Syntorq

[tbrudder]

Originally posted by HoleshotHolset

Even if it is only used in NV-4500's (which I highly doubt) - the math still doesn't come out right.

I'm pretty sure I read this somewhere--New Vendor went to Castrol and said, "Here's our requirements due to [metallurgy|thermodynamics|wear|etc. ]--we can't find anything on the market that satisfies these and will go 100K without a fluid change, so we'd like you to make us one"

For example: If you buy engine oil by the quart or the 55 gallon drum - you don't see that much of a price difference... it sure as heck isn't less than 1/2 the price if you buy it in a drum rather than by the quart/gallon.

Granted--but then again, there's not nearly as much demand for this stuff as for, say, 90W gear oil. The manufacturers know this, the distributors know this--laws of supply and demand. If supply is low, prices go up. If you know you're one of two places in town that sells the stuff, you can get away charging more for it than if every service department, garage, autoparts store, and retail store sells the exact same thing.



It's also much cheaper to package a low-demand item in bulk than in consumer-size quantities.



I also recall reading somewhere (I really wish I could remember where I read this stuff ) that there was a deal made by Castrol that Chrysler and GM were the only entities allowed to distribute this lube by the quart. If true, this would also explain the high prices.

Lifetime fill requirement? Hogwash. Any OEM that claims that ANY fluid is lifetime fill is full of garbage.

Undoubtedly so. Lifetime-fill == get-out-of-warranty-probably-fill, as far as I can see. Which, as far as D/C is concerned, is probably a lifetime.



Maybe we need a group purchase for transmission oil...



--Ty

 

[Coalsmoke]

When I needed to replace the *Syntorq* in my NV4500, I couldn't find the stupid stuff anywhere. The dealer parts guy told me over $20 a bottle. It was going to cost me $100 provided I didn't waste / spill any. I did some digging and decided to go with pennzoil's synthetic GL-4 same viscosity oil. I've had it in for about 10,000kms now and the transmission seems to be fine. I didn't even notice a notable difference between feel of the two. With no new noises, feels, or metalic particles in the oil, I can recommend it as a good potential alternative.

 

[HoleshotHolset]

If New Venture went to Castrol and said: "Make us an oil just for the NV-4500. "



Wouldn't you think that Castrol would say: "Ahhh... how about no? We're not going to make a custom blend of oil just for that one transmission. "



If they went through with it... Castrol would have to make special batches of oil just for the NV-4500?



You're right. It probably is nothing more than a supply and demand issue, but if I'm going to get raked over the coals... I at least want to know exactly why and how.



What is inside of the NV-4500 that makes it so special/different when compared to other manual trannies?



If I thought I could get rid of the rest of a 16-gallon drum that I didn't use in a reasonable amount of time... AND I had a place to keep it... I'd buy a drum in a heartbeat. Anyone want to ante up and offer a place to store it?



Matt

 

[Sled Puller]

Different than some trannies, but not all.

They have a pos synchro that is made out of brass, with a fiber lining. Hard shifting and heat KILLS these synchros. Also shifting without the clutch, will burn that fiber facing right off.



Any 4500 I have seen apart, with synchro trouble, has that fiber facing messed up, regardless of lube choice.



The reason they call for a GL-4 synthetic is to keep heat down and to avoid the soft metal destruction of the synchro, nothing to do with the fiber facing.



Yes, my choice of lube is rated GL1-5, according to New Venture, too harsh for the soft metals. It takes extreme heat for it to happen though, something which is almost impossible with the better synthetic.

On the other hand, the factory lube has been prone to boiling away at levels far below soft metal melt down. - resulting in real problems, not ones that may happen.

I doubt you will ever get your truck to that point Matt, it is more of a BOMBed hotshotter problem, not a BOMBed holeshotter.



I'm sticking with the best I have found, no matter how cheap the other brands are, because it has been proven to work well for me.

 

[HoleshotHolset]

Gene: Good post! Are you feeling okay? I'm surprised at how (as Bob Wagner would say... ) sincere that post was.



Thanks for the info.



Matt

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

The notion that vast NEW proce$$e$ and refining facilities would be required for a supplier to provide a specific lube for our trannies is pretty far-fetched - probably nothing more than dumping in some additional conditioners into a base lube they already have - a trained chimpanzee could probably do it...

 

[HoleshotHolset]

Gary: You're probably right...



Matt