Recent content by frenchian

I got lucky, a guy has literally just set up shop in town here representing Shell and he had Rimula R3X in stock (I think I bought his entire stock!). It may not have the highest TBN rating, but it's a lot better than the "no-name" stuff or standard BP oils everyone else here carries!

Hi, it's time again to change the oil on my Unimog - as I'm using it in Africa (currently Tanzania/Kenya)with high sulphur fuels), I'm always interested in the TBN of the oils I can find. As oil supply here is sometimes "difficult" (you may find one product in one town, but not in the next, some...

Thanks Charlie, I should have replied earlier, but been a bit busy moving from one continent to another! I managed to track down some Rimula, so filled the Unimog with that - it's in Namibia waiting for the next part of our journey north next year - next stop Nairobi (maybe). Ian

Hi, does anyone know the TBN rating of this oil please? I've been offered some to replace the Shell Rimula R3X that I've been using so far, and as I'll be moving into an area where the diesel will contain more and more sulphur I'd just like to check if it's as good or not. Thanks, Ian

I'm running Mobilube 1 SHC 75W-90 fully-synthetic in my Unimog final transmission. We're currently in Africa & I can only get hold of Castrol EPX 80w90 to top up with - it's mineral-based. I need to know if I can safely mix the 2 oils or will I need to drain and start again? Thanks for any...

I haven't been able to locate the hardware needed for my mod yet, so am continuing with the top-up every day cycle. I'm putting in on average about 60ml each side every time we do more than 150 miles. I've still got 2 litres of the Mobilube 1 SHC 75W-90 left but am now considering reserving it...

Thanks Charlie, I thought as much but wanted to double-check! I'm thinking of applying a little mod to the portals involving a couple of clutch fluid reservoirs, some pipework and some drain plugs to create what would effectively be "expansion bottles" for each portal. It's what a lot of...

I filled all the portals and diffs with Mobilube 1 75w90 SHC fully synthetic oil and brought 3 litres spare with us. We developed a leak from the front right seal which is now fixed but in the process I've used quite a bit of my spare oil. I can't source this oil here (Namibia), in fact 75w90...

Ive heard of the "portal pump" problem - for some reason my truck is low geared and is only really comfortable up to 40mph - anything more and you are deafened within half an hour. I therefore drive at 40mph - no "high speed" runs for me! My plan is to keep slow and check the portals every day...

Thanks, The manual is clear for the portals - 300ml each. I carry top-up oil for the portals wherever I go. I've got spare seals (but only 1 of each) - sounds like I should buy some more. Ian

Thanks for that Charlie, 10k miles should get us to Nairobi via a bit of a zigzag, then another 10k home depending on which way we end up going! At least a third of the 1st section will be in South Africa/Namibia where sulphur levels are low, so that will extend the life too. From Nairobi home...

I've ordered some Syntrans - the price I got seems too low (£4/litre for 20 litres - around $7/litre - it's usually twice that in UK) so I'm waiting with bated breath for it to arrive. The advantage of the Syntrans is that I can use it in the diffs and portal axles too. I've also ordered some...

What I'm currently trying to do is to work out what the differences between the MB recommended (10w) oil and 75w85 are. Looking at the viscosity charts they are different beasts. MB must have recommended 10w to the military for a good reason(?). It seems that no-one knows what the old MB specs...

Interestingly MB have been decidedly unhelpful on this - they pass me onto their "Unimog Center" who it turns out are not interested in supporting vehicles, just selling them. The gearbox is separate from the motor/clutch, so the oil is only lubricating rotating parts. The civilian versions...

Hi all, I'm new on here, so excuse me if this has already been raised (I haven't found it though) I have a 1986 ex-military Unimog and want to change all fluids before heading off into Africa with it. Most fluids are (relatively) easy to identify - but the manual transmission spec from...