jcombs

About 4 weeks ago, I got my 1st vette. A 92 LT1 coupe with 60,000 miles. I am the 3rd owner. Previous owners had changed the oil and filter, but that was about all.

I called the local Chevy dealorship to ask what services needed to be done on the car. They said the first thing was to get the Transmission serviced and the coolant flushed. They said the manual transmission service would run about $300 and they could do it in a day. I looked in the Owners manual and there is nothing in there about that. I also bought the "red" factory service manual off ebay for the 92, and it says that for the manual transmission that no fluid changing service is required. I called a local transmission service place, and they said that there was not really a "service" for that transmission, just to make sure the fluid levels were good and top them off if they were low. They even offered to do that for me for nothing if I would run it by.

So.....here is my questions:
1) Is the manual transmission service something that I need or is the Chevy dealer feeding me a line?

2) What do I really need to do? Brake fluid, Coolant, Power steering, Fuel filter, Clutch fluid or what????


Thanks in advance for the help!

nitecruizer

If was me, I would service the complete vehicle, new oil and filter, change/check transmission and rear end, change new belts, check brake and clutch fluid, check air in tires, then drive to your heart is content.

Cruizer

STL94LT1

You can change the trans oil yourself. There is a drain and fill plug. Shouldn't cost over $30.

clf93lt1

check this site out. http://www.zfdoc.com/ make sure you can get the fill plug out befor you drain it.

9T3VETTE

Good link

USA1LT1

I think I finally got around to having my ZF fluid changed at around 190K.

I'd say just check the fluid level and add any if necessary.

Then drive it like you rented it.

Sunstroked

ZFdoc.

RandyJ75

www.zfdoc.com



First, welcome to the madness.

Lots of good info there. Read up on the problems w/ the clutch hydrulics, good to know about if/when it happens to your car.
Really not a bad idea to change ALL of the fluids in the car, including the brakes, rear diff and clutch

Good luck

Bob89c4

Congrats on your new ride. Servicing the tranny and flushing the coolant on your vette is no big deal, at least it was not on my 89. BUT...do you do your own maintenance on your other vehicles? Do you enjoy working on cars and have a basic set of tools? If not let the dealer do it and enjoy your new ride. Post some pics!

Red Tornado

1rst thing first: NEVER WASTE YOUR BREATH AT A DEALER. $300? for what? they'd probably F up the whole job and tell you "sorry charlie, tough luck". dealers are chock full of retards and a-holes. i wouldn't trust them to tighten an oil filter properly.


i wouldn't bother with the tranny fluid for another 20-30k miles, then change it yourself. get the GM Synchromesh fluid which replaced the original stuff, now obsolete.

NEVRL8T

Another pleasant, insightful post from the master. You are one pessimistic person. Funny how a local Corvette club near me recommend I take my car to a certain local dealer to have the transmission fixed. Never ran better since I have had it serviced there.

tomtom72

Nice ride & welcome to the addiction!

I would suggest that you join a local vette club so you can have the skinny on which shops are C4 friendly....that dealer's service advisor is either unfamiliar with C4's & zf 6spd's or is thinking that a C4's trans is the same as a C5/6 trans.

Ya need 3 qts of fluid as the trans holds 2.2 liters of fluid. The drain & fill plugs are a 17 mm hex, you can buy a 17mm allen wrench and a 17mm box wrench to use to r & r the plugs. Oh, autozone sells a 1/2" drive by 17mm hex socket....but it's tight up there at the fill plug & not much room for the rechet's swing...exhaust is in the way a bit. It's not hard to diy but you have to remember the hex in the plugs are not very deep so you have to pay attention & seat the tool properly & keep it straight....or you damage the plugs. Oh and the rear gear plug is a 3/8" allen wrench, and there is no drain plug for the rear so ya need a suction tool for the drain & refill....don't forget the GM posi additive...two bottles..it's not optional either.

Enjoy your new toy!


Tom

Bigredwing

You guys aren't that far apart. Why not PM "jcombs" the dealers name and he take a drive up to warm the oil and have it serviced?

Bob89c4

On my original post about letting the dealer do it if you did not feel comfortable working on vehicles, I should have included a dealer that you trust or that is highly recommended. I try to do as much as possible on all of my cars!

thebeerman

I took mine to a local trans shop that was recommended when I first got it, seems it cost under a hundred.

Jeffvette

They quoted you a automatic trans service. Not finding a MT service in the time sheet, they figured it would be the same as they probably don't see many Vettes.

It is a good idea when buying a used car to change all the fluids, as you never know when they were done last.

Oil
Coolant
Brake fluid
Trans
Diff
Fuel filter

Unless they can provide you with any receipt showing the last time any of this was done, do it.


Even though the book says there are no service intervals for the diff and trans, do them. Change the fluid out in the trans yearly or every two years. And the diff change out every two. this is also dependent upon how you use/abuse the car.

GREGGPENN

Add power steering fluid to that list.

Also, don't have a shop that wants $300/change do the job. It would be a rip-off.

There's a drain plug and fill plug. If you don't want to do it yourself, pay (and watch) your local "jiffy luber" do it -- especially if you have one you trust. Remove the fill plug first -- to be sure it can be refilled! Then remove drain plug. Takes 2 1/2 qts of GM lube, Castrol synthetic (# on ZF site), or RP/Redline MTF fluids. Take your pick. Do not overtighten after refill. (Don't recall torque specs). I spent more for the Castrol fluid than the labor. Total for Castrol was about $70. Then I went back to the GM. That ran less than $50 -- including the fill.

Lube does break down over time. According to ZFDoc, it only takes about 6k miles or 1 year to degrade. I think ZF recommends 3yr/30k mile service. I posted this last summer after contacting them. At a minimum, I'd follow the later.

gp

Rapid Fred

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hot Rod 90
1rst thing first: NEVER WASTE YOUR BREATH AT A DEALER. $300? for what? they'd probably F up the whole job and tell you "sorry charlie, tough luck". dealers are chock full of retards and a-holes. i wouldn't trust them to tighten an oil filter properly.

Love these "discussions." To abuse a hackneyed phrase, never say NEVER. But, I must lean with HR90 on this one. Odds are an experienced local mechanic you trust is much more likely to treat you fairly and do good work for you vs. a dealer mechanic. But, folks in the local clubs are a great source of info about who can be trusted.

In any event,buy the Helms manual and check this forum for advice before getting any significant work done. Information is power