Castrol Gear Oil

[malcolm]

Came across an unopened 25litre drum of EP80 GL4 Hypoy light gear oil at work, been in the back of a store a considerable time by the amount of dust on it.
Any thoughts on using this for the gearbox as i need to change oils anyway.
I know it should be ep90 but seems a shame to not use it.
 

[2286]

Chances are that is will need a good agitating as it will have settled out if its been sat for an age.

Other than that if the drum base has not rotted due to contact with the floor should be usable depending on application you have in mind.

[Wittsend]

I agree ^^^

If the drum is sealed, if when you pour out a sample it's syrupy yellow and smells strongly of sulphur - go for it.
Lucky you ...

[malcolm]

Thanks, poured it into a bucket then into 25 litre plastic drum, colour seemed good and had the rancid gear oil smell.

[Leon]

If it is Hypoid oil, then i would not be using it in my gearbox. There is a lot of yellow metal in the GB.

[Worf]

If it is Hypoid oil, then i would not be using it in my gearbox. There is a lot of yellow metal in the GB.

As it is GL4, surely that will be fine

[Wittsend]

A rather strange decision there ^^^

EP90 GL4 spec oil is exactly what Land Rover recommended.

Are you sure you've not mixed it up with the later GL5 spec oil which is said to be not so good for phosphobronze components in the gearbox


 

[malcolm]

here's a pic it is GL4

[Adam1958]

I've often wondered about using an 80w EP oil, if 90 was an oil recommended for every series vehicle globally, then there must be a huge margin of error built in? Would it would follow that a lower viscosity should be fine in our cooler climate?

[Clifford Pope]

If it is Hypoid oil, then i would not be using it in my gearbox. There is a lot of yellow metal in the GB.

There is confusion over the difference between hypoy and hypoid, caused I think by Castrol using the former as a brand name. Hypoid refers to the kind of gears - ie spiral bevels in axles, specifically those where the prop shaft is not in line with the axle shafts.

GL4 is not a hypoid gear oil, despite being called Hypoy.
GL5 is a hypoid oil, unsuitable for older gearboxes because the phosphorous additive which is what makes it especially slippery and able to withstand high sliding pressure also has the property of attacking bronze, used in older transmissions.

[Wittsend]

Yes, It should be OK in our climate. I bet the "difference" between 80W and 90W would be hard to detect.

Many/some owners use 140W EP oil to help "quieten down" noisy gearboxes and overdrives. And the thicker oil is sometimes used in leaky swivels and steering boxes, before people resort to "liquid grease" 

Recently (been available for some years) to the market has come a multigrade EP 80W90 oil - giving the best of both worlds

[Alan Drover]

The standard Rover axle pinion meshes with the crown wheel in the 3 o'clock position whereas the pinion on the Salisbury axle is lower down giving a lower floor line (like on my MGB GT). The Rover pinion is a straight mesh with the crown wheel whereas the Salisbury is a sliding mesh and therefore needs an oil to withstand the sliding of the crown wheel and pinion.

[2286]

here's a pic it is GL4

Someone has an empty can like yours for sale on the auction site for £40

So you get the oil and return your empties, corona pop style!