Hey everyone when I bought this little Saturn a couple weeks ago the shifter assembly was bound up and made it very hard to shift and the master cylinder for the clutch rod had broken loose from the master so both of these parts needed to be replaced so I did that and I was hoping that that was the reason it was grinding in fourth. (Probably a long shot). So I did all of this I changed the fluid and I just used O'Reilly's house brand Dex 3 ATF and the car still grinds going into fourth when shifting normal. If I press the clutch pedal for about 3 seconds and then shift it'll go right in. Doesn't pop out of gear once it's in either. I'm pretty sure fourth gear synchro is just weak. Question is is there a certain fluid that I could put in the transmission to maybe help the synchronizer work better. I know some guys have ran synchromesh in these I don't know if that would be of any benefit or not. I realize that eventually the transmission will have to be replaced but for now if I could get by for a while with a Band-Aid I'd like to do that. It's just a cheap runabout anyway. What's your thoughts? Car shifts flawlessly in to every other gear.
Manual transmission sl1 grinding into 4th
- Thread starter ram_man
- Start date
Fluid is brand new O'Reilly's atf
- Joined
- Feb 6, 2021
- Messages
- 1,410
you should really try 75w90 if you can, shouldn't hurt it.
I was a factory trained Saturn/EV1 technician. ATF is the spec. The syncros are fiber coated just like the fiber disks in the AT. Stick with ATF. Are the shift cable housings starting to come apart at the ends? Look where the cables exit the housings beneah the shifter.
Avoid Tanks opinion. GM moved towards Syncromesh fluid.
Ed Peters, a retired failure analysis engineer at Chrysler, is on record for stating the only reason ATF was used in manual transmissions was to save money. It eliminated an additional UAW assembly workers job at each such factory and the added complexity of a separate station dedicated for manual transmission gear oil. ATF doesn't perform as well in a manual.
It was all about saving money, not was best.
Ed Peters, a retired failure analysis engineer at Chrysler, is on record for stating the only reason ATF was used in manual transmissions was to save money. It eliminated an additional UAW assembly workers job at each such factory and the added complexity of a separate station dedicated for manual transmission gear oil. ATF doesn't perform as well in a manual.
It was all about saving money, not was best.
Cables are brand new. I do know that since they are fiber coated some gear oils wouldn't work but I do believe synchromesh would be ok. I'm just not sure it would actually help
Have you had a grinding gear that it actually helped? Testimonials is what I'm looking for
Double clutch into fourth and rev match. You won’t need synchros.
Says the man with the Packard. Ask the man who owns one.
In a saturn? No. But I've used in a NP435 that had a fussy second gear synchro, T18/T19 that was garbage, NV4500, etc. I've never been disappointed by it.Have you had a grinding gear that it actually helped? Testimonials is what I'm looking for
Motorcraft XT-M5-QS but only if the trans was spec’d for a 75w-90 trans oil. Worked great in my Mazdaspeed 3s for a second gear grind.
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2013
- Messages
- 3,084
Saturn S Series are one of the few that you cannot use Dexron VI in...
I suggest a TES-295 fluid, which is the same viscosity as Dexron III, but full synthetic...
www.allisontransmission.com
www.mobil.com
I suggest a TES-295 fluid, which is the same viscosity as Dexron III, but full synthetic...
On-Highway Fluids
Allison Transmission approved fluids are tested to meet our stringent requirements, which ensure maximum transmission durability with minimal downtime.
www.allisontransmission.com
On/off highway - Mobil Delvac 1 ATF | Mobil™
Mobil Delvac 1 ATF is a fully synthetic fluid recommended by Allison Transmission, Inc. approved against the Allison TES-295 Specification.
www.mobil.com
This is what scares me about buying a non-Honda manual transmission. It is difficult to find the correct oil for it! 
Since your car says to use ATF, the Pennzoil and Valvoline Synchrmoesh MTF oils should work for you. Both are slightly thicker than Dexron III but still thinner than 75w90 gear oil.
One gear oil NOT to buy is Ultra1plus (formerly Ultralub). Here is why.
Honda actually uses motor oil in their manual transmissions
However, the Pennzoil and Valvoline MTF listed above will work in Hondas.
Wow that's awesome! Cool that they trained you on the EV1
I can't believe GM actually bothered to train people on the EV1 since they crushed them all anyway
Especially since they're cheap enough to just use ATF in their manual transmissions
Since your car says to use ATF, the Pennzoil and Valvoline Synchrmoesh MTF oils should work for you. Both are slightly thicker than Dexron III but still thinner than 75w90 gear oil.
One gear oil NOT to buy is Ultra1plus (formerly Ultralub). Here is why.
Honda actually uses motor oil in their manual transmissions
However, the Pennzoil and Valvoline MTF listed above will work in Hondas.
Wow that's awesome! Cool that they trained you on the EV1
I can't believe GM actually bothered to train people on the EV1 since they crushed them all anyway
Especially since they're cheap enough to just use ATF in their manual transmissions
Why don't you double-clutch into fourth, both going up and coming down... Also, do change the fluid, even for the same (presumably) OEM recommended fluid...
That should buy you some time.
That should buy you some time.
