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inside the single speed T-case is a Chain and a small 4 pinion differential to split the power front to rear . and a combination of ball bearings and needle bearings to support internals. gear oil may be a bit much for a basic splash lubrication design, and may not match the clearances of the internal parts.
My theory with the light weight engine oil and a slight overfill is to submerge the internals in lube.
So I ordered Transfer Case MB Fluid 001989230310 and the fluid was gold in color
Only realized this after I pumped the fluid in hopefully it's okay.. what do you guys think ??
yep this is the Wrong Fluid it should be RED not gold I am going to drain and Refill with Fuchs TITAN ATF 4134
glad I didn't drive the car.
So I ordered Transfer Case MB Fluid 001989230310 and the fluid was gold in color
Only realized this after I pumped the fluid in hopefully it's okay.. what do you guys think ??
yep this is the Wrong Fluid it should be RED not gold I am going to drain and Refill with Fuchs TITAN ATF 4134
glad I didn't drive the car.
The fluid I got it's not wrong per say! when I searched parts stores online that's the fluid that is recommended for my year and model but I remember when I drained the oil it came out dark so I was thinking damn that oil is really dirty since the oil i put in was pale/gold in color. Then happened to review this thread last night and was thinking the oil should be dark since it's RED ATF fluid..
Sure, this is about as easy as it gets. The two diffs use a gear oil, though MB states that they are both slightly different weights and neither one of those weights are commonly available. I used Mobil 1 Synthetic 75 W 90 in both; if it's good enough for the diff in my race car, it's good enough in a GL that doesn't see a fraction of the stress. It's worth mentioning that when you choose your fluid, keep in mind that these are limited slip differentials (LSD) and require a friction modifier to keep the LSD discs happy. Mobil 1 contains a friction modifier but some others may not (Red Line, for instance sells both with and without.) A quick learning opportunity: with a vehicle raised, you can tell if it has an LSD by turning one of the wheels. If the other wheel turns in the opposite direction, you have LSD. If it moves in the same direction, you don't..
For some reason just read the thread. You got it wrong... the gl (and most mb vehicles) have open diffs. And limited slip spins both wheels the same way. Open diff spins them in opposite direction.
ok ,over 3000 miles clocked since fluid change, using Synthetic engine oil and over filled by 1 qrt. no leaks no issues.
i am trying synthetic 75/90 gear oil in mine
so far no explosions
i will update as the miles go on
i have been changing my fluid at every oil change, its only half a quart so next oil change i will dump the gear oil and inspect its condition
Something to think about if you're replacing transfer case fluid....<br /><br />Apparently yes the correct level is 0.5L (half a quart approximately). But some have said that this is NOT enough fluid for the system and it runs partially dry. I'm sure with a few minor leaks over time you don't have great lubrication inside the unit.<br /><br />It was said that 0.7 to 0.8L is a much better level. You can apparently not easily overfill these things and it wouldn't do too much damage unless way overfilled (ie. 1.0 liter or more)<br /><br />I had my transfer case changed and new fluid put in. But next time I am changing the fluid myself, I'll be putting in 0.75L<br /><br />Just something to think about if you're doing the job...
<br />I tried this, filled up .7 and a day later opened up to see how things were and there was huge pressure built up, it literally swooshed when the fill plug was opened, it will cause leaks from orings, ended up draining to spec level
I did both diffs and the transfer case on my 2012 GL350 this weekend while I was doing the 50,000 mile oil service. The job is easy and probably took 25 minutes for all three, though access to the fill hole on the transfer case is annoying as you have to route the fill tube over the obstruction. The transfer case fluid was filthy so I'm going to move the change interval up to 20,000 miles. The rear diff is annoying too as it is blocked by the exhaust (I had to use a Allen key and now I'm definitely ordering those low profile Allen sockets I've been eyeing). After staring at it it's dawned on me that the dual exhausts on this car are completely superfluous and that a single exhaust would have allowed them to design the DEF tank differently and fit a spare tire in there. Hans and Franz seem more concerned with fashion than practicality.
Here's photos:
Front Differential:
Rear Differential:
Transfer Case:
Any idea whether this is the same set up on the 08 GL550?
My understanding regarding diff changes (not sure about TC) is that the vehicle should be on level ground.
As soon as oil starts to drip out of the fill hole, its at the proper level.
So I ordered Transfer Case MB Fluid 001989230310 and the fluid was gold in color
Only realized this after I pumped the fluid in hopefully it's okay.. what do you guys think ??
yep this is the Wrong Fluid it should be RED not gold I am going to drain and Refill with Fuchs TITAN ATF 4134
glad I didn't drive the car.
<br />I tried this, filled up .7 and a day later opened up to see how things were and there was huge pressure built up, it literally swooshed when the fill plug was opened, it will cause leaks from orings, ended up draining to spec level
I just changed the fluids in my diffs and transfer case.
With everything cold, I decided to open the transfer case fill plug to get an idea of how much fluid was in the case from the factory.
I experienced the same thing that you described, there was a "swoosh" and the fluid literally poured out via a steady stream.
When I refilled the case, I kept adding until there was a slow stream of fluid coming from the fill hole, still less than the original stream but more than a drip.
I doubt I overfilled it as there is still 500ml of fluid in the bottle.
Too bad it didnt occur to me earlier, I should have first opened the fill bolts on the diffs as well.
Better yet, I should have measured the amount of drained fluids.
With the differentials, I simply added fluid until there was a slow drip.
At 25k mles, differential fluids were both muddy. Transfer case/ATF fluid was dark but still had a reddish tint.
ETA: Be carful when tightening the transfer case bolts. Apparently its not very difficult to crack the aluminum cases.
I did both diffs and the transfer case on my 2012 GL350 this weekend while I was doing the 50,000 mile oil service. The job is easy and probably took 25 minutes for all three, though access to the fill hole on the transfer case is annoying as you have to route the fill tube over the obstruction. The transfer case fluid was filthy so I'm going to move the change interval up to 20,000 miles. The rear diff is annoying too as it is blocked by the exhaust (I had to use a Allen key and now I'm definitely ordering those low profile Allen sockets I've been eyeing). After staring at it it's dawned on me that the dual exhausts on this car are completely superfluous and that a single exhaust would have allowed them to design the DEF tank differently and fit a spare tire in there. Hans and Franz seem more concerned with fashion than practicality.
If you have GL then this is the wrong number for transfer case oil I think. At least the correct number for 2009 GL is A001989680313. This is what my local dealer sold me as well. I attached MB spec from the manual as well listing the old number
Mercedes maintains ATF fluid list 236.14. The older list you attached 236.12 was superseded for X164. Follow the online link to check the updated spec sheet. Frequent updates.
Torque spec for the drain plug is 22 ft-lbs (30 Nm).
03-26-2017, 08:45 AM
