How Many?

Okay, so I finally found someone that has tools and would let me use them to change my gear oil. I'm gonna be heading out in a bit to buy the fluids and everything but was wondering if anyone knew how many quarts are needed for the transaxle?

Okay guys, I need help. I went to the store and found what I was looking for but the guy behind the counter was like saying I should just stick with the 75W-90 since that's what was originally in the car. He also said that the Penzzoil Synchromesh, the one I was about to get, was made for like GMs and Chryslers and shouldn't go into GTs. What do you guys think? I need to get this cleared soon because I'm gonna be doing the change tomorrow...ugh! Which one's "better?"

Chrysler = Dodge = Stealth = 3000GT, it's what you use. Most "guys behind the counter" don't know anything about our cars. I went to buy oil for an oil change and he told me 10W-30 (which is fine) was the specification. I go to the dealer and it was 20W-50 Racing oil for the specification. The automatic transmission fluid that you get from the dealer is made for Chryslers (ATF Type-F) and it's what goes in our cars.

What kind of oil did you get, just no name 75W-90? I think that would be fine, but the Penzoil should be fine as well.

I actually didn't get any yet because I was waiting for you guys to reply first, but it was gonna be either Mobil 75W-90, or the Penzoil Synchromesh. I'm about to head on out again to buy the Penzoil. Thanks. :)

Does oil expire? LOL Because the ones I got seemed to have been on the counter a long time and everywhere seems to be out, so I bought it. How long does oil last in its original container?

its been the same oil for billions of years...

The guy behind the counter is a moron. Just because its made by GM doesnt mean you cant use it.

Yeah I wanted to call him a moron too, but didn't want to be mean, thanks stealthee! lol. As long as the package was unopened it should be good.

I got synchromesh in mine...the guy is a moron.
Check the write up on stealth316, he explains the best oils to use and why...and synchromesh is high on the list.

i got synchromesh in mine as well. i got it really cheap (compared to other places/prices) online at www.midwayautosupply.com. i just checked, and they still sell it @ $7.49 a quart.

how much was your auto store charing you per quart for the pennzoil synchromesh you found there? i've heard other had a difficult time finding the pennzoil synchromesh at an auto store.

Okay guys, I need HELP!!! We tried doing a gear oil change but could not today so I have returned banged over. Questions:

1. First problem was that we could not find the proper jacking points. I've jacked the front of the car before but have never done the back. To lift it, we ended up lifting the hydrolic jack on this rectangular like block in the back. Was this the right one?
2. Next problem was to find the actual place for the jack stands. My car looks different than the pictures on stealth316 and vr4stealth so we ended up just using the hydrolic jack for the back with the jack stands next to one of the 2 "rods" that are connected to the tire in case something fell (if you look at the picture at http://www.stealth316.com/2-raisecar.htm, you'll get what I'm saying). So where are the jack stands supposed to go for a '94 SL?
3. Next, I could NOT find the fill plug for the transaxle. We looked everywhere when we were down there but could not find the fill plug. I'm 75% sure we found the drain plug but I swear, for the life of me, the fill plug was not there. So yeah, the whole point of me driving all the way out there in the rain and mud (yeah, the "road" leading to his shop was filled with freakin' trenches and holes everywhere. My poor boo....) was to change the gear oil but we ended up not doing it since we couldn't find everything. :( One thing to note though, we didn't take off the passenger side tire so I don't know if we would have been able to see it if we did. I wanted to but we were cold, wet, and hungry so my buddy started cleaning up and I just did as well. UGH!!!
4. One thing that we did do was change the motor oil. Here's the problem though....the oil filter wrench wouldn't fit!!! I used a fram filter last time and had the wrench that would fit the old filter but I bought a Mitsubishi filter this time (because of discussions on them being better) and the wrench was too small. So when we went to AutoZone, the guy behind the counter said that the oil filter should not be tightened with a wrench because it could shoot off or something and that the wrench is just used for taking the filter off. Is this true? Because I've always tightened the filter with a wrench after an oil change so this is news to me. Help!?!

