selespeed oil

[ozchips]

I have bought some dextron 3 for the selespeed , as I have read here that it is a substitute for the tetula .
Now my alfa 156 has just over 150k's on it . It has been logbook serviced (I have only had it for around 2000k's)
However I do not know what type of atf fluid they used in the selespeed .
question is if it is a fully synthetic in there , can i just top it up with the dextron , or should I drain it first ?
that said when the 160k service is due I was going to do a major service including timing belt just for my own piece of mind (even though the book said it was done at 120000)
Is it ok to mix the fluids unitl then or should I not mix synthetic and mineral at all ?
remember i have no idea what sort of atf fluid they used in the last service and the oil level is just slightly the minimum
thanks all

[dehne]

hi there is the fluid going into the small bottle on the lhs near the guard, i also dont think the used atf as it is technically a manual car and has a hydrolic clutch. if it is the selespeed oil that goes near the gaurd you can mix the oils but be very sure it is compatable and that you got it from a dealer/specialist and NOT supercheap as they have an oil but noone would recomend it for thye sele

[ozchips]

yes the main filler on the guard
what i got was Penrite ATF DX-III
i just remember reading somewhere here that dextron 3 was a substitute . I am just a littel concened about mixing a mineral based with probably a synthetic fluid since the selespeed is the one thing on the car that costs to replace nearly as much as the car

[dehne]

where did you get the oil from. do not under any circumstance put atf fluid in here as you need the right stuff. ill check mine later as i have some in my car but do not do anything until then

[ozchips]

i bought it from autobarn
thinking penrite is a good brand
however , like I say once I realised it was mineral based i starting having reservations .
Do not worry there is NO way I will do anything unitl i get some good advice
if i cannot use it , i can always keep for the ride on mower lmao

[wankski]

ok, first of all 2 different oils are used in the selespeed system.

1) around .6l of tutela cs is spec'd for the actuator unit. This is a shear fluid used to actuate the 3 servos to operate the conventional manual box.

2) manual gear fluid. - 75W90. Yep, regular manual oil used to lubricate the gears in the conventional gearbox (preference for fully synth GL5 .

1 is for the actuator 2 is for the gearbox. two separate things...

further, one of those things that has not been settled, but the tutela cs is a branded dextron III ATF...  any dextron III should be an able substitute for tutela (which is fully synthetic). Since u only use 1 lt bottle, there is really no excuse to skimp, just grab it from the dealer. That said, u may have success with dextron III.

I'm not going to make an assertion for you, but save to say, consider the fact that the actuator utilises the ATF for a medium of hydraulic pressure only, such that question of thermal stability and 'lubrication' is not such an important consideration - so i'll leave the question as to brand and quality up to you...  If you need to grab something off the shelf that has high spec that would likely be a close match for tutela, perhaps redline d4 ATF is the go.

[ozchips]

yes it is the one for the actuator , the filler on the guard
I will pop down and get some dot 4 , that is synthetic and aslightly higher grade
would you guys think that would be more sutied ? or has anyone here used a good quality dot 3 before ?

[dehne]

Well i dont think any of us have been game to use anything other than the recomended oil as we are all happy with the extra money in our pockets and not at a servie provider, we all have been waiting for someone who is game enough to try one of the auto shop's fluids and if that is you thats great, i do very much hope that it works fine for you and you do not have any probs please let us all know how it goes and if all works well the administraters should bump you up to GOD status for a few weeks

[ozchips]

I will do some more research and if I find I am not totally happy with what i find I will get the tetula
that said I am an adventerous type of bloke and like to experiment
some of the bizzare stuff i did when I restored my austin a30 lol
actully come to thinkabout it , maybe i should not be so adveterous , my austin exploits I think only about 20% worked haha
anyway thanks for the all the helpful advice and watch this page

[wankski]

what? brake fluid for the selespeed?

NO.

if you want off the shelf stuff use dextron III ATF, preferably synthetic... NOT brake fluid.

ATF also works for your PS reservoir... so it wont be wasted...

dot 4 goes in your brake reservoir...

[Park147]

I suggest you change your timing belt as soon as is practical - get it done tomorrow- every 60000 or 3years is what is recommended, I've just paid dearly for 16 smashed valves and valve guides!! You are running on luck if you have left it for 120000.

[ozchips]

the logbook has it as done at 120 000 klicks , but I amgetting it done againat 160000 for my ownpiece of mind

sorry aboutthe dot 4 , I did mean like a penrite dx 4 or something if there is one , i just remember them saying there is afullsynthetic , but no stock thet time

wanski , you have used substitutes ?  did you find any problems ?

[ozchips]

popped off an email to penrite a couple of days ago and I recieved a reply saying they do make an oil suitable for the exact model (i sent them all details of the car) apperently suitable for all selespeed boxes in most makes
They are going to send me another email with the specs sheet etc
will post it when I get it

[John Hanslow]

Not wanting to say something a bit obvious, but can you buy a bottle of selepeed oil from an Alfa Romeo dealer in your state ?

Or is it practicallity and value you are going for ?

[ozchips]

more the practicality than anything else , I live about 100 klicks from the nearest dealership and our posatal service is not that reliable

also just because I like to learn everything I can about something and find it hard to believe there is no substitute so you could say I am on a mission
I did find out there is a Redline product , but also hard to get and cost the same as the tetula anyway

If i find nothing at all , I will just make a trip of it one day and get some other bits and pieces