camaroboy14

iTrader: (8)

Hey guys i just wanted to see how ofthen i should change my fluids? like once every year or every six months?
oil every-3 months
trans fluid?
radiator flush?
rear end fluid?
spark plugs change?
fuel filter?
And i also wanted to know what fluids to use to do so..example oil is 5w 30w, trans? rear? and how many quarts you need to do so..and what brands are pretty good ones to use.. thanks for your time ...my car is 02 SS, A4

SOMbitch

iTrader: (8)

When my car was stock I ran GC 0w-30. ALWAYS Dex III (any brand name) in the tranny per my tranny builder AND Yank. Any available synth in the rear and if you have the Eaton unit don't forget the GM additive. The Torsen rear doesn't use the additive

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

It's hard to say without knowing how you use the car. I wouldn't assign specific time requirements to all of those. Some of them only need to be addressed based on mileage, as they don't "age" based on time alone. Fuel filter and spark plugs would be a good example, age alone doesn't matter. For example, you could have spark plugs that are 10 years old and are still just fine, if the car is only driven 1k miles per year.

Also, how often you should change the oil will depend on type (conventional vs. synthetic) and style of driving.

mikedamageinc

iTrader: (49)

Well there's the owners manual, FSM, and Haynes, but I guess you're looking for real world experience, here's mine...

1999 SS M6 240,000 miles, daily driver and weekend drag/Autox about 20,000 miles/year.

Mobil 1 engine 5k or 8k EP
30-35k tranny M1 now redline
Dexcool/distilled mix about 2 years
Diff maybe 50k? M1 now redline.
Power steering maybe 30-35k M1 but next will be redline.
Brake and clutch ATE blue changed when dirty.

ULTIMATEORANGESS

iTrader: (4)

alot does depend on driving habits.


regular racing id change more frequently.


oil for me is 3k. cheap insurance. filters id go by my owners manual. if you have some type of open air intake thatll need periodic maintenance.

camaroboy14

iTrader: (8)

thanks guys..just wondering what was best for my car ...i drive the car maybe 5,000 miles a year...basicly when its a nice day out, or weekends...

JohnS Z28

iTrader: (1)

this is good to know, i just got my 98 z beginning of this summer and will probably put 5k a year on it, (garaged winters) and am approaching 100k miles...any other fluids/maintenance i should know about besides the list above?

vjo90rs8

iTrader: (9)

oil every - every 4k miles (7-9 months)
trans fluid? - every 30k miles or 3-4 years
radiator flush? - did mine at 40k miles and probably do it again at 80k
rear end fluid? - every 12k miles or 2 years
spark plugs change? - every 12-18k miles or 2-3 years (NGK copper plugs)
fuel filter? - every 12k miles or 2 years

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

I've had the same NGK TR55s in my '98 for 7 years (but only ~4500 miles). I pulled one recently, it looked perfect.

I'm still not sure why some people change spark plugs based on a time interval. They don't collect moisture or degrade over time without use like fluids can.

As seldom as I drive this car, I'll probably leave those plugs in for another 15 years.

camaroboy14

iTrader: (8)

thanks guys..this stuff is great to know ..so i can keep up with my car

Carlos2sun

Good luck for you!

BlackScreaminMachine

iTrader: (17)

For me....

Oil- 1 time a year. Unless the car sees over 3k in a season (April till October)

Radiator flush- When I did the cam. In the next 5-7 years or until the next cam goes in.

Rear end fluid- Installed the 12 bolt, when I swapped 4.10's in, and when the rear gets 4.30's

Spark plugs change- Same time as cam, NGK's generally every 12k miles

Fuel filter- 2 years or 10k miles whichever comes first

Trans- M6 Clutch Swap time, A4 every 10k and a filter swap. Auto's are the ones IMO that should get regular changes.

BlackScreaminMachine

iTrader: (17)

Exactly, there are some cars with original diff fluid and it has well over 100k and no issues. All depends.

camaroboy14

iTrader: (8)

That's crazy about the original fluid for 100k miles.. But another question .. How hard is it to change the fuel filter?

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

Not crazy at all. The owners manual doesn't even recommend a diff fluid change for the '99+ Torsen rears. '98 and earlier, with the Auburn/Eaton style, do mention about changing the fluid though.

My '02 still has the stock diff fluid after 101k miles. I don't race the car, it's a stock daily driver, and the rear is doing great (no abnormal noises, posi works fine, etc.).

If you plan to drive the car hard (drag/street/road racing, lots of mods with increased horsepower/torque/rpm), then I would recommend more regular changes.

Not hard at all, unless the tube fitting has become severly rusted. The other end is quick-disconnect, so that's super simple.

camaroboy14

iTrader: (8)

Bump .. I know I asked how often should I change the fluids , I pretty much got that question, now how many quarts/gal do I need for each of these changes? And would royal purple work for trans,and rear diff? Because that's wanna the only good ones we have out here at our store on base..
So how many quarts to change the following?
1)Rear differential-?
2)radiator drain-?
3)trans flush,changing filter and pan gasket too-?
And I already know about the oil so this advice will be great thanks

RevGTO

iTrader: (12)

I changed my first set of TR55's at about 20k and they looked perfect. So I let them go longer this last time. I finally changed them at 35k - couldn't believe it - they still looked perfect. I may go 50k this time.
Good point here. Heavy track use makes a big difference on fluids. Because of lousy weather, I only went once last year, and if it's the same this year, I'll wait 3yrs./24k before changing the tranny fluid and longer for the rear (Amsoil syn 75-140).

camaroboy14

iTrader: (8)

Bumpy gonna get the supplies tomorrow and would like to know

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

1) I think it's about 1.75 quarts, so two should be plenty. Fill it until the fluid is at the bottom of the fill plug.

2) Radiator drain and refill alone will be less than 1 gallon. It's usually about 2/3 to 3/4 of a gallon when I do mine. If you want to flush the whole system, you'll need a couple gallons.

3) A complete trans system flush will require 2-3 gallons of fluid. The converter, trans case and lines all contain a lot of fluid. If you plan to do just a pan drop and filter change though, then 4 quarts should cover it.