So yeah, after driving an 2 hours in the rain (round trip), dropping my car in ditches filled with mud, work on the COLD concrete floor with super bad lighting, I have wasted a whole freakin' day. Damnit, I feel like a freakin' retard for going all the way out there for an oil change (since that was the only thing that was done). Oh yeah, it wouldn't be so bad but I start school on Tuesday so I won't have time to do anything once school has started. UGH! Sorry about all the complaining, but I just feel like one of my last days could have been more wisely spent....like say in front of the television. UGH!!!

Oh, and Linebckr49, the Pennzoil Synchomesh was $4.99 per quart. And yeah, it was really hard to find it. Every AutoZone was either sold out or only had like 4 or 5 in their inventory. I don't know why that is!?!

1. & 2. SLightly in front of the rear tire just a little inward is where I jack up on the car. There is a little flat spot that looks "reinforced", thats where I put the jack stand and on the sub frame rail is where I jack
3. The drain is a very large bolt head on the passenger side of the tranny. Once its drained you of course replace the drain. The fill hole is on the front closer to the bottom. You can get to it from up top just reach down and you'll find it.
4.When I do my oil I use a strap wrench. It will fit any filter. ANd for not tightenng it with a wrench. I always hand tighten and then tightne 1/4 turn with the strap wrench, just to be safe.

perhaps you missed this page on stealth316.com. i missed it too; its not easy to find, as its listed under AWD fluids. but here's the link: http://www.stealth316.com/2-awddrainfill.htm . Scroll to the bottom of the page and Jeff Lucius has pictures showing where the fill plug and drain plug are on the rear differential, as well as the tranny and transfer case. hope this helps!

94sl do not have transfer case.

right, nor does it have a rear diff.

perhaps you missed this page on stealth316.com. i missed it too; its not easy to find, as its listed under AWD fluids. but here's the link: http://www.stealth316.com/2-awddrainfill.htm . Scroll to the bottom of the page and Jeff Lucius has pictures showing where the fill plug and drain plug are on the rear differential, as well as the tranny and transfer case. hope this helps!

Yeah, I had the link and actually read over it all day yesterday. I even saved it and brought it on a laptop over to the shop but to no avail. Maybe I'm just not cut out for this stuff....but damn, I like it so much. LOL I just suck at it. :rolleyes: But umm....is the transaxle on an SL gonna be same as a VR4? Meaning, the drain and fill plugs are at the same positions?

a sl does not have a transaxle it is fwd. the vr4 awd so it will have a transaxle to send power to the rear diff

a sl does not have a transaxle it is fwd. the vr4 awd so it will have a transaxle to send power to the rear diff
Transaxle=FWD transmission, the VR4/TT's have transfer cases.;)

dou my bad transfer case got the two mixed up

Thats what I figured. I didnt want slade to get mixed up. Thats the only reason I posted.

Slade, sorry about the bad luck on not being able to find the drain plug. heck, if i was at home right now, i'd go out to my car, try to find the drain/fill plugs, and take pics and post em...but alas i'm outta town at the moment. I would imagine that the drain/fill plugs would be relatively in the same places: as shown in the pics, the drain plugs are on the bottom sides (naturally, so fluid easily comes out with gravity) and the fill plugs are on the sides (so you can add fluid w/o it coming back out, and so you know when you've added enough fluid--it would begin to pour out the fill hole). My guess is that since the drain/fill plugs are the same color as most of the other bolts on the transaxle, that's why you had difficulty locating them.

In the future, i'd try to get all the tools, locate everything (drain/fill plugs) in preparation to doing the job. I would take a paint pen and mark the drain/fill plugs so that it will be easier to find them in the future.

good luck. i'll be home in a few days, at which time i'll post pics when i find the plugs. if you happen to find em before then, please post pics. i think we all could benefit from this. gosh! if only Jeff Lucius had a NA 3000GT. GOSH Napoleon!

i looked through my 3/S manual (on CD that is, got it online, and its awesome-->www.manualcd.com->shameless plug!) and i could only find this picture of the drain/fill plugs in the MTX. However, i think its already on Jeff Lucius's site (stealth316). So this might be for the FWD MTX, or the AWD...the picture in the manual did not indicate. but if your MTX looks like this, then i'd use it for reference. You've probably already done all this, looked at all this pics, in frustration having had difficulty finding the plugs. just thought i'd post just in case.

bonne chance!

