Decided to see if this $12 bottle of ATF additive could help at all with my "Tip-tragic" 5 speed auto in my '03 VW W8. I hate sealed transmissions...but with that said, not too bad to add it with a Harbor Freight fluid pump into the fill port. I'll give it a few '00 miles and weigh in on any benefits. Fluid is somewhat fresh as the tranny was serviced shortly after purchase about 2 years ago and has about 12K on the fluid/filter now. It has a hiccup in third gear that drives me nuts and was curious if this would help at all....probably just need to do a 3x drain/fill as much of a PITA that is.
Bottle of Lubegard Red in my '03 Passat W8 auto
- Thread starter TiGeo
- Start date
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2020
- Messages
- 218
its probably the valve body and or solenoids , they are known to fail on JATCO transmissions, you can try a rebuild by yourself
I went the easy route and just installed a new valve body, has been shifting fine for over 100 thousand km since
Not a JATCO, made by ZF but yes, probably a solenoid getting sticky and not fully engaging into third at first.
It's a protectant and likely won't solve any issues. It will make shifts harder and quicker.
The LubeGard red helped my '02 Volvo's 5 speed so much, I became an instant convert.
Now that the Mets are spiraling downward I'll be rooting for your transmission.
Now that the Mets are spiraling downward I'll be rooting for your transmission.
For $12 or whatever I paid, I can tell you this....it won't make it worse..hahahaha
It definitely can. Those additives can alter the frictional properties of the fluid, sometimes just enough to cause unusual behavior.
Then again, it can make it worse....hahahaha. It can't add metal to areas where it wore off neither...hahahaha
or sooner...hahahaha
Last edited:
Used a Transgo kit on my 05 Jetta valve body to cure hard shifts. https://transgo.com/products/volkswagen-audi/
eh if it goes it's manual swap time I think!
I would be very surprised if the LG red caused any problems. I have used it in various Honda, GM, and Toyota vehicles and they all shifted just fine. I haven't used it in a VW, though...
Of course but this is BITOG....anything you add can either "work fine" or "destroy your XYZ". So far it's been fine and I have noticed that my shifts seem more firm/not as sloppy. The hiccup at low RPMs persists but at higher ones it seems to be gone.
Lubeguard red is usually the only additive most will recommend, seems to actually work
It really does.
We had a rough downshifting santa fe years go.
LG red completely cured it with 400kms.
Never came back using the product.
MolaKule has weighed in several times on this and confirmed there are no negatives to Lubegard Red, and it is one of the only additives or oils I’ve seen him recommend- and Lubegard Red is even approved for use by several OEMs. It’s the Lubegard Black & especially Lubegard Platinum that affect FMs & shifting.
