that can take the heat *very* well.


For peace of mind, I think the Gear 300 would be a better differential lube.
 
I wonder if the specs from the 10+ year old MSDS still apply? The pour point looks good for a highly refined mineral oil, IMO.

SAFETY DATA SHEET

SHOWA SHELL SEKIYU

KABUSHIKI KAISHA

ISSUED: FEBRUARY 5, 1998

SUBARU EXTRA GEAR OIL S 75W-90


1. IDENTIFICATION OF THE SUBSTANCE/PREPARATION AND COMPANY


PRODUCT NAME: SUBARU EXTRA GEAR OIL S 75W-90

PRODUCT TYPE: GEAR OIL

SUPPLIER: SHOWA SHELL SEKIYU KABUSHIKI KAISHA
ADDRESS: DAIBA FRONTIER BUILDING, 3-2 DAIBA 2 CHOME,
MINATO-KU TOKYO 135 JAPAN

2. COMPOSITION/INFORMATION ON INGREDIENTS


PREPARATION DESCRIPTION:
BLEND OF HIGHLY-REFINED MINERAL OILS AND ADDITIVES.
9. PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES


PHYSICAL STATE: LIQUID AT AMBIENT TEMPERATURE.

COLOUR: YELLOW LIQUID

ODOUR: CHARACTERISTIC MINERAL OIL

INITIAL BOILING POINT: EXPECTED TO BE ABOVE 280 DEG. C

VAPOUR PRESSURE: EXPECTED TO BE LESS THAN 0.5 EPA AT 20 DEG. C.

DENSITY: 896 AT 15 DEG. C (KU/M3)

VAPOUR DENSITY (AIR=1): GREATER THAN 1

POUR POINT: -46 DEG. C

FLASH POINT: 192 DEG. C (COX)

FLAMMABILITY LIMIT - LOWER: 1 % VI/VI

FLAMMABILITY LIMIT - UPPER: 10 % VI/VI

AUTO-IGNITION TEMPERATURE: EXPECTED TO BE ABOVE 320 DEG. C

SOLUBILITY IN WATER: NEGLIGIBLE

http://rtk.complyplus.com/msds/frame.asp?sheetid=1145208

-Dennis
 
It's debatable if it's pure conventional oil IMHO. Keep in mind the Subaru dealer had two gear oils they could order in this quantity. The first was "Subaru Extra 80w90" and the second was "Subaru Extra S 75w90". We can speculate all day what the "S" stands for
grin2.gif
 
Originally Posted By: webfors
We can speculate all day what the "S" stands for
grin2.gif


SHOWA SHELL SEKIYU.
smile.gif


-Dennis
 
I just switched to Extra S in an 07' i. Feel I noticed a difference right away. Nothing major, just a smoother 1-2 shift, which was why I went searching. Before 2500 mi it was hard. Going into reverse works every time now, while before it would occasionally not go in without playing around.

10K mi on the car, 500 on the S. I didn't flush the old oil, and was hoping at the next change, the 1-2 shift would even get better. I was hoping the S didn't have sulfur, but thinking now, that it might. I want to protect gears, not hurt syncros, and have a Nice shifting trans.

In the 60's, I had a Dodge that got hard to shift in the cold. I added Slip G, and it shifted easy in the cold. In the 70's, I had a Mercury Capri, with the Good, shifter in the box trans, and the trans started to growl when decelling on the highway. Dealer tried to convince me they All made the noise, and wouldn't check the fluid level. I did and it only had 1/3 the oil it should. Filled it and the noise went away, and never had a trans problem.

Vince F
 
only problem I am seeing with the S is, when cold (20-30 deg) the 2-1 shift is hard. All other up and down shifts seem like they did when I changed to it in the fall, which was better than the FF and seems to be improving gradually. I didn't flush the old oil.

One thing that is concerning me is, the FF oil that came out of the rear was black, and a good bit of debris on the mag drain plug, a good bit more than the trans one, where the old oil was brown. Going to put some miles on the oil and drain it to see what it looks like. The rear might get hotter only having .8 qts in it and a smaller case than the transaxle up front that has 3.7 qts, and a bigger case.
 
It's normal for the differential oil to come out like it did the first time. It's break-in wear. It'll be much cleaner the next time and will come out looking pretty much like new with just a bit of metal on the magnet the third time you change it.

I always change the transmission and differential oils at 2000 miles on all of my new vehicles.

Ed
 
Even though the transaxle has more oil, why wouldn't it be blackish, and have at least as much debris or maybe more, having more gears? Would think the front axle was doing as much work as the rear with AWD.

The change was at 10K mi.
 
Originally Posted By: VinceF
Even though the transaxle has more oil, why wouldn't it be blackish, and have at least as much debris or maybe more, having more gears? Would think the front axle was doing as much work as the rear with AWD.

The change was at 10K mi.



I have a suspicion the FF rear diff fluid is grey'ish in color when new. I dumped mine at 10k and it was awful looking. The Motul Gear 300 I replaced it with looked like new when it came out after 30k.
 
I have 4qts of this at home I'm waiting to put in. I've read nothing but good things about it. It seems to be the preferred MTF among Subaru owners.
 
After 400 miles on Extra S, the car is shifting so much better and it's now completely silent. This is the fluid to use in Subaru MT's. Highly regarded on many subaru forums.

Going to sample it by the year end.
 
Originally Posted By: buster
After 400 miles on Extra S, the car is shifting so much better and it's now completely silent. This is the fluid to use in Subaru MT's. Highly regarded on many subaru forums.

Going to sample it by the year end.


Correct, I have used nothing but for the past 50k miles. I use it in the diff too. I have just enough for one more change, which should get me to 150k miles.
 
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