2019 Subaru Impreza front and rear diff oil

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Dec 13, 2006
Messages
647
Location
ohio
Vehicle: 2019 Subaru Impreza 2.0i 5-door, automatic,

I'm going to be changing the GF's Subaru front and rear differential oil. The Owners Manual states " Subaru Extra MT GL-5 75W-90" as the appropriate fluid to use. I can get quarts of Shell Spirax S6 AXME 75W-90 Synthetic Gear Oil at at really good price. Would this specific gear oil be suitable for these differentials. I have used Spirax gear oil and Valvoline SynPower 75W-90 gear oil in the differentials of my personal vehicles and work trucks without issue. Are Subaru differentials "picky" as to what weight or brand of gear oil works best in them. I've checked on various Subaru Forums and recommendations for gear oil vary greatly. Any input the the BITOG Subaru Owners out there would be appreciated.

xtell
 
Originally Posted by gathermewool
Literally any GL-5 oil will be fine.


Yep. +1

I will change out the gear lube in the front and rear diffs at 10k on our 2019 Outback. I will use Amsoil Severe Gear 75w-90 in both diffs. No worries.
 
My favorite is Motul Gear 300, goes into every Subaru differential I own/service (total count is somewhere around 24 differentials). Amsoil SVG is an excellent lube as well.

I don't have any experience with Spirax but as long as it meets GL-5 and is 75W90 it should be ok.
 
Originally Posted by xtell
Sounds good to me. Shell Spirax 75w-90 is going in.

Go for it without any hesitation .
It had 'additional' strong approvals in J2360, MT-1 .
 
Last edited:
Supertech 75W90 in the rear no problems in a year. under 6 bucks a quart. I did feel queasy putting such a thin oil in, being used to SAE 90 GL5 in the old days. But that was in 2 1/2 tonne luxury barges or Killer muscle cars, Plus when Nissan service put 80w90 Mobil HD Plus in the old 2014 Nissan Rogues, the Nissan diffs hated the stuff. Terrible in that application.

Its a light Light Duty diff in a crosstrek. No need for fancy stuff, the "stinky" additives are the magic in gear oil.
 
Hmm. said vehicle is a new 2019 and you don't want to use the factory approved gear lube. Do you have a legitimate reason to dump the warranty if you have gear problems? Ed
 
Originally Posted by Eddie
Hmm. said vehicle is a new 2019 and you don't want to use the factory approved gear lube. Do you have a legitimate reason to dump the warranty if you have gear problems? Ed


When was the last time you saw of a differential failure on a stock, non-turbo Subaru? I'll wait for your response while you don't find any... the Subaru diffs are actually extremely durable, short of running them without fluid or until the WRX guys subject them to repeated clutch drops at redline.

Page 12-6 of the OM shows all the diffs need is a GL-5 75W90 gear oil, so nothing special there.
2019 Crosstrek OM
 
curious as to why you would change the OEM fluid so early. I've been doing mine at about 30K intervals. Used OEM fluid no issues.
 
Originally Posted by FA_WRX
curious as to why you would change the OEM fluid so early. I've been doing mine at about 30K intervals. Used OEM fluid no issues.


Break in materials stays in the oil until the first oil change and since there are no filters on the differentials, they usually depend on a magnetic drain plug to catch what it can.

It's never a bad idea to dump early IMO.
 
Originally Posted by FA_WRX
curious as to why you would change the OEM fluid so early. I've been doing mine at about 30K intervals. Used OEM fluid no issues.

Curious to why you are doing 30K intervals. Usually after a 15-30K mile intial change its lifetime or every 120K there after - unless you are submerging the axle. More d&f may not be better when it comes to diff fluid.
At least some old greasy guy with a limp told me so 50 years ago ...
 
Last edited:
I just figured it would not hurt. Fresh fluid in my opinion couldn't hurt. Maybe it does have a negative effect I would not know.
 
I'm all for going for the best when it comes to some fluids, but only if there's a reason. For instance, I plan to dump the factory fill and add Motul Gear 300 in both my Forester XT and Legacy, then not change the lube again for a LONG time, if ever again.

Dumping expensive (~$20/L) lube often seems pretty foolish in such LIGHT, LIGHT, LIGHT duty applications. Might as well just use ST, if you want to drain it every 30k miles.

Originally Posted by Eddie
Hmm. said vehicle is a new 2019 and you don't want to use the factory approved gear lube. Do you have a legitimate reason to dump the warranty if you have gear problems? Ed


What in the world would make you think the warranty will be dumped???

