Gearbox oil

[Colin C]

When starting the car from cold, the gearbox is extremelly clunky & tight ie. I have to fight with it to get it in gear (especially 2nd & 3rd). As the car drives for a few minutes this problem fades away & after about 4->5 mins is gone. Has anyone else had similar probs? I know the guy I bought it from changed the gearbox oil a few months before I bought it. If the wrong grade oil was put in would it cause this problem. I was thinking maybe the oil was too thick at lower temps. What is the correct oil to use? & lastly how do I go about changing it? All advice welcome.

By the way it is a manual GPX.

[MAC 1]

Hi Colin,
yes the wrong grade could cause this and also if the level is low.
Check that first (warm). Because someone said they changed it doesn't necessarily mean they did it correctly.
If it is below the max mark it might be worth topping it up withsomething such as Molyslip or a similar additive just to see if that helps. It's about £5 from any factors.
If it needs a change of oil it is as easy as changing the engine oil.
You will probably want to change the filter too.
I'm sure there is a guide to how to do this on the UK FTOOC

[CJ]

You will probably want to change the filter too.

The manual box doesn't use a filter. IIRC, you need 75W-85 or 75W-90 GL4 gear oil for the manual box, its quite possible that the current level is too low which could be causing the problem. If you use oil thats too thick, it could also cause clunky changes.

Remove the drain plug at the bottom of the box and drain off the old oil, refit and remove the filler plug at the side of the box and refil until the oil level is up to the hole, you'll need just over 2L of oil. If you're gonna attempt this yourself for the first time, I would recommend you download the workshop manuals and follow the process.

CJ

[Mustang]

You will probably want to change the filter too.

Remove the drain plug at the bottom of the box and drain off the old oil, refit and remove the filler plug at the side of the box CJ

Just a minor word of warning, Firstly loosen the filler plug, to ensure you can remove it. Once you are satisfied that you can, then you can remove the drain plug. -You don't want to remove the drain plug, let the oil drain out and then find that for whatever reason you can't open the filler plug to top up the oil.
Note the car should be level, when draining and filling the oil.
The manual gearbox holds 2.2L of oil, Generally gear oil comes in 1L bottles so you will need three. Also these bottles are usually fitted with a straw/nipple arrangement. If not you will need a flexible funnel.
That said this is an easy job.

[MAC 1]

Good point about the filler plug Mustang.

I knew someone who did just that once, discovered the filler nut was rounded after he'd drained it off. Wasn't on an FTO though so not of any consequence really

I didn't notice it was a manual car that the question was about. Having done my auto a couple of months ago I was thinking along those lines I guess.