1994 Dodge Pickup - 5.2L V8

[Paul]

I'll (try to) keep it brief. The following questions are regarding a 1994 Dodge 1500 pickup with the 5.2L V8 (318 C.I.) engine- 2WD. It also has the automatic transmission. Since the truck is somewhat tired, it needs some servicing done to it.

1. The manual specifies "Mopar ATF Plus- Transmission fluid type 7176" for the transmission. Since I have some (20qts) of Dex. III laying around in the garage, my question to you is whether this fluid is interchangable with the Mopar ATF. What is 7176 anyways? The manual specifies that Dex II is alright if nothing else is available, but the shifting might be "unsatisfactory". Is this a ploy to get you to buy their fluid, or is it realy different?

2. For the rear axle, the manual specifies all sorts of different weights, to the point where it's very confusing. It also mentions a "Mopar Hypoid Lubricant" as the recommended fluid. I have 3qts of GMs axle lubricant in the garage. It doesn't say what weight it is, but it says that it's approved for their Torsen diffs. Is this oil good enough for the Dodge truck, or should I pick up something else? What weight shoul I use?

Any quality message boards for Dodge truck fanatics?

Thanks,
Paul

 

[UncleS2]

Mopar fluid is different than Dexron. I believe that 7176 is a Mopar spec #.

 

[Sin City]

The only way you will be able to use the Dexron III fluid is if you purchase an additive such as Lubegard Highly Friction Modified-ATF Supplement or a similar additive produced by a few other companies. The price for Lubegard HFM-ATF Supplement is $14.95 and it is hard to find. If you order it over the internet you will also need to pay shipping and handling.

The best thing to do for your truck would be to buy Chrysler ATF+3 but using the Mercon III and Lubegard should work fine. When I had my old Plymouth Breeze I had it serviced at an AAMCO in Jacksonville, FL and they used Mercon III and an HFM Additive fron some company other than Lubegard.

Chrysler Corp. does not recomend using these additives but the end result should not be any worse than using the old ATF+ or ATF+2 fluid that they were putting in their new cars in the past.

Go to the Lubegard web site and look at some of the technical informaion that they have on their products.

If you were to use Dexron or Mercon fluid without these additves your transmission would be ruined in short order! Also it would probably be a good idea to flush all of the old fluid out or if you don't want to do that then you could drain and refil and run the engine for a few minutes and then repeat the process and then add the bottle of HFM-ATF Additive.

 

[UncleS2]

Also, Chrysler now has an ATF +4. It's supposed to be backward compatible for ATF +3 transmissions.

From your description of it using "Mopar Hypoid", I'd guess a good hypoid gear oil would be in order, but I'd want to double-check that before I put any in the rear end.

 

[Ray H]

quote:

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Originally posted by Stuart Hughes:
Also, Chrysler now has an ATF +4. It's supposed to be backward compatible for ATF +3 transmissions.

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Chrysler "ATF+4" is fairly pricey since Chrysler hasn't licensed it to aftermarket production and it's still only available from Chrysler dealers.

However, Quaker State markets their own "ATF+3" specification fluid and Walmart carries it at about $2.30/qt. The Dexron-III and Lubegard would probably work acceptably, but at $19.95 online for the Lubegard HFM plus the cost of the Dexron-III, that route might end up costing more than the already properly formulated Quaker State "ATF+3". NAPA stores allegedly carry Lubegard, though, according to the Lubegard web site: http://www.lubegard.com , so check there, too. You want the black bottle, not the red one.

[ May 10, 2003, 12:04 AM: Message edited by: Ray H ]

 

[Paul]

Thanks guys, I really do appreciate your informative answers. I'll probably be on the lookout for the ATF+3 from QS- less hassle, and probably cheaper.

I am still a little unclear abou the rear diff. What exactly is "Hypoid"? The truck does not have an LSD, at least not to my knowledge. Thanks in advance.

Any Dodge truck message boards?

Cheers,
Paul

 

[Greaser]

Don't fool with the transmission lube..get ATF+3...the ATF+4 is a semi-synthetic and might cause a leak...it happened on my Jeep 's T case...I use Pennzoil ATF+3 in it now and it's happy...go with a synthetic in the rear axle (75W-140 if heavy work is in it's future)..."hypoid" is a term in reference to the type of gears the lube is protecting..like "syncro-mesh" is for manual transmissions etc...Redline has been touted on this board for axles...I use Pennzoil synthetic.

 

[davefr]

Don't use anything in your Mopar transmission except ATF+3 or ATF+4. (they are unforgiving when it comes to transmission fluid)

 

[Ken2]

quote:

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Originally posted by Paul:

...
I am still a little unclear abou the rear diff. What exactly is "Hypoid"?
...
Cheers,
Paul

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Look under your truck. Notice how the drive shaft enters the differential housing toward the top, above the line of the axles? That's hypoid. If the driveshaft was at the same plane as the axles it wouldn't be hypoid.


Ken

 

[Greaser]

Hypoid gear...A gear in which the shapes of the teeth are "hypocycloids" (now there's a word),used for applications in which a high surface load is desirable..you guys made me look it up

..what Ken2 is talking about are high pinion and low pinion differentials.A high pinion (reverse-rotation) front differential in a 4x4 is about 30% stronger that a standard rotation front axle due to the fact that a low pinion (standard-rotation) front axle drives off the coast side of the ring gear.In the rear this is a non issue due to the fact the teeth are cut in the manner intended..the high pinion rear axle is used in situations where clearance would be a benefit (bringing the pinion up to clear obstacles)like in heavy duty off-roading situations...these are custom axles rarely seen in production vehicles.Jeep front axles were all high pinion axles till around late 99 when they cheaped out and went to the low pinion up front...my 99 has a HP up front but my 01 has the low pinion...both rears are low pinion...but at least they still make a 4x4's with to solid axles fore and aft...SO FAR ANYWAY

 

[Chris 2421]

The ATF+3 that Quaker State has is excellent fluid,I would highly suggest using it.The GM rear end lube will work just fine in your Dodge truck.Words from a Mopar master tech.

 

[Paul]

Again, thanks for all your help boys.

Now I gots me some fluid changin' to do!

-Paul