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Oil Change, MTF Change, and Rear Diff. Fluid Change = Noticeable Difference

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Old Jan 21, 2014 | 03:11 PM
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Default Oil Change, MTF Change, and Rear Diff. Fluid Change = Noticeable Difference

2007 350Z Base Manual @ 61k miles

I changed my mtf and rear differential fluid around 59k and just yesterday changed my oil at 61k. (I change my oil every 4k with castrol syntec blend.) I must say, I feel a huge difference when driving. Granted, I don't beat my on my car. In fact, when I changed out my rear diff. fluid, the fluid was still a dark honey color, as opposed to the "black sludge" most people have reported when changing it out. As I have stated in other threads before, I'm too chickensh*t to try my car and I have no shame on being upfront with that. I love my car and I don't want to risk losing it over an adrenaline rush.

Big thanks to Monsta for providing clear DIY instructions! Getting the car up on rhino ramps and to a even level was the hardest part. Since my Z would not drive up the ramps, i raised every corner and slid the ramps underneath the wheels and lowered. (I saw the method of placing 2x4's in front of the ramps, but I don't really trust the strength of wood vs heavy metal.) Once the car was raised evenly, took me about 45 minutes to do everything.

My question is:

On previous cars I've owned, I never really noticed a huge difference in driving after an oil change. Granted I did recently change the MFT and RDF recently, but is it normal to feel a HUGE difference after an oil change?

Last edited by allshownogo; Jan 21, 2014 at 03:13 PM.
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Old Jan 21, 2014 | 03:19 PM
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I just changed my oil on Saturday and I notice no difference at all. It just drives the same as it did and oil pressure is unchanged.
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Old Jan 21, 2014 | 03:22 PM
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Hmmm idk it could be a placebo effect. Where you really think there is a vast change, but really it's minimal.
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Old Jan 21, 2014 | 05:20 PM
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What kind of MTF and diff fluid did you use? Also what did it have in it?
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Old Jan 21, 2014 | 06:44 PM
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Default Oil change

Originally Posted by oldschool350z
Hmmm idk it could be a placebo effect. Where you really think there is a vast change, but really it's minimal.
I too think its a placebo effect as I could swear things feel a lot smoother and freer but I'm probably wrong. I suppose the only time you could feasibly notice a change would be if the oil had not been changed for years and years and you then replaced it with a high quality oil, I think perhaps you'd notice things being a bit smoother.
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Old Jan 21, 2014 | 07:18 PM
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If you don't push the car, what's this huge difference you feel?
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Old Jan 21, 2014 | 09:53 PM
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He probably got some oil on the accelerator pedal.
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Old Jan 22, 2014 | 01:09 AM
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Changing the mt fluid can result in smoother shifting, but changing the engine oil won't....unless it had 20,000 miles on it.
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Old Jan 22, 2014 | 08:55 AM
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Originally Posted by SQuaLZ
What kind of MTF and diff fluid did you use? Also what did it have in it?
got both from nissan. although they gave me genuine nissan mtf, they told me that nissan direct sends them pennzoil for the rear diff. i've called around diffrerent nissan dealerships and they've all said pennzoil as well.

and im gonna assume that the fluids were never changed out before, as i bought her with 16k miles on it.

Originally Posted by Italianjoe1
If you don't push the car, what's this huge difference you feel?
i don't push it in the sense that i don't drive my car the way it was meant to driven (i.e. i baby my car), but i do have fun with it occasionally and comparing pre-fluid change and post-fluid change, there seemed to be a difference.

btw, whether you drive hard or like a granny, if there is a difference, you would be able to tell.

Originally Posted by winchman
He probably got some oil on the accelerator pedal.
and what does that have to do with anything? if there was any oil on the pedal, it would make it slippery, but i would still have control as far as how much or little i push the pedal down....

Last edited by allshownogo; Jan 22, 2014 at 09:25 AM.
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Old Jan 22, 2014 | 05:22 PM
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How many quarts did you need for the rear diff? I have yet to change mine and I'm at 51,000 miles.
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Old Jan 22, 2014 | 05:41 PM
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just over 1qt buy 2, gl5
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Old Jan 22, 2014 | 05:49 PM
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Only thing I "felt" a diff difference in was the mtf w the smoother shifting on 1-2-3 gears, others didn't make a diff at all

And I got GL-5 mtf from nissan. Didn't state anything about Pennzoil. Rear I used amsoil
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Old Jan 23, 2014 | 01:30 PM
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Originally Posted by oldschool350z
How many quarts did you need for the rear diff? I have yet to change mine and I'm at 51,000 miles.
just over a qt. i kept filling until it started dripping out of the fill hole. once it started dripping out, i waited until it stopped dripping and plugged.

just make sure you get the correct grade and weight, as well as the car being leveled when you do change it. really easy process man and cheap insurance.

Originally Posted by taywan
Only thing I "felt" a diff difference in was the mtf w the smoother shifting on 1-2-3 gears, others didn't make a diff at all

And I got GL-5 mtf from nissan. Didn't state anything about Pennzoil. Rear I used amsoil
gear shifting for me was the same, pre- and post-fluid change.

and yes, i did get nissan mtf, but for rear diff fluid it was pennzoil. did you get amsoil via nissan or somewhere else?
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Old Jan 23, 2014 | 03:58 PM
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Have couple friends at Nissan for the MTF. Rear diff was from a local amsoil dealer.
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Old Jan 23, 2014 | 05:06 PM
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I used redline in my trans, and it's smoother now than it was with the OEM stuff.
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Old Jan 28, 2014 | 05:05 PM
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I think he is kidding about this..

This is a joke right???
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Old Jan 29, 2014 | 01:02 AM
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^Not about the trans fluid.
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Old Jan 29, 2014 | 10:53 AM
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Originally Posted by striker27
I think he is kidding about this..

This is a joke right???
are you asking if changing out the fluids makes the car run better is a joke?
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Old Nov 7, 2018 | 06:20 AM
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Redline MT85 is a synthetic GL-5 lubricant that has enough friction engineered in to allow syncros to function properly. Depending on how well a Z shifted when first purchased, a change to MT85 could result in a net gain in function.
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