I have a 96 ranger with the mazda built manual 5 spd which calls for auto trans fluid. I would love to be able to put in something like RL MTL or the amsoil MTF but I have heard good things about specialty formulas auto fluid made for manuals. Right now I just have some standard mercon with some friction modifier but at one point I have some amsoil 5W30 motor oil and the trans shifted GREAT with that in it. Any thoughts? TIA
which trans fluid to use in ranger 5 spd?
- Thread starter mcrn
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So far I've had good luck with SF products. I haven’t used Amsoil MTF so I can't say how that would work. I used syn Mobil 1 in a Mazda 5 spd (behind a 2.3 in a Ranger) and it work fine. Merc V (which is usually a blend) worked well for the price but some brands would shear and cause shifting problems.
Great, now I see this. I just put AMSOIL ATF in my 5 speed 99' Ranger 2 months ago per the manual and the AMSOIL website recommendation. It's working great so far, no problems, and it's much smoother than the factory fill. Would changing to the MTF be a good idea? I also put in MT10 additive as well so that is probably helping.
I thought that ATF was strange in a manual but ATF is cast right on the side of the tranny.
Since youu asked, Specialty Formulation is the best I've experienced.
There are VERY few complaints , and many people praising their products.
I'm sure other major brands have superb protection, but reports of shifting quality has been iffy.
There are VERY few complaints , and many people praising their products.
I'm sure other major brands have superb protection, but reports of shifting quality has been iffy.
ok I have another question regarding the amsoil mtf vs redline mtl. redline claims to help bad shifting . I sometimes have a very hard time getting into first other than that it shifts fine. Do you think the amsoil would still be better in this situation? or the redline?
I had an '91 F-150 where some idiot put ATF in... this particular model year there were some manual trannys that were the Mazda built 5-speed and some that were old-tech 4-speeds (a granny gear and 3 forward gears for normal use)... I think mine was a T-18, I don't remember. But shifting, it was terrible! Finally I drained the fluid and it had ATF in there! I put the old heavy oil in and it was much better. Much less noise as well...
But people here are correct, the Mazda built unit takes ATF.
But people here are correct, the Mazda built unit takes ATF.
I'm not sure what transmission your Ranger has, but in the Focus they use an MTX-75. Ford used to specify ATF in that one as well, but then they changed to Ford Synthetic Manual transmission fluid (aka Ford Honey) XT-M5-QS. That fluid seems to work very well. You can get it at your dealer, but it is somewhat expensive. Just a thought.
ATF will work fine just make sure you use a synthetic fluid. Those transmissions are weak, they run hot and go through synconizers. Many friends of mine with that M5OD transmission in their Rangers and F150s have had trouble. Do yourself a favor and use the best fluid you can and change it every 15K-30K.
I have an 04 Ranger with the M50D transmission. I changed out the factory fill to M1 ATF at 15K in January because of very poor shifting in cold weather. The switch provided "easier" shifting in cold, early morning starts, but the shifting is still a little "jerky." Yes, it is smoother, but I do feel that a slightly thicker synthetic would give the optimal feel. From the info I've read on this site, I would feel comfortable with the protection from an MTF like Amsoil or Specialty Formulations, and that's probably where I'll go in about another 10K.
Yep, that is because gear oil will destroy an M5OD. The syncros are not compatible with gear oil, and gear oil does not flow well enough to lubricate the parts that are splash lubricated.
mcrn, sorry I didn't answer I was out of reach of a computer for a while, been busy here. Yes, the SF so far has been the best oil I've used in that 5spd. I would have liked to order a slightly thicker fluid but didn't have time. I'm perfectly happy with the SF atf I have in it. It's not perfect but it's a truck not a 500K$ cruiser so I'm happy (well I'm happy because I washed it and I'm easily entertained - it's shinny now).
I have a 2002 F-150 with the larger version of the Mazda 5 speed transmission. It absolutely hated the factory Mercon ATF. I then tried Schaeffers synthetic blend ATF, Mercon rated, and it was better, but not good. I then tried SF's SynchroGlide fluid and it improved the shifting quality tremendously. But in the warmer temps the shifting gets balky and clunky. I'm going slightly thicker with SF's MTL-P fluid. It's still meant for manual trannies. Hopefully it'll help in the warmer temps and still flow ok in our winter temps. Funny thing is I had a 1989 F-150 with the same transmission and it ran ok for the most part with ATF, until it got older. I didn't change the fluid very often
. I gave the truck to my b-i-l and he had trouble getting it into 1st gear so he put in thicker gear oil and it now shifts good. Of course how long the brass/bronze synchros are going to last is another question
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Whimsey
Whimsey
hey thanks everyone and dont worry 1040 thats cool I have not bought anything yet anyway. so you said you would like to have gone a little thicker (like amsoil mtf?) I have a friend thats an amsoil dealer so im leaning towards trying that at the moment but not totally sure yet. thanks again everyone and thanks whimsey sounds like your b-i-l had the same problems as me and thicker fluid helped it.
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