Gearbox oil capacity !

AndyP

Member
United-Kingdom
Since I've now driven the TDi90 a few times I noticed that the gearbox is a little notchy, it's done 145K and seems unlikley that the oil has been changed so I thought I'd change the oil and bleed the clutch. I drained out the oil and just out of curiosity I thought I'd measure the volume - never bothered before. Well what came out was just short of 3.5 litres, slightly red-ish, not too stinky but a bit grubby, definitely some sediment anyway. But 3.5 litres? The capacity is supposed to be under 2 litres. I put 2 back in and even on the ramps it was clear it was quite full. How could you even get 3.5 litres in ?

Anyway, new oil and notchiness seems to have gone away.
 
Since I've now driven the TDi90 a few times I noticed that the gearbox is a little notchy, it's done 145K and seems unlikley that the oil has been changed so I thought I'd change the oil and bleed the clutch. I drained out the oil and just out of curiosity I thought I'd measure the volume - never bothered before. Well what came out was just short of 3.5 litres, slightly red-ish, not too stinky but a bit grubby, definitely some sediment anyway. But 3.5 litres? The capacity is supposed to be under 2 litres. I put 2 back in and even on the ramps it was clear it was quite full. How could you even get 3.5 litres in ?

Anyway, new oil and notchiness seems to have gone away.
Hi Andy,
I think they can suffer from water getting in if drain shoots get moved from their proper location, so this may be a possibility although you may well be able to see this if the old oil is allowed to settle in a clear container.
The car needs to be level to get the correct amount in so maybe it was sloping backwards when it was filled previously.

Regards
Keith.
 
Should have been 1.9 litres max, also 'always' best to check if you can loosen the 'filler' plug first before opening the drain plug as a lot of these have become seized, therefore may need drilling out, and if you've drained the oil and are unable to refill it, then you're in trouble!

Sarge
 
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No sign of water in the oil. I did loosen the filler hole first but I'm really glad I didn't remove it as it would have gushed out.

What I do know is that this car had a warranty rebuild around the 30K mark. According to the Audi history, which is a little difficult to decipher, they replaced a big end, con rod and piston, so unless they found a way of filling the gearbox a second time when it was on it's side or from the top, I have no idea how you would manage to accidentally get two measures of oil in. The front was on ramps when I put the 2L in and the last bit still overflowed a little.
 
No sign of water in the oil. I did loosen the filler hole first but I'm really glad I didn't remove it as it would have gushed out.

What I do know is that this car had a warranty rebuild around the 30K mark. According to the Audi history, which is a little difficult to decipher, they replaced a big end, con rod and piston, so unless they found a way of filling the gearbox a second time when it was on it's side or from the top, I have no idea how you would manage to accidentally get two measures of oil in. The front was on ramps when I put the 2L in and the last bit still overflowed a little.
At least it’s sorted now & working better.
 
Should have been 1.9 litres max, also 'always' best to check if you can loosen the 'filler' plug first before opening the drain plug as a lot of these have become seized, therefore may need drilling out, and if you've drained the oil and are unable to refill it, then you're in trouble!

Sarge

I filled from the top with the selector assembly removed. Easy to remove and replace.
 
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