From the 2019 Impreza owner's manual, the only requirement is that the gear oil have an API classification GL-5 (75W-90)
-----90 is also allowed above freezing (i.e., N/A for the vast majority of Subaru owners)



[Linked Image]
 
Originally Posted by FA_WRX
curious as to why you would change the OEM fluid so early. I've been doing mine at about 30K intervals. Used OEM fluid no issues.


The vehicle just went over 5,000+ miles. You are correct, I am changing it early but on all of my other vehicles, I've been an "early changer" of factory fluids.
 
Originally Posted by gathermewool
I'm all for going for the best when it comes to some fluids, but only if there's a reason. For instance, I plan to dump the factory fill and add Motul Gear 300 in both my Forester XT and Legacy, then not change the lube again for a LONG time, if ever again.

Dumping expensive (~$20/L) lube often seems pretty foolish in such LIGHT, LIGHT, LIGHT duty applications. Might as well just use ST, if you want to drain it every 30k miles.

Originally Posted by Eddie
Hmm. said vehicle is a new 2019 and you don't want to use the factory approved gear lube. Do you have a legitimate reason to dump the warranty if you have gear problems? Ed


What in the world would make you think the warranty will be dumped???

From the 2019 Impreza owner's manual, the only requirement is that the gear oil have an API classification GL-5 (75W-90)
-----90 is also allowed above freezing (i.e., N/A for the vast majority of Subaru owners)



[Linked Image]



I always make sure I save my receipts and mark down mileage, date of service (what I do or what a repair shop does) and what exactly was done. Several times I have taken one of my vehicles in for dealer service under warranty and every time I've gone and showed my service records if the service related to a warranty claim. My information has been accepted as valid and the warranty work was carried out without issue.
 
I changed my front diff/trans fluid when the CV shaft needed replacement. After talking with the parts guys at my dealer, I decided to use what they use. The plain old valvoline dino 75w90. Same in the rear diff. Been in there 6 years, and it still looks good when I check it. It's been about 55,000 miles. I have thought about changing ut, but I'll probably wait for a CV shaft to poop out first.
 
Originally Posted by xtell
Originally Posted by gathermewool
I'm all for going for the best when it comes to some fluids, but only if there's a reason. For instance, I plan to dump the factory fill and add Motul Gear 300 in both my Forester XT and Legacy, then not change the lube again for a LONG time, if ever again.

Dumping expensive (~$20/L) lube often seems pretty foolish in such LIGHT, LIGHT, LIGHT duty applications. Might as well just use ST, if you want to drain it every 30k miles.

Originally Posted by Eddie
Hmm. said vehicle is a new 2019 and you don't want to use the factory approved gear lube. Do you have a legitimate reason to dump the warranty if you have gear problems? Ed


What in the world would make you think the warranty will be dumped???

From the 2019 Impreza owner's manual, the only requirement is that the gear oil have an API classification GL-5 (75W-90)
-----90 is also allowed above freezing (i.e., N/A for the vast majority of Subaru owners)



I always make sure I save my receipts and mark down mileage, date of service (what I do or what a repair shop does) and what exactly was done. Several times I have taken one of my vehicles in for dealer service under warranty and every time I've gone and showed my service records if the service related to a warranty claim. My information has been accepted as valid and the warranty work was carried out without issue.


I don't know if you thought I was questioning your wanting to DIY or if you responded to the wrong person.

I 100% on board with you and agree that anyone can DIY (with the correctly spec'd fluids) and the dealer can not ever deny a warranty claim, unless they prove that you screwed it up. I do all of my own fluid changes, EXCEPT for the CVT, since it's still under the extended 100k-miles warranty.

With that said, you obviously have to be careful. For instance, if you go in for warranty service on your grinding rear diff and they discover the level is not corrected and there are no discernible leaks from the case, the dealer would have a good chance of denying your differential warranty work approval and you'd be on the hook for the whole thing.
 
gathermewool,

Absolutely no issue at all. I was just stating that I've been fortunate enough to have warranty work done and my receipts/records have always been accepted. Several of my relatives went to dealerships for warranty work and they also had receipts/records of work they did themselves on their vehicles and the Dealerships would not do the warranty work because the previous repairs / service (like transmission fluid changes) were not done by a Dealership or Certified Mechanic. Your example of having low fluid level giving the Dealership reason to deny a warranty claim is a very valid point.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top