Post by mctweety on Sept 23, 2009 12:45:07 GMT -5
Ok, I bought my 2000 Montero Sport no too long ago and because there was no maintenance record I just started to do all the important maintenace and repairs myself. I did the timing-belt and water pump first, then the front suspension (new upper arms, ball-joints, wheel bearings, rotors) and have now completed changing all the oils.
I spent quite a bit of time finding all the right oils. I thought this research could be of interest to other Montero Sport owners, so here's the summary.
Engine oil
There are so many brands to choose from that there's no point listing those. For most climates a 10W-30 will be perfect. I prefer synthetic oils. "High mileage" (75,000+ miles) oils should work as well, although I have never seen a huge benefit from those.
Transmission oil
I guess everybody knows (or should know) that the Montero Sport, like most Mitsubishis, needs SPIII transmission fluid. I would not recommend switching to anything else and definitely not if you still have any kind of warranty. Although some people have had good results with other products, others have seen their trannies die. Maybe they would have died with SPIII as well, but at least you know it wasn't the oil.
My dealer charged $200 for a complete transmission flush with Diamond SPIII. You can buy quarts at about $7 if you want to change out the fluid yourself, or need to fill up.
If you really want to try something else (because it's cheaper or because you can not find SPIII anywhere), you could try one of the oils below. They are "suitable" for automatic transmissions that require Diamond SPII or SPIII. Do not read this wrong: the manufacturers claim their oils are suitable, but that does not mean the oils are approved by Mitsubishi!
Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF
www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Other_Products/Mobil_1_Synthetic_ATF.aspx
Mobil Multi-Vehicle ATF
www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Other_Products/Mobil_Multi-Vehicle_ATF.aspx
AMSOIL Synthetic ATF
www.amsoil.com/storefront/atf.aspx
Castrol Import Multi-Vehicle
www.castrol.com/castrol/sectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=9012226&contentId=7028224
Valvoline MaxLife DEX/MERC ATF
www.valvoline.com/products/consumer-products/automatic-transmission-products/automatic-transmission-fluid/37
Front and Rear differential oil
The Owners Manual specifies 80W-90 GL-5 gear oil. Easy to find. It's probably safe to use 75W-90 as well. I used Valvoline Durablend 80W-90, but many brands have similar gear oils. Here are just a few:
Valvoline High Performance gear oil 80W-90 GL-5 (mineral)
www.valvoline.com/products/consumer-products/grease-gear-oil/gear-oil/61
Valvoline Durablend 80W-90 GL-5 (synthetic blend)
www.valvoline.com/products/consumer-products/grease-gear-oil/gear-oil/62
Valvoline SynPower 75W-90 GL-5 (full synthetic)
www.valvoline.com/products/consumer-products/grease-gear-oil/gear-oil/59
Redline 75W-90 GL-5 (full synthetic)
www.redlineoil.com/product.aspx?pid=133&pcid=4
Amsoil Synthetic gear lube 80W-90 GL-5 (full synthetic)
www.amsoil.com/storefront/agl.aspx
Mobil 1 Syntehtic gear lube LS 75W-90 GL-5
www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Other_Products/Mobil_1_Fully_Synthetic_Gear_Lube_75W-90LS.aspx
Transfer case oil
This turned out to be somewhat of a problem. Mitsubishi specs either "75W-90, 75W-85W or 75W-80W GL-4 hypoid gear oil". They spec GL-4 for a reason. GL-5 products contain certain additives that can damage parts in the transfer case (mostly brass). So I would NOT recommend using a GL-5, even though the DIY section on this website suggests otherwise.
The problem is that I was not able to find this type of oil anywhere in the stores or online. AMSoil (www.amsoil.com/storefront/mtg.aspx) and Redline (www.redlineoil.com/product.aspx?pid=46&pcid=7) both have a Manual Transmission oil that is 75W-90 GL-4. However, Redline warns you not to use these in differentials with hypoid gears, so I still don't trust these oils in my transfer case.
Eventually, I just went to my dealer and it turns out that they use Mitsubishi's own gear oil: 75W-85W GL-4. Unfortunately, it only comes in 5 gallon drums. But my dealer told me to bring in my own can and they just poured 1 gallon in it. Price was about $28 for the gallon, so that's reasonable.
