Nissan Patrol 4x4 (Africa)

Posts relating to what goes on inside the swivel hubs were moved here.

Gerrit, any news on Transfer case oil yet.?
Type of oil that is?

Koos, I spoke with Jaco (the workshop manager, I think) at Imperial Nissan in Empangeni. He says that the Patrols don't all have ATF in the transfer case and that they replace the oil with gear oil if gear oil was in there and ATF if it was ATF.

The workshop manual mentions ATF for the transfer case or API-GL-4 gear oil as an alternative. Looking at the viscosity chart in the manual, it looks as though SAE 75W90 or SAE 80W90 would be ideal if going the gear oil route.

I asked Jaco which ATF they use and he said it is not that important which one, as long as it is a DEXRON III type oil . They use a Total product.

Gear oil has a characteristic smell and is quite thick when cold, while ATF is normally thinner when cold and has a red colour, so you should be able to identify what is in your transfer case at the moment.

I hope that helps.

Thx Gerrit, for your info.
But this is excactly what makes me dedonner in. The agents always speak with a fork tongue. Surely the Japs has designed the gearbox and transfer for a specific oil.The story about they replace with whats in there , I cant buy that, its sounds like the Service manager knows nothing about the Patrol anyway.
The Landies had the same problem with gearbox oils, so many guys put the wrong stuff and bang!!!!. The manufacturer and the agents some times dont communicate the right bulletins ect for a specific model between them.

Gerrit, I am still not sure , what are you going to do ATF or gear oil?

Koos, in all fairness the manual does say ATF or GL-4, so both should work. I have heard that on some Patrols the automatic front wheel hubs sometimes tend to engage themselves (or partially engage themselves) even in 2H with gear oil in the transfer case. I assume this is because the thick gear oil causes sufficient drag to spin the front propeller shaft, which fools the auto hubs into starting to engage. This can damage the auto hubs and can be solved by using ATF.

I must say that I am not sure what to do either, but I am leaning towards getting a high quality DEXRON III ATF. I am not planning on changing the transfer oil immediately (my Pajero is coming up to its 180000 km service and I am going to drain and change every fluid in every system on it, so it is costing me quite a bit; the Patrol will get its turn, but not right now...), so I am going to do some more research. I will let you know what I decide.

Hi Gerrit,

Have you finished your research yet and which oil did you use?

John, I don't think the transfer case is that particular about the type of ATF used as long as it conforms to the Dexron III specification. Actually, strictly speaking, Dexron III is not a specification as such. It is actually a General Motors trademark, but GM licensed several manufacturers to produce ATF that could be branded Dexron. Many other manufacturers (especially in Japan) decided to design their vehicles to use the GM Dexron oils. Dexron III was superseded in 2006 and GM does not currently license anyone to produce Dexron III, but many manufacturers are still making the same products that they used to and they are therefore still Dexron III equivalents.

We have used a synthetic ATF from Castrol (Transmax Z) to good effect in the vehicles we build at work (earthmoving machines). I was thinking of using this fluid when changing the transfer case oil, but I have not done so.

Thanks Gerrit. I've got 120K now on my 4.8 and is planning to change all the drive train oil and grease bearings and knuckles.

I used gear oil for my transfer case (must check what type, know it was GL-4 as the manual says), I think the concerns as Gerrit mentioned may be more warranted in colder climates where the viscosity of the oil may be affected which shouldnt be too much of a concern here in SA. As yet no issues and smooth as can be

Hi There, I once asked Nissan for lubricants on my X-Trail and this is what they send me. May be it should help. The Part number KLE22-0004 they referred to seems to be a Japanese Type of oil, don't think that it will be available here. It is a ATF Type D oil, thus, Dexron III or Mercon will do the job.