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/500/123894MTX_drain-filler_plugs.JPG

Linebckr49, thanks for the picture. I have the CD too but for some reason, it's difficult to navigate through it and find what I'm looking for. Which area do you look for all those pictures?

Okay, now questions about the transaxle. The filler plug, is it facing the front of the car? Because I found a plug that looks like the filler in the picture but because it was so low, I thought it was the drain plug. And Stealthee was saying that we could see the filler plug from on top of the car so I just assumed I was looking at the wrong area. :o/

The filler plug is relatively low. I could find my filler plug from the top but its because I know exactly where it is.

Yeah slade, I think everything else has been said, but don't overtighten your oil filters...tighten them by hand and don't over do it...also put a bit of oil on the ring when you put on a new filter...that will make it much easier to come off next time you change it.

The filler plug is relatively low. I could find my filler plug from the top but its because I know exactly where it is.

Yeah Stealthee, I went out today and saw the filler plug from the top. When I was under the car yesterday, I kept thinking that it was the drain plug because it was so low....I just expected it to be higher since we would be filling it from there. So Stealthee, to reach the drain plug, is it mandatory to remove the passenger side tire? Do you fill from the top or the bottom? Also, is it possible for you to take a picture of the place that you put the jack stands at? Because I can't figure out which areas you're talking about.

Thanks for all the help guys.

I can get to the drain plug without removing the wheel. Its a really large head so you cant really miss it. When I filled it, I used a pump from the underside. You could get a long piece of hose and put it on the nipple of the bottle and do it from the top. It takes appx. 2.4 qts to fill. As for the jacking points for the back, its already dark here so I cant get pics. If you look you can see the subframe rail. Follow it all the way to the back. Shortly after it ends the is a flat spot that looks like a plate welded in place. Hope this helps.

Also, not to overstate the obvious...but prior to removing the drain plug...make sure you loosen the fill plug...

You don't want to drain it, only to find out that the fill plug is stuck and you are SOL.

Also, not to overstate the obvious...but prior to removing the drain plug...make sure you loosen the fill plug...

You don't want to drain it, only to find out that the fill plug is stuck and you are SOL.

SOL? Stealthee, I won't be doing anything today so some other day for the pictures is cool. I'm a moron and can't seem to find the parts you're talking about. But if it's too much trouble, maybe somone else can post it. :p Wish we had sites like the ones for the VR4s/Stealth TTs for the base/SLs....

SOL= Shit out of luck, as in you wont be able to readd the fluid.

If I remember I will try to snap some pics tomorrow with my phone. My digi cam software is on my other comp which isnt hooked up. Hopefully I will remember.

Linebckr49, thanks for the picture. I have the CD too but for some reason, it's difficult to navigate through it and find what I'm looking for. Which area do you look for all those pictures?

Okay, now questions about the transaxle. The filler plug, is it facing the front of the car? Because I found a plug that looks like the filler in the picture but because it was so low, I thought it was the drain plug. And Stealthee was saying that we could see the filler plug from on top of the car so I just assumed I was looking at the wrong area. :o/

1) i found that picture NOT in the MTX section, but in the "GENERAL" (maintenance service) section [p.52 of 1308 if you have the same manual cd i have].

2)below is the same picture on which i drew a 3-D axis. on the left highlighted in blue is the CV Boot of the driveshaft going to the front right tire. that being true, the x-axis leads to the front of the car, the side on which you'll find the fill plug.

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/500/123894MTX_drain-filler_plugs2.JPG

hope this helps. as i said earlier, when you do find both plugs, make sure and mark them with a paint pen, so finding them in the future will be easier.