Out with the S2000, in with the... Ferrari...

I love the Dino GT4. I seriously considered one. They're supposed to be fantastic cars, and maybe even better drivers than the 308. And it can (at least in theory) hold my family, which would be rad.

To be honest, the transmission isn't great in this car so far, and 2nd gear sucks the most. I think the shifter bushings need to be replaced or perhaps there's an alignment issue. I also need to replace the fluid, no idea what is in there now. I really hope I can work it out!
What kind've transmission (make, model) does it have?
 
I wonder if Oerlikon-Graziano built any transaxles for Ferrari (and others) for that transverse arrangement? They certainly did for the fore/aft engined Ferrari's. I wonder if the Lancia Thema 8.32 (which used the same basic platform as the Saab 9000 / Alfa 164 / and I believe one other car... a Fiat, if memory serves) has the same 'box. The 8.32 used a Ferrari 3.2 V8. Believe it or not the Alfa 164's box was based originally on the Fiat 128's box... !!! and that may have been mfr'd by Fiat Group. Someone ought to know...???
 
Interesting Snip... rather old, but...
 

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As it's transverse mounted, why should it have hypoid gears? I'd likely stick to Ferrari's recommendation, but without knowing I'd guess it'll probably use a 75W-90 GL-4 and I'd perhaps give Castrol Syntrans Multivehicle 75W-90 a try.
On a side note, I remember many years ago someone saying the 308 uses a ZF transmission but it could be wrong.
 
As it's transverse mounted, why should it have hypoid gears? I'd likely stick to Ferrari's recommendation, but without knowing I'd guess it'll probably use a 75W-90 GL-4 and I'd perhaps give Castrol Syntrans Multivehicle 75W-90 a try.
On a side note, I remember many years ago someone saying the 308 uses a ZF transmission but it could be wrong.
Ferrari has changed its recommendations over the years, so... it's not really easy to know what they recommend. In the end, I'll take people's 20+ years of experience over that, anyhow.

Here's what the owner's manual says, just for fun:

1626790008681.png


"Rotra MP 80W-90 is an E.P. (Extreme Pressure) gear oil recommended for hypoid gears operating under severe conditions, and for very highly loaded gears in general, especially those subjected to dynamic loads."[1] Of course that's probably not the same product from 36 years ago.

I'm not sure who makes the Ferrari transmission. It's integrated into the engine's case, though I guess that doesn't mean that Ferrari designed the guts.

[1] https://oilproducts.eni.com/en_BX/a...ansmission-oils/eni-rotra/eni-rotra-mp-80w-90
 
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I'm not sure who makes the Ferrari transmission. It's integrated into the engine's case, though I guess that doesn't mean that Ferrari designed the guts.

I agree on this. Regarding Ferrari's recommendations, I'd guess their latest is their best. I have made mixed experiences with owners' experiences, most often made from 'feelings'.
 
I agree on this. Regarding Ferrari's recommendations, I'd guess their latest is their best. I have made mixed experiences with owners' experiences, most often made from 'feelings'.
There are random owners, then there are people that have worked on these things for decades. Different groups, for sure.
 
As it's transverse mounted, why should it have hypoid gears? I'd likely stick to Ferrari's recommendation, but without knowing I'd guess it'll probably use a 75W-90 GL-4 and I'd perhaps give Castrol Syntrans Multivehicle 75W-90 a try.
On a side note, I remember many years ago someone saying the 308 uses a ZF transmission but it could be wrong.
Does anyone know if it has a limited-slip type differential. If so, would it possibly merit a ltd slip specific additive?
 
Here's what the owner's manual says, just for fun:

View attachment 64216

"Rotra MP 80W-90 is an E.P. (Extreme Pressure) gear oil recommended for hypoid gears operating under severe conditions, and for very highly loaded gears in general, especially those subjected to dynamic loads."[1] Of course that's probably not the same product from 36 years ago.

I'm not sure who makes the Ferrari transmission. It's integrated into the engine's case, though I guess that doesn't mean that Ferrari designed the guts.

[1] https://oilproducts.eni.com/en_BX/a...ansmission-oils/eni-rotra/eni-rotra-mp-80w-90


I just saw you edited your post. This factory recommendation is somewhat valueable at least. ENI (formerly AGIP) Rotra MP 80W-90 is actually a GL-5 hypoid gear oil (and meets ZF TE-ML 05A, 12E (Approved)| ZF TE-ML 16B, 17B, 19B, 21A (Approved)| ZF TE-ML 07A, 08).

I have no clue if a GL-5 is really needed in this application, but using a GL-5 with very low VI of just 105, quite high viscosity at 40°C of 151 mm²/s, a vastly highish viscosity at -26°C of 145000 mPa·s (!!) and a (poor) pour point of just -30°C inevitably makes for very poor cold shifting.

So yes, I now agree, it's likely there's something better out there, at least with regard to shift quality in general and in particular when it's cold.

Not sure about a limited slip diff being standard on all 308, but a LSD doesn't necessarily require using LS additives. These don't so much help with limited slip but more so with suppressing noise in tight turns caused by the LSD. If it's quiet you're fine without. However the existence of a LSD inside of the gearbox means increased amount of wear particles inside of the transmission, which makes for a requirement of frequent oil changes.

.
 
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It has an LSD, yes, with friction plates. It doesn't seem to need friction additive, although a handful of folks have reported clattering that was resolved with it. No reason to analyze this to death. I know what I'm going to use and it's been used to a lot of people successfully.
 
I had a crazy dream a few years ago I bought a 512 TR without an engine and was trying to install an L98 Covette engine from the 80’s just to have a weekend car.

That would be madness. Personally, I want the flat-12!
 
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