Ford 2810 and 3910 Hydraulic Fluid Question

[Sawtooth]

Hello,

I am changing out the rear hydraulic and transmission fluid in these tractors. The spec from the OEM say it requires a M2C134D. This would be the fluid from New Holland. However i can save $75 on 15 gallons if i get the premium grade from Napa. The exact name is Napa Premium Heavy-Duty Tractor Hydraulic and Transmission Fluid. It even list wet breaks as one of its uses. On the back it mentions that it meets or exceeds the following with M2C134D (OEM spec) being one of those numbers. So my question is, is this basically the same stuff? Is it just as good? If so i would like to save the money but if not i would rather buy the correct stuff as i plan to keep these tractors for a very long time.

Thanks in advance for your replies.

 

[skellyman]

I see no problem with your choice in using Napa Oils !!

 

[Jim Allen]

I have a Dagenham built 2810 myself and have owned it 10 years now. If the oil says it meets the Ford/NH spec, it should be fine. CAVEAT: I would advise against the "low rent" house brand oils and go with a name brand oil. I had the Tractor Supply brand tested, for example, and compared to the factory oil I had tested with it, it was pretty wimpy stuff. To some degree, you get what you pay for. I have zero experience with the Napa oils specifically, but as a "house brand" I would tend to trust them more than many others based on what I've seen of their other oils. When I had the TSC oil analyzed, the blender I consulted with said to go ahead and use the oil but shorten the interval.

My opinion now is that with THF (Trans/Hydraulic Fluid, you are best off with a name brand oil from one of the bigs ( Shell, Chevron, etc.) or the manufacturer's own recommended stuff. Unlike the automotive realm, the people blending the ag oils aren't being watched as closely. Tom at the Petroleum Quality Institute of America http://www.pqiamerica.com> even had an article on the site about poor THF. I was going to link to it directly but it's moved somewhere, so I'll let you search for it.

 

[Sawtooth]

Thanks Jim. Sounds like im probably ok this go around but may do something different next time.

 

[roadrunner1]

The most important thing to know about hydraulic fluid is that there is no API standard unlike motor oil.

As Jim stated above there is a wide variance from one brand to the next.