AMSoil Synthetic trans fluid

[Bruce Bartlow]

I've been changing the OEM fluid every other oil change so every 15000 miles. I'll send a sample to Blackstone next time.

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Given that there are no outside contaminants in MTF you should be able to go 2 years without changing it .... bare minimum.

About Engine Oil. If you want to know it's safe to going beyond 3,000 - 7,000 miles (i.e., "extended drain intervals") you'll want to know the lubricant's total base number ("TBN") -- the oil's remaining ability to neutralize acids. Very very important number. It's an extra $10.00 to get TBN tested at Blackstone. So it's $25.00 (basic Blackstone test) + $10.00 for Blackstone TBN = $35.00, although discounts are available for 6-packs. OR you can consider another company, Oil Analyzers Inc. Oil Analyzers includes the TBN test at no extra charge, and even includes other useful tests like Oxidation and Nitration at no additional charge. Last i looked the whole enchilada at Oil Analyzers was $22.95 instead of Blackstone's $35.

Worthwhile tidbit: An oil begins to darken with as little as 2% oxidation. But there's a problem with that ----- we get faked out. The oil looks dirty so we think it is dirty. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Unless there are other reasons to change your oil (spectrograph readings, TBN, water, glycol) your oil is still clean and doing its job until it has reached 50% oxidation. In other words, the oil can appear dirty even when there's nothing wrong with it.

 

[None2Slow]

Thats correct, but a lot of us don't or can't have an oil test done. You can go by smell. If you have been doing it a long time, you just know what to look for. If you have a strong fuel smell, or even a burnt smell, time to change. Now this applies to engine oil. As for the trans, I just go every 2 years, but this is in auto cars. I have noticed in my manual cars that when its cold out, the shifter is harder to move. This is because the oil IS thicker when cold. GM synchromesh has been recomended on all the forums for Mustangs to Thunderbirds to most manual trans cars. Almost everybody says the same thing, it shifts smoother and isn't as hard in the cold. My thinking is that this is because of the multi viscosity of the fluid and being dino based. I would guess that any synthetic fluid of the correct viscosity would be better.