I just purchased a '99 Mercedes E320 wagon, V6 gas engine, with, get this, 421xxx miles. I drove it around California for a week, then loaded it up with Corvair and square body Cheby Teeruk parts, and drove 3000 miles home.
Before I left for the CC trip, I tried to check the tranny oil, but like the '05 Malibu I owned for a bit, this rig has no dipstick, just a plug in a 1/2 tube with curves too tite to allow the use of a typical "flat" dipstick. I tried a speedo cable my friend found lying in a junkyard, and the oil was muckky looking. I ordered a universal stick for $13 on ebay, but had to ship it home as I was leaving my friends house the next day.
So I poked around on the 'net, and decided to use NAPA FEBI trans oil, $9 a qt. Some had recommended Valvoline Max Life at $7 a qt, but for the extra $15 I decided to use the German oil.
I dropped the pan the day before we left, and there was very little junk floating around. Definitely metallic paint like, but that was to be expected. The tranny had been shifting well for the 2,000 miles we put on going to various pick a parts up and down Hwy 99, so I felt confidant it wouldn't bother anything putting in fresh oil. I'd heard all the horror stories about fresh oil releasing crud, but never believed them. Much more likely a weak tranny someone is trying to save w a fluid flush.
This model has a tork convertor drain plug, so got 6 qts of the 8.5 total (dry fill). It's still brownish, but at least has a reddish tint.
So I guess my question is, does it rally matter if I use $3 qt WW oil? Or is it really better to use overpriced oil? What qualitys does the FEBI have over the WW? I forget if the FEBI was synthetic, and my partner in junkyard crime took the car to Maine, I'll get it in a week or 2.
For those with time on their hands, I vidded the entire trip, junkyards, oil change and all, it's on ytube CORVAIRWILD.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-N1OZ-QnsM
Before I left for the CC trip, I tried to check the tranny oil, but like the '05 Malibu I owned for a bit, this rig has no dipstick, just a plug in a 1/2 tube with curves too tite to allow the use of a typical "flat" dipstick. I tried a speedo cable my friend found lying in a junkyard, and the oil was muckky looking. I ordered a universal stick for $13 on ebay, but had to ship it home as I was leaving my friends house the next day.
So I poked around on the 'net, and decided to use NAPA FEBI trans oil, $9 a qt. Some had recommended Valvoline Max Life at $7 a qt, but for the extra $15 I decided to use the German oil.
I dropped the pan the day before we left, and there was very little junk floating around. Definitely metallic paint like, but that was to be expected. The tranny had been shifting well for the 2,000 miles we put on going to various pick a parts up and down Hwy 99, so I felt confidant it wouldn't bother anything putting in fresh oil. I'd heard all the horror stories about fresh oil releasing crud, but never believed them. Much more likely a weak tranny someone is trying to save w a fluid flush.
This model has a tork convertor drain plug, so got 6 qts of the 8.5 total (dry fill). It's still brownish, but at least has a reddish tint.
So I guess my question is, does it rally matter if I use $3 qt WW oil? Or is it really better to use overpriced oil? What qualitys does the FEBI have over the WW? I forget if the FEBI was synthetic, and my partner in junkyard crime took the car to Maine, I'll get it in a week or 2.
For those with time on their hands, I vidded the entire trip, junkyards, oil change and all, it's on ytube CORVAIRWILD.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-N1OZ-QnsM