Maybe I am overly concerned using the right oils, but I just want to minimize the risk of failure and I want to get as much life out of the truck as possible. Use the information as you like
I spent quite a bit of time finding all the right oils. I thought this research could be of interest to other Montero Sport owners, so here's the summary.
Engine oil
There are so many brands to choose from that there's no point listing those. For most climates a 10W-30 will be perfect. I prefer synthetic oils. "High mileage" (75,000+ miles) oils should work as well, although I have never seen a huge benefit from those.
Transmission oil
I guess everybody knows (or should know) that the Montero Sport, like most Mitsubishis, needs SPIII transmission fluid. I would not recommend switching to anything else and definitely not if you still have any kind of warranty. Although some people have had good results with other products, others have seen their trannies die. Maybe they would have died with SPIII as well, but at least you know it wasn't the oil.
My dealer charged $200 for a complete transmission flush with Diamond SPIII. You can buy quarts at about $7 if you want to change out the fluid yourself, or need to fill up.
If you really want to try something else (because it's cheaper or because you can not find SPIII anywhere), you could try one of the oils below. They are "suitable" for automatic transmissions that require Diamond SPII or SPIII. Do not read this wrong: the manufacturers claim their oils are suitable, but that does not mean the oils are approved by Mitsubishi!
Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF
www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Other_Products/Mobil_1_Synthetic_ATF.aspx
Mobil Multi-Vehicle ATF
www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Other_Products/Mobil_Multi-Vehicle_ATF.aspx
AMSOIL Synthetic ATF
www.amsoil.com/storefront/atf.aspx
Castrol Import Multi-Vehicle
www.castrol.com/castrol/sectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=9012226&contentId=7028224
Valvoline MaxLife DEX/MERC ATF
www.valvoline.com/products/consumer-products/automatic-transmission-products/automatic-transmission-fluid/37
Front and Rear differential oil
The Owners Manual specifies 80W-90 GL-5 gear oil. Easy to find. It's probably safe to use 75W-90 as well. I used Valvoline Durablend 80W-90, but many brands have similar gear oils. Here are just a few:
Valvoline High Performance gear oil 80W-90 GL-5 (mineral)
www.valvoline.com/products/consumer-products/grease-gear-oil/gear-oil/61
Valvoline Durablend 80W-90 GL-5 (synthetic blend)
www.valvoline.com/products/consumer-products/grease-gear-oil/gear-oil/62
Valvoline SynPower 75W-90 GL-5 (full synthetic)
www.valvoline.com/products/consumer-products/grease-gear-oil/gear-oil/59
Redline 75W-90 GL-5 (full synthetic)
www.redlineoil.com/product.aspx?pid=133&pcid=4
Amsoil Synthetic gear lube 80W-90 GL-5 (full synthetic)
www.amsoil.com/storefront/agl.aspx
Mobil 1 Syntehtic gear lube LS 75W-90 GL-5
www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Other_Products/Mobil_1_Fully_Synthetic_Gear_Lube_75W-90LS.aspx
Transfer case oil
This turned out to be somewhat of a problem. Mitsubishi specs either "75W-90, 75W-85W or 75W-80W GL-4 hypoid gear oil". They spec GL-4 for a reason. GL-5 products contain certain additives that can damage parts in the transfer case (mostly brass). So I would NOT recommend using a GL-5, even though the DIY section on this website suggests otherwise.
The problem is that I was not able to find this type of oil anywhere in the stores or online. AMSoil (www.amsoil.com/storefront/mtg.aspx) and Redline (www.redlineoil.com/product.aspx?pid=46&pcid=7) both have a Manual Transmission oil that is 75W-90 GL-4. However, Redline warns you not to use these in differentials with hypoid gears, so I still don't trust these oils in my transfer case.
Eventually, I just went to my dealer and it turns out that they use Mitsubishi's own gear oil: 75W-85W GL-4. Unfortunately, it only comes in 5 gallon drums. But my dealer told me to bring in my own can and they just poured 1 gallon in it. Price was about $28 for the gallon, so that's reasonable.
Maybe I am overly concerned using the right oils, but I just want to minimize the risk of failure and I want to get as much life out of the truck as possible. Use the information as you like
