MG-Cars.info

Welcome to our Site for MG, Triumph and Austin-Healey Car Information.

Parts

MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG TD TF 1500 - Redline MT90

Last week I filled the gearbox with Redline MT90, due to the common sense in this BBS regarding this product.
So far so good. A substantial reduction of noise and I also believe that shifting goes easier.

Jasper
JL Nederhoed

Jasper, How much oil did the gear box take? PJ
Paul S Jennings

Paul, 0,7 liter.
JL Nederhoed

Thanks Jasper. I also want to change my gear box oil to MT90. PJ
Paul S Jennings

Paul -

Check the prices at various vendors. I bought from Jegs for my TF-1500 -- free shipping.

> GEARBOX
Redline MT-90 - #50304. 1.5 pts.
http://www.jegs.com/i/Red+Line+Oil/816/50304/10002/-1

> DIFFERENTIAL
Redline 75w90 (GL5) - #57904 2.7 pts.
http://www.jegs.com/i/Red+Line+Oil/816/57904/10002/-1

Lonnie
TF7211
LM Cook

The wife has Amazon Prime and she ordered me a quart of MT90 for $15.95 and free shipping. PJ
Paul S Jennings

I just read through the specs fod the MT90 and it says there it is explicitly NOT recommended for manual gearboxes, because extremely low friction would damage the synchromesh over time.
Redline has the GL-4 MTL synchromesh oil that is specifically recommended for manual gearboxes and costs about the same.

Rgds Mike
Mike Fritsch

Mike, I think you might want to check your source.

Bud Krueger

The "MT" in MT90 stands for "Manual Transmission"...
Rob Edwards

You are right, the specs in the German ads don't match the original. In that case, both the mt90 and mtl seem to be the right choice (and I don't see much difference).
Thx for pointing to the right source.
Rgds
Mike
Mike Fritsch

Since were on the subject, I just put MT90 in the TF, but my 72 MGB has always been stiff shifting after the transmission was rebuilt. I have always used the recommended 20/50 motor oil in it, how would MT90 work in it, or should I just leave it alone? It has the OD also and would it affect that? Just looking for an easier shift.PJ
Paul S Jennings

You'd probably be happier with MTL in your B. Works a treat!
Rob Edwards

What's the difference between MTL and MT90? PJ
Paul S Jennings

MT 90 made no difference for me.
efh Haskell

I'll preface this by saying I'm still running 90 dinosaur oil in my TD's gearbox, but I also have a Mazda Miata (MX5) in my collection and the consensus on their forums is to run Ford Motorcraft Full Synthetic Manual Transmission Fluid, part# XT-M5-QS, purchased at a local Ford dealer. I replaced the oil in my Miata transmission with the above fluid and let me tell you, the difference was night and day... it was like the veritable 'gearbox rebuild in a can'... the syncros were smoother, bearings ran quieter, shifting was much easier and overall the tranny was like new again.

Here's a link to the Ford stuff. It's the third listing from the top.

http://www.fordparts.com/Products/Chemicals-TransmissionFluids.aspx

And here's a link a discussion of the difference between RedLine and the Motorcraft fluids in the Miata forum:

http://forum.miata.net/vb/showthread.php?t=457325

They seem to think, on the whole, that the Ford stuff is better than RedLine. Can anyone think of a reason not to try it in my gearbox?
Kevin McLemore

It has a API Service GL-4 so it is safe for brass synchros just like Red Line MT-90.

If you look at the typical properties comparing the two, you can see why the Motorcraft oil may be better suited for colder climates based on the responses in that Mazda thread you posted.

https://www.fcsdchemicalsandlubricants.com/main/additionalinfo/Product%20Data%20Sheet%20Full%20Synthetic%20Manual%20Transmission%20Fluid.pdf


http://www.redlineoil.com/product.aspx?pid=46&pcid=7

To answer your question, I do not see why not? Since you have a Mazda and a T series, it will work for both cars and you only have to buy one brand of oil to put on the shelf for the gear box.

Red Line is a great oil. I've put in all the synthetic juice out there to put in my stroker that gets extremely HOT and the used oil tests all prove and make me a believer in Red Line.

Keep in mind, going from a dino oil to Motorcraft or RedLine synthetic in your T-series, or any of synthetic brand with a GL4 rating, you will notice a difference since synthetic motor oil simply out performs dino oil.

A good test is someone who is using RedLine MT90 and to add Motorcraft and report their findings.



Frank Cronin

"to put in my 'stroker' that gets extremely HOT"

Stroker - one of thse terms I've heard since I was a teenager but never wanted to show my ignorance by asking what it means (almost 70 years has cured that fear). So, what is a stroker?

Thanks, Jud
J K Chapin

The gears on my Southbend Heavy 10 lathe generally make a lot of noise, I started using MT-90 and they are noticeably quieter.

Just another use.

Jim B.
JA Benjamin

Jud,

There is no substitute for cubic inches. You can increase displacement by increasing the bore size. Think the TF 1250 to the TF1500.

Stroker is when you increase the crank throw of the piston compared to stock from top dead center and bottom dead center.

Suck, bang, blow.... now that you increased displacement by punching out the jugs - wider -and the throw of the piston - longer (stroker) - you have more cylinder fill of more fuel and air to make more power.

Displacement (cubic inches) = Bore squared X stroke X .7854 X number of cylinders

In my case, why my engine gets real HOT is I increased the bore size to the max and thus I have thinner cylinder walls compared to stock. All that friction with the speed of the piston chugging up and down and the longer throw of the piston in the cylinder makes it very hot.

This is not a T series but an air cooled HD with a 124" ci motor. Stock is 88: ci.

In my own independent opinion of testing my used 20w-50 oil from lab analysis, Red Line performed the best. Heat degrades and breaks down oil. After 5000 miles Red Line still had the viscosity of 50 weight while others got reduced to a 40 weight.

Stroker engines have a ton of torque are great for racing at stop lights, passing a truck on the freeway, and for merging from an on ramp onto an open highway up-shifting at each gear at 5 grand on the tach.

You can easily "bury the needle" on the speedo and it makes me smile. Lots of fun!

Best
Frank Cronin

Great explanation! Thanks. I once traded (just for a day and then backed out of the deal cause it scared me to death) a '65 TR-4A for a raked out '47 HD. Sounded great, rolled down Hwy 15 in Maine beautifully but, as I said, scared the bejeezus out of me.

Jud
J K Chapin

Well, I'd never heard of a "stroker" before so I've learned something new. This thread and a few minutes of Google time taught me a lot. Making a stroker sounds like a lot of work, so my question is: has anyone done this on a T-series? If so, was it worthwhile doing?

This thread has drifted a long way from MT90 oil, so I suppose I should mention that I have it in my trans and for the few miles I have put on my newly-rehabbed car it seem to work well. Shifting is better than I remember from the last time the car was on the road.

Joe
Joe Olson

This thread was discussed between 06/08/2014 and 18/08/2014

MG TD TF 1500 index

This thread is from the archives. Join the live MG TD TF 1500 BBS now