O2J Gear Oil Change DIY

[D2Beetle]

This DIY is for Replacing the Gear Oil (GL-4).

DISCLAIMER: The author(s) assume that you (the reader) are reasonably capable with the automotive tools necessary to get the job accomplished, which means that you won’t glue your fingers together or use a cutting torch to get the bad part out and are smart enough to know not to try to blame or post ranting about anyone else if something goes horribly wrong ... AGREED?

These instructions were developed using the following NB...

1) 1998 AEG 2.0 liter, 5 speed, O2J Transmission

As always, just remember to offer a simple thank you and credit to the original author (D2Beetle) when you tell all of your BUG buddies!!

TIME NEEDED: 30 Minutes.

ITEMS NEEDED: An eBahn Bentley DVD or Haynes manual.

PROJECT COST: 2 Quarts of GL-4 Gear Oil $13-$15 plus tax.

SPECIAL TOOLS: 17mm Allen Wrench.

WARNINGS: You will be under the car so take the necessary precautions.

CAUTIONS: If you have driven your NB the oil will be HOT. Wait an hour before you proceed.

So let’s begin ...

Pic [TGO DIY 001] shows you the mileage on my '98 and the gear oil that I drained out of it, is the original from day one. If you want to see the You Tube Video go there an put "TGO DIY 011.mov" in search box.

Step Zero: You will need to raise your NB to get to the transmission drain plug. Your NB must level to ensure that it drains and fills properly; if it is not level, you will either under or over fill it.

Step One: You will need a funnel with a long flexible hose/tube [TGO DIY 002 thru 005]. I have several funnels already and I had to take the hose hose off of one to make it work. There is very little space to work with so the blue funnel worked well enough to get past the battery and starter; I used the larger hose, which can be contoured for turns and will hold that shape. The narrow hose goes into the larger hose [TGO DIY 006].

You will have to navigate around the power steering tubes to get your hose into the fill point of the transmission casing [TGO DIY 007 and 008].

[D2Beetle]

Step Two: Drain the Gear oil [TGO DIY 009 thru 012]. Using the 17mm Allen Wrench remove the drain plug [TGO DIY 010]. If you want to see what 295k gear looks like, here is the YouTube Video [TGO DIY 011] ... it looked like dark ice tea. I had no idea how long it would take to drain, so I did not loosen the fill plug to let air in. It took about two minutes to drain and I was surprised; given that it is supposed to 75w-90 I was expecting it drain really slooooooooow.

To be sure it was completely drained I removed the fill plug and cleaned them both [TGO DIY 013 thru 014]. I am not certain if there is a difference in either plug, but the fill plug (left) has the center raised circle and drain does not.

Step Three: Ensure the drain plug is in place and fill the transmission with gear oil [TGO DIY 015 thru 017]. When the gear oil starts to spill out of the fill spot you are done. Replace the fill plug and start your NB.

That is it you are finished!

[Ojima]

Originally Posted by D2Beetle

Step Two: Drain the Gear oil [TGO DIY 009 thru 012]. Using the 17mm Allen Wrench remove the drain plug [TGO DIY 010]. If you want to see what 295k gear looks like, here is the YouTube Video [TGO DIY 011] ... it looked like dark ice tea. I had no idea how long it would take to drain, so I did not loosen the fill plug to let air in. It took about two minutes to drain and I was surprised; given that it is supposed to 75w-90 I was expecting it drain really slooooooooow.

To be sure it was completely drained I removed the fill plug and cleaned them both [TGO DIY 013 thru 014]. I am not certain if there is a difference in either plug, but the fill plug (left) has the center raised circle and drain does not.

Step Three: Ensure the drain plug is in place and fill the transmission with gear oil [TGO DIY 015 thru 017]. When the gear oil starts to spill out of the fill spot you are done. Replace the fill plug and start your NB.

That is it you are finished!

Hi what a great post thanks. Is this a manual or automatic. I have a 2001 Aotomatic and need to have the oil changed in the gearbox. I have been reading the posts but are confused about what exactly is the oil type I should use. I can not get VW oil in my part of the world so it will have to be a "generic" Please help this Lady out.
Thank you

[D2Beetle]

Originally Posted by Ojima

Hi what a great post thanks. Is this a manual or automatic. I have a 2001 Aotomatic and need to have the oil changed in the gearbox. I have been reading the posts but are confused about what exactly is the oil type I should use. I can not get VW oil in my part of the world so it will have to be a "generic" Please help this Lady out.
Thank you

The transmission in this DIY is a 5 speed manual (O2J). I have not done a Gear Oil Change for an Automatic. I suggest that you order a quart of Redline or Amsoil from Amazon dot com. I use Redline in my '98 and the wife's NB and Amsoil in my oldest sons and my '00 NB.

[VDubYah]

the final drive on a 2000 automatic takes .75 liters of 75-90 weight gear oil(synthetic)

[janitz]

Originally Posted by VDubYah

the final drive on a 2000 automatic takes .75 liters of 75-90 weight gear oil(synthetic)

I think that's where the confusion comes in, that there are actually two types of fluids needed in an automatic. The automatic transmission fluid itself, and then the final drive gear oil.

I'm not certain if Ojima was specifically thinking of only the final drive gear oil, or if she was referring to automatic transmission fluid in general.

For the automatic transmission fluid the VW spec is G 052, with subspecs depending on the model year of the vehicle and type of transmission. Need something like 3 to 5 liters depending on the